Basic Obedience & Manners Training
Ready. Set. Train.
We specialize and are known for our 1 month general obedience course. While your Fur Baby is here with us they will be taught the following….
1. Reduce and /or eliminate their desire to jump on you or your friends and guest during those exciting moments of greeting.
2. Learn how to sit on command and remain sitting without the use of the word “stay”. This is crucial! We put an emphasis on this even walking away to a distance.
3. We learn something called the “place” command for easy control over your dog. Example “a dog bed” would be considered home base to go to and remain on comfortably until called upon.
4. We learn to heel on a leash with you on your walking adventures. You should now be able to walk with your dog at your side without any resistance, tugging, or pulling. Example: When you stop walking, the dog stops with you. When you start walking, the dogs walks with you at your pace. When you turn, the dog turns with you.
5. We learn the word “NO” extremely well. This is crucial for correcting any and everything we may do wrong in the future.
6. We learn the recall command “here” which is crucial in all situations for your dog to willingly return to you upon being called.
7. Food Aggression And Getting Along With Others. While we do not offer programs strictly for aggressive dog correction. We do put an emphasis on correcting dogs being vocal and hostile with fellow pups around food. This is important for families with multiple pets.
Retriever Program
Our Commitment to making memories that will last a lifetime.
In our retriever program we accept the following breeds.
1.Labrador Retriever
2.Boykin Spaniel
3. Golden Retriever
4.Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever
5. Chesapeake Bay Retriever
We require that your dog be at least 4 months old to begin and provide proof of puppy vaccinations.
All dogs must complete our general obedience course then they roll into our retriever program from there! We offer our “gun dog” program which is a standard setting and length for your hunting needs. This typically last 4-5 months depending on your dogs abilities, desire to retrieve, and will to take on the tasks at hand. We consider this an excellent way to start your dogs career off as your valued hunting companion.
Our advanced program is recommended for those dogs of more age and who have been through our gun dog program, successfully hunted with his owner, and returning to advance their skills. This is an additional 2 months or more.
Testimonials
Here’s What They’re Saying
I cannot thank Duck Down Retrievers enough for the constant reassurance that Nova was in the best loving hands, progress pictures/updates, and treating my girl as if she was one of their own. With that being said, I truly cannot recommend Shawn Chatham Jr. enough for all of your pup’s needs. The most responsive, honest, and genuine guy that made these few weeks away from Nova a breeze. Shawn and his sweet family welcomed us from the very first day with wide open arms into the program. We can’t thank y’all enough!
Shawn worked with our beloved 8 month old mastiff, Leo on improving his manners and obedience training. Shawn is a terrific trainer and we are so pleased he was recommended to us. Shawn was kind, soft spoken, patient and gentle with our big boy. Recommend 100% Duck Down Retrievers and Shawn!!!!
Shawn, thank you so much for turning our little terror Keeley into a well behaved girl. At DDR Keeley had a safe place to run, socialize with other dogs and learn commands. I highly recommend Duck Down Retrievers.
This review is long overdue and we apologize for that, but we promised we would (and we wanted to!) and we try our best to help out when and where we can especially small, local business such as this one, so here goes….We can not thank Shawn enough for the exceptional work he put in with training our lab mix 1 yr old, Batman (if you’re wondering, our 4 yr old named him🤣). Shawn is not only very professional and awesome at what he does, but he is down to earth, as well. We never once worried about Batman while he was in Shawn’s care. He kept us updated often on how he was doing not only in the progression of his training, but, also, with how he was handling the transition of not being with his family while in his care. It’s been over a month since we picked him up, and Batman continues to improve with the commands he learned. If I had to, I’m not sure I could choose just one favorite thing about this experience, although one of them would definitely be the videos Shawn sends before it’s time for pick-up. These videos he sends shows everything learned while in training so that we can refer back to them if needed (certain wording for different commands, etc). Shawn, WE CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH for not only training Batman, but for taking such great care of him while in you’re care. We will definitely be using you again for our other pups 🐶 and we have recommended you to all our friends and acquaintances looking and talking about hiring a dog trainer. God bless! (Home pics and videos provided. Notice in the video, even with his dog “brother/bff” barking in the back ground and the cats walking around, he didn’t move until I commanded him to☺️)
We sent our Boykin who was VERY EXCITABLE, to a fault, to Shawn for training. She was there 4 weeks and came home following her commands perfectly and still is doing them well at home. She has also calmed down significantly and is a different dog altogether. For the better! We went out there once or twice during her stay and when she had issues with the food, he let us know immediately and we brought her food to her. Would 10/10 recommend for your hunting dogs and family pets!
Willow is home and for the first time in her life I was able to place her on a bed and eat our dinner in peace without her trying to be right up under us. I cannot say enough kind words or thank yous to Shawn Chatham Jr. Duck Down Retrievers. He has done a phenomenal job with our girl and I recommend him to anyone looking to get some training for your pup. (He also has some puppies still available, check out his page for more information!) thank you thank you thank you Shawn. It has been a pleasure doing business with you and meeting your sweet family
Thank you Duck Down Retrievers Shawn Chatham Jr. our babies were not the type to listen before we sent them for training! Now I can 100% say they do so much better with sitting and staying, place, heel, as well as no and here! Prime example Nova (husky mix) used to door bolt really bad and we live on a busy street which could have been a nightmare!! She got out the other day and what normally would have been a frantic attempt to get her back was no issue at all she slipped out of her collar and my fiancé said “Nova, no, here!!” To his surprise she did not hesitate to come straight to him! We appreciate you greatly! 10/10 recommend!!
I can’t compliment her recent trainer enough on how well Sassy behaves on her leash. She is VERY attached to me, but let Way walk her after her vet visit this morning. She stayed calm, did her business and listened to him give her commands.🥰🥰I highly recommend Duck Down Retrievers.
I Would like to say thank you to Shawn Chatham Jr. at Duck Down Retrievers for all the work he has put into Georgia. She is my 5 month old lab and Shawn has her well on her way to be a great retriever. She just finished the obedience class and she will be returning in late December for gun dog academy. If you or anyone you know is looking for someone to take your dog that extra step give Shawn a shout you will not be disappointed. He also does regular obedience, and blood trailing. He has a great setup on a beautiful property. Can’t wait to see what he can do with her in December.
We had the most amazing experience with DDR. Our pup is a totally different pup. He is so well behaved now. DDR did a great job with staying in contact with us during his training and offered several tips to help continue having a successful obedient pup once at home. 5 stars for sure! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Big thanks to DuckDown Retrievers for their obedience program!!!! Champ is definitely a new dog!!!! No more jumping, biting, running from me,etc!!! He was well taken care of also!!! He’s heeling at my left side, obeying every command!!!! Thank you Shawn over at Duck Down Retrievers for the help!!! Now I feel much better about leaving going over the road, trucking, with an obedient pup like Champ!!! Wife still in disbelief!!! Never could grill steaks before, without him terrorizing the cooking table!!! Got a wild one, call Shawn Chatham Jr. over at Duck Down Retrievers!!! He’ll get the job down!!!
If you were wondering whether Duck Down Retrievers was worth the money. Let me show you. Before Rocky went to them he would have been jumping all over Stella and biting at her. After four weeks of basic training we now have a well behaved 5 month old Dobie and Stella is not afraid of Rocky any more. It was well worth the money and time away from us to have this atmosphere in our home. Thanks again duck down retrievers.
I’ve been holding off saying anything about Duck Down Retrievers until I’ve had time to spend with each dog. Shawn Chatham Jr. trained our golden retriever in general obedience and duck training….Maeve has made an absolute turnaround for the better! Instead of biting us, she is really fun to be around now. The boys are so excited to take her next duck hunting season🦆! While we were there we came across one of his puppies…yall. This puppy is awesome! I don’t even like labs that much but (🔫) Barrett is amazing. Can’t wait to have her trained by Shawn as well! If he has any puppies left for sale, you need to get one! 😍 I highly recommend and I am thankful for his experience in training!
Get In Touch
Here at DDR we are a family driven operation, and your dog is like family to us from the time they arrive onward. We understand your care, concern, and needs for your individual pup. That’s why we supply and take advantage of top quality kennel housing, climate control, and staff on hand to tend to your dog throughout the day. We believe in the seriousness of improving your dogs behavior but also put a major emphasis on them enjoying the overall experience while here with their fellow trainees. Let us make life easier on you and your best bud!
Contact Us
At DuckDown Retrievers, we strongly believe that it’s never too late to change our pet’s behavior. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Please visit our Facebook page for weekly updates on what’s going on!
Clinton, Ms
6015025849