Hunt tests - Why not?
 
 After many years of training my own dogs, I was intrigued by the suggestion of joining a
  retriever club. Why not? Seeing what a well trained dog really was capable of doing quickly
  turned into a passion. At that time, Kwick Licorice was 3 years old and was doing very well
  at hunting pheasants. She could do Started HRC (with a little work). After refining her
  retriever obedience and teaching the skills of correctly bringing the bird to hand, a few
  things became obvious. Lick was a very good started dog, but she was very entrenched in
  the uplands. Since I was severely "bitten by the games bug", an idea for a new pup was
  born. The search began, and about a year later, Kwick Taffey was introduced to Kwick
  Licorice.  What fun!

Training Focus - "Every Day, In Some Way"  When Taffey arrived, one thing became very clear......being retired makes it much easier   to train. The focus would be on.....What is quality training? I bought a book by Dobbs and a   retriever manual by Paul & Julie Knutson. These gave me the information for a good start.   I had joined Badger State HRC. Later, I added a book by Milner and the Lardy tapes.   How's that for perspective? After purchasing several back issues of The Retriever Journal   and saving countless "posts" from forums on the Internet, I began to work on a sequential   program. Every day, in some way, training sessions were planned with the following as   structure........to have fun, to teach, to practice, to build, and to develop. This focus   would produce a confident, learning mode dog out of a talented and willing pup. What fun!        Letting Go Can Be A Good Thing!  (fall 2003)   In today's world the human mind was not designed to deal with all the possibilities which   confront us. Training that first "gamer" to reach advanced levels becomes a challenging task   when there are other things to do besides train. In this first venture, we were two students   depending on each other to grow at a harmonious rate.  Everyone understands the concept   of being able "to read your dog", but the thoughtful trainer must be careful to "step outside"   themselves to examine their own progress.  I did, and reached this conclusion...............Taffey   and I were not on the same page. Together we earned six titles plus a finished pass, but that's   not enough.  I worked, climbed and struggled until things became mediocre (relatively   speaking).  I believe this is a variation of  "Peter's Principal".   I decided to take some R & R and let Taffey get a different perspective. On August 28th, she   went to a pro trainer friend of mine. The immediate understanding was she needed to adjust   to being on a pro's truck, be evaluated for talent and if that all worked out then run in a few   tests through October. Fine tuning was the ultimate goal. It is a very unusual feeling to drop   off a dog that was so much a part of every day for three solid years.   But you know................letting go can be a good thing!  I needed a break. Training was   going sideways, and Taffey needed some different "looks" to challenge her. This seems to   have been a wise choice.  The whole process of producing a learning mode pup was a total   success. Taffey continues to "sponge" up everything and is thriving.  I watched her train with   Brian one day in the middle of September and continue to be amazed at her zest for    everything.  Being on a pro's truck suits her to a "T". In fact, every moment she is awake   seems to be a joy.  Brian did a great job with Taffey and together passed five AKC Master   Hunter tests to get her MH title and as a team earned the HRCH Finished title in HRC.        The lasting lesson was do not run a high drive puppy when they are very young and if the   trainer is inexperienced.  However, the training experiences Taffey has afforded me will   forever have a positive effect on the KwickLab pups to follow. She accomplished much more   for her fortunate owner than was expected from his first "gamer" pup. Now it is on to the   reward of being a fine, finished upland & waterfowl hunter, playing in the pointing division   of shoot-to-retrieve competitions, raising a few puppies and laying in front of the fireplace   dreaming of the next day's venture. Taffey will always be "The One".  What fun!