If you want a trained gundog and want to get the best deal for the money, buy one trained in England. Gundog training tends to be a cottage industry in the UK. Many gamekeepers will start with 2 or 3 puppies and bring them along for a year to 18 months and then sell them. It fits well with their job, and the dogs get wonderful training and usually a season of shooting before they are sold. We at Duckhill acquire all of our imported dogs through our UK affiliate , Robin Watson of Tibea Gundogs. Robin does the scouting and evaluation of the dogs that we import for our breeding program. We have been doing business with him for a number of years and have found him to be a great judge of dogs. We recommend Robin to our customers who wish to import a trained dog from the UK.
UK Trainer - Robin Watson Robin Watson owns Tibea Gundogs in England. The kennel was founded by his father in 1964 and has produced a number of Field Trial Winners and Field Trial Champions. The most widely recognized of these is probably Tibea Tosh. Robin has trained several Field Trial Winners and Field Trial Champions. He is currently campaigning Field Trial Champion Brackenbird Minnow. Robin is an "A" Panel Field Trial Judge and a member of the Kennel Club. Robin's website is www.tibeagundogs.co.uk
Dogs bought from Robin can be shipped direct to purchaser, or can be picked up at Duckhill Kennels. The purchaser who picks up his dog at Duckhill will receive some instruction from Robert Milner.
According to the customer's preference, arrangements can be made for Robin to personally accompany the dog from England and to give the new owner instruction on handling the dog.
The started and trained gundogs from England are of 2 categories:
1. Started dogs, steady, walking to heel, sit and stay. Price £1,500 to £2,500 plus export cost, which is roughly between £800 to £1,000
2. Fully trained dog, steady to shot, water and land retrieving, handles on blinds and seen retrieves, hip and eye tested. Price between £4,000 to £7,000. The lower range would obviously apply if 3/4 trained and again plus export costs.
