Retriever Journal

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Retriever Journal

The sporting retriever authority. http://www.retrieverjournal.com Why did you decide to get a retriever? Did you grow up with a Lab or a golden or a Chessie?

Maybe one of the water spaniel breeds? Maybe it was when you decided to get a hunting partner, one that is loyal and wants to serve

No matter when or why, you know that the relationship between a retriever and his human partner is different from that of any other sporting dog. Hounds do their work at a great distance. The human a bit-part player at the end; the hound’s reward is bringing his qua

rry to bay. Pointing dogs are an independent lot, coursing and searching in places far and near, the hunter following. The human needs the dog more than the dog needs the human because the point is the reward. But retrievers cannot do their work until the human does his – he must sit quietly or hunt closely. The dog cannot do what his genes tell him to do – order him to do – until the hunter does his part. His reward is the retrieve – impossible without his two-legged partner. The bond, then, that exists is greater with these wonderful breeds than with any other man-dog relationship. In every issue of The Retriever Journal, we honor that relationship, that bond. The premier issue launched in the beginning of 1995 to fill a niche, to appeal to the person who values a retriever’s work above all else in the field, the type of person who would leave his gun home before he left his dog. Together you share a love for the fields and the blinds, the pheasants and the ducks and geese and the grouse and the quail and all the rest, the heft and feel of a nice shotgun, and the sights and sounds and smells of autumn and those first biting winds of winter. Together you enjoy an old and honored tradition, but one where every day in the field is like the first. Don’t delay – join us. Your dog will thank you, and so will we.

06/05/2025

This majestic black Lab graces the cover of our June/July 2025 issue of The Retriever Journal. Thank you to photographer John Hafner for the great shot!

05/27/2025

Retrievers become different dogs as they age. Their physical capabilities require constant reassessment, ideally with advice from a veterinarian who understands the breed.

No reason age should keep a good dog down. by E. Donnall Thomas Jr. Editor-at-Large Photos by Don & Lori Thomas “With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.” —William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice It was a tough day in Washington’s Columbia Basin, where Lori and I do a lot of our du...

05/22/2025

"I will never forget the first time I had a Labrador puppy show apprehension and fear around water. I completely panicked. Aren’t retrievers natural water dogs? How can a puppy not love water?"

Getting a puppy comfortable around water. by Ryan Eder I will never forget the first time I had a Labrador puppy show apprehension and fear around water. I completely panicked. Aren’t retrievers natural water dogs? How can a puppy not love water? This puppy is broken! All these instant thoughts ha...

04/29/2025

"Dogs have given us their absolute all..."

03/14/2025

Our April/May 2025 issue is to the press! You can subscribe at https://retrieverjournal.com/subscribe-2/. Thank you!

03/12/2025

Read the rest of Charlie’s introduction to upland training in the upcoming April/May 2025 issue, mailing later this month!

by Charlie Jurney Photo Credit: Matt Toth Photo The majority of training up until this time has focused on a dog trusting us more than his own instincts. Now it is time to allow those instincts to do what is natural by encouraging the dog to hunt. For that reason, I wait until this point […]

03/03/2025

Dixie is one beautiful dog. Here's the cover of our February/March 2025 issue!

03/02/2025

Have you read the February/March 2025 issue yet? The full table of contents can be found at https://retrieverjournal.com/february-march-2025/.

Features Season One: Upland By E. Donnall Thomas Jr. Ringneck Revolution By Chris Smith Clean Up on Aisle 6 By Charlie Jurney A Chessie in the Last Frontier By Isaac Martin Grouse Hunting with a Flusher By Steve Smith 18 Puppy Fast Facts By Tom Keer Departments Favorite Covers By Lou Pasqua The Wing...

01/20/2025

Sometime in October of 1983, I huddled in a 16-foot Lund boat painted army green, hidden behind a screen of cattails woven through chicken wire, with my feet freezing in Hodgeman rubber waders. Two of my high school classmates were with me, and we suffered in the icy cold as the anchored boat rolled in the chop off a small point.

Waterfowling North America February/March 2021 by Doug Larsen Sometime in October of 1983, I huddled in a 16-foot Lund boat painted army green, hidden behind a screen of cattails woven through chicken wire, with my feet freezing in Hodgeman rubber waders. Two of my high school classmates were with m...

01/16/2025

The complete table of contents for our February/March 2025 issue can be found online at https://retrieverjournal.com/february-march-2025/.

01/13/2025

Lou Pasqua's "Dixie" is on the cover of our February/March 2025 issue.

01/01/2025

Cheers to a new year!

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