Cripple Creek Retrievers

Anybody have any input on these guys. Located in Decatur. Looking to send a pup.

Got a buddy having an insanely bad experience there.

I've heard some bad stuff about that guy. He lost a clients dog then tore down the lost dog signs that his clients 7 year old boy put up trying to find his dog

Tore down lost dog signs! Really?

Yup. Even admitted he did it, but he said only on the county road to the kennel

How does a professional kennel lose a dog?

That's $60000 question

Sounds legit

Sure would like to hear both sides of the story from both the kennel and dog owner, but it's gonna be tough to defend losing a dog haha

I just want to hear the trainer explain how he lost a dog

maybe running blinds?

I heard the dog escaped his kennel.

They should have started with shorter blinds

To the OP, I can highly recommend Cripple Creek Retrievers! I have been training with them for just under 4 years now and have nothing but good things to say about the trainer, quality of training, and the facilities there. I regularly train with em on an almost weekly basis, sometimes more, and can without hesitation recommend CCR. If you are considering using CCR, or anyone else for that matter, I strongly suggest going out to meet with the trainer, watch some dogs work, and check out the facilities for yourself before making any decisions.

As for the lost dog being discussed, I can assure you that every measure has been taken to try to find the dog...I have even been out there helping to try and find it. I'm not going to get into the specifics of the situation b/c it's not my place to do so, but as other posters have mentioned, there is more to it than the dog simply being lost...what I can say and know firsthand is that everything possible is being done to find the dog and make things right. What everyone should try to keep in mind is that sometimes unfortunate things happen, especially when working with animals, that are not due to anything other than just bad luck. My dog has been with CCR for quite a while now, sometimes for really long times, and I have absolutely no worries or concerns about his safety, health, or wellbeing when he is there.

I don't know man. If some guy lost my hound then took down the lost dog sign to CYA is pretty chicken chit.

Again, It's not my place to get into the specifics of the situation...but I simply know that everything possible is being done to recover the dog and make things right for all involved.

Seems that you know the specifics and the trainer isn't here to give them. So did he or did he not take down the signs?

I heard the little boy and wife went to look and ole guy didn't even get out of his easy chair to help. You may train with the trainer but I hunt with the lost dog owner

I know for a fact that this guy has dropped what he was doing to go and check out leads that the owners called in or people reported sightings aside from looking on a daily basis along with his friends in the area.

Looks like to me this whole thread was a setup, perhaps instead of being on the internet you should help go look for the dog

Thanks for the private messages and the leads on various trainers. I'm still a little ways out on starting. Just trying to get my research done. Guess I should have just asked Jeff first lol

Look your man lost a hound out of his kennel, not on a blind or in the field but out of his kennel, or at least that's what he told my man. Who knows maybe the dog died, no one but him knows. Fact of the matter is from where I stand I have heard nothing but bad, where you stand you have heard nothing but good. If I made my living training dogs I would be looking for a replacement dog right quick and save my reputation

my trainer has a fence around his kennel to ensure that hounds dont escape if a door is not closed properly

PM sent hayraker with my referral

Well that was a game changer. Didn't see that one coming

Me neither.

Where's Paul Harvey? That dude always knew the rest of the story!!!!

I sent my dog there last year and had nothing but good experiences with him. My cousin actually sent his after I got mine back and he did really good but I can see both sides. I can understand being hesitant because of the lost dog though. Especially if its true about him not helping look for it or having an explanation.

was the dog an American choc lab

Nope he didn't lose the dog. If the trainer was paid on a timely manner and all payments are up to date then the trainer is a fault. Don't understand why you would expect him to go and look for this dog when the trainer is the one that lost him. I don't know if the story about the 7 year old posting pics of his lost dog and then the trainer taking them down is true but if it is then that is pretty sorry in my opinion.

I would do bad things to someone who lost my dog.....very bad things

I train at Cripple Creek Retrievers on a regular basis. My dog has spent plenty of time in their care. He has stayed at the kennel and been on their trailer on trips across the country. I have never once worried about his well being and will not have concerns in the future.

For those questioning the facilities, they are safe and clean. The kennels are the same ones that you would find in thousands of boarding kennels across the country. Sturdy and at least 6' tall. For a dog to escape they would have to get out of their kennel run and jump another fence on 1 side of the building or jump 2 fences on the other.

The fact that this dog has gone missing is due to circumstances that neither the owner of the dog or Cripple Creek Retrievers can control.

After years of working with Cripple Creek and seeing how dogs are treated and cared for, there isn't anywhere I would recommend more highly.

Then if it is out of everyone's control then why is it such a big secret on how the dog went missing. Not one person on here that acts like they know what actually went on has set the record straight. Is there a lawsuit or something?

I don't understand why she had no collar or tags on. The trainer I use puts collars with name plates 1 800 number on every dog that comes into his kennel. Has area around the kennels also fenced. Sure don't think he has ever lost a dog, just has it setup that way as a precaution.
Looks like Grace has a facebook page, and has been missing since the 9th of this month.
https://www.facebook.com/Gracecomehome
I sure hope they find her. Its got to be tough on the owners.

Not one of us here are the kennel or the owner. Why would any of us know these details?

The sign story has to have more to it that we don't know. Seems everyone thinks that this is some cover up. The owner knows the dog is missing.

There's always the one side to a story, the other side, and the truth. Who's to say even if signs were taken down, they were taken down because they said "SO and SO LOST MY DOG"-- that could irk a business owner to take them down. Anyway we'll probably never know.

This is what you said sounds like you know something or at least you think you do.

And yes a kennel owner can control if a dog goes missing or not

The guy who's dog is missing is a preacher. I tend to believe his side of the story

Once again Game Changer. In all reality how in the world does a dog go missing from a professional kennel? The blind thing doesn't make any since because the dog would be obedience trained by then.

Has anybody besides myself considered the fact the dog may have been stolen? Now mind you I don't know how secure the kennel is [e.g. locks on kennel doors) but, does he have any for of camera set up around his location?

OB trained and collar conditioned, this dog was either stolen (but why take just one?) or it was just pure neglect on the kennels part.

I have seen dogs that can climb out of those kennels, if they don't have a top on them. Also seen dogs that can unlatch the gates, if you don't put a lock through the latch. Bottom line, if your being paid to kennel/train a dog, and you lose them. Your name is going to be drug through the mud. It doesn't matter if you took normal precautions, the dog is lost, and the family will be upset.
The only reason I can see for him taking down the signs, is he didn't want his kennel name on them so close to his kennels. I can see where he wouldn't care for it, but finding the dog should be the first priority.
A dog running around without a collar on, is just another stray in most peoples eyes. The signs are their only hope of getting her back.

If either one of you slaps could spit it out then there would be a lot of air cleared here.

Two people holding back the most important parts of the story is stupid.

Both of yall talk this place up, but hide the most important info.

Boom!!!

Yesssssss

Maybe "Ole Red" was just itching to have a little fun!!

I am the owner of the dog in question, and if you know of anything being done to "make things right" I would like to know about it, because there has been absolutely nothing done to try and make things right with me. NOTHING.
I dropped my dog off on Friday, Sept 5th at around noon. I was called the next day about 4:30 and told my dog was gone. The trainer said she was there in the morning when he loaded some of the older dogs into his trailer to go off-site for training and when they returned around 1:30, she was gone. He said she must have climbed the 7ft. kennel fence and another 8ft. fence and escaped. Grace is a female around 45 lbs or so. She has never climbed a fence to my knowledge and I have owned her since I picked her up at the airport at 7 wks of age from the breeder in Utah. She has escaped from our back yard before, as our gate is pipe and she was able to squeeze through the pipes and escape. She also escaped several times from a flimsy wire crate we keep her in when we are gone from the house. This happened about a year ago and once we put a couple of snaps on the crate, it has not happened again. I suppose it is possible that she learned to climb fence in one day, although I do not understand why she was fine through the night and into the next morning. She is an athletic dog, so maybe she climbed two fences and left the other dogs in the kennel. I guess we'll never know. Here is where my issues really begin. When we got the call that she was gone, we immediately got in our vehicle and drove to Decatur and searched for her until about dark. JC, the trainer, also searched for our dog during this time. The next day I called to let him know that my wife and kids were going to be over his way looking for Grace and wanted to leave one of Braxton's shirts and some food for her in case she came back there would be a familiar scent. Braxton is my 7 year old son. Grace sleeps with him every night. I was told that they were shut down for the day, but my wife was welcome to go back to the kennel and leave a shirt, but no food. Was also told not to go into the kennel. She went by and left the shirt. The trainer did not come out of his home. If it were me and I had lost someone's animal that I was responsible for, I believe I would have at least come out and faced the people, but that's just me. At no time has he offered or asked for a way to make this right with me. I even had to ask him, after 4-5 days to return my check that I had given him for the first month's fees. He told me he would mail it the next day. 9 days later and still no check. He has apologized, but that is it. No, "Hey, if we find her I'll give you a month of training for free". No, "Hey, I'll give you a pup from one of my dogs." Nothing. He has looked for her at least one other time that I know, and perhaps he is searching at other times, I just don't know. He has gone and checked out two or three leads we called him about when people have called us to tell us they have seen a dog resembling ours.
The kicker was when my wife was following up at the only convenience store in the area and was told, "oh yes, we had the sign up, but your husband came in and took it down." My wife proceeded to tell her that whoever took it down was not her husband. She then said, "He said he lived at the address on the poster so, I assumed it was your husband." At that point, I called JC and asked him about my check and was told he'd have to check his records and get back to me. No word yet, and still no check. I then asked him if he would please refrain from taking down the signs that we had put up to find our dog. He said he had only taken down the ones on the road where his kennel was located. I told him I didn't know about those, but I did know he had taken one down in a convenience store that was 5-6 miles from his kennel and not on the same road. He claimed that it must have been one of the people who work for him, so I asked him why they would be taking them down if not at his direction? So, apparently someone is lying. He left me a message and said that it was his assistant trainer who lives in another town and must have misunderstood his instructions. Either his assistant lied to the lady at the convenience store by claiming to live at the address where the trainer or he is lying. Or maybe it is a plot by the convenience store lady to..........well, you decide. Also, we did not say anywhere on the signs that "this guy lost our dog" or anything like that. We simply gave the location for a point of reference and I was actually planning on saying nothing about him. I am now, obviously, changing that. Taking down our signs was the last straw. These are the facts and you can now make up your own mind. As far as this being a "setup", I asked no one to post on my behalf, just vented to a buddy who answered a thread on this forum. By the way, I have been a member of this forum for years, but changed computers and cannot remember my login (my old computer saved all of my passwords), so I had to re-register. Thanks for listening.

There is your Paul Harvey Barnnywho

I hope you find your pup.

Unfortunate series of events.

Good luck to you and your family!!

This is a terrible story, hope it has a happy ending. Hard for kids to understand stuff like this.

TLTR but I did anyways

I would do something irrational if I were you

Cripple Trainer Retreivers

He has better restraint than I do.

Hope you get your dog back.

We have a direct mailer going out tomorrow to the area where our dog was lost, so maybe tomorrow will be the day we find her. The trainer texted me and apologized for not communicating well. We will talk next week, and I'll keep this thread updated about what transpires next.

Did you have your dog chipped? Hope you find her, good luck.

Man that really sucks. You seem to be handling it better than I would. Tragic accidents happen but the way he has handled the situation since is just ridiculous.

I'd be livid.

D McB..... Please explain how the trainer employees taking down signs? They had no right taking down any signs. Can the man please get his money back? Oh and how about coming outside and talking to the owner of the dog instead of staying in the house. I'm going to post up on some other boards, we need to get the word out and help find the dog.

Some 30 years ago I had a similar experience with a trainer in Lubbock. I was broke and couldn't afford to do anything about it. Your situation is much more horrific as your child is involved. Ergo, you have my sympathy.

LET'S BE CLEAR - Apologizing for not communicating well with a TEXT MESSAGE is the most cowardly thing I've ever heard of.

A call asking your forgivness, and if your hunting buddy couldn't be found, an offer to take your pick out of a prize litter would be in order. Included w/ future training would have been the correct answer.

If that hadn't been enough to appease the loss, as an outsider looking in, I wouldn't hold it against the training kennel.

People make mistakes. The measure of their character is how they resolve their mistakes.

I steer clear of folks with questionable character. In this case, with what has been discslosed thus far, the kennel in question would not get my business.

I completely understand that unfortunate things happen. The dog being lost is terrible and who knows if the trainer is really at fault for losing the dog. I am not saying he is or he isn't and I don't think that's the real issue here.

But he is definitely at fault for not doing everything he can to make the situation right. I am not a professional trainer by any means but after people see my dog work they want me to train their pup. I have done so several times and currently have a dog living with me right now. If for some reason she ran off or I lost her I would do EVERYTHING I could to find her. If I couldn't find her, I would do EVERYTHING I could to make the best out of a terrible situation. I would be the one putting out the flyers not TAKING THEM DOWN! I would be offering to not only give the money back but maybe even a little more!

TexasBB, you're handling this a lot better than most of us would. This guy sounds to me like a real piece of work.

Alright, everyone's had their say. Let's return to talking about migratory bird hunting.