Quote:
Originally Posted by I make oil
I know quite a few professional trainers. It's all they do. They compete in field trials the dogs they've trained to prove the quality of their training method. It's a difficult profession. Until your proven it's very difficult to keep enough dogs in your kennel to make a living. The more dogs the trainer has with titles the more attention they receive from people looking to have their dogs trained, the more than can charge. It's sort of a vicious cycle actually. The "best" trainers get to work with dogs from the "best" pedigrees and have the "best" opportunities to win titles. The people who can afford to purchase dogs from these pedigrees can also afford to have these dogs trained to whatever level they choose.
There are trainers who make 7 figure salaries out there and many more who do ok. It's a lot about what sort of a clientele you attract. Field testing can be a very expensive hobby for a dog owner. I personally enjoy watching a well trained dog work and take great pleasure in owning a dog with lots of ribbons. Due to my work, family, other interests and lack of training ability I can't train my dogs to this level. Not many people can. It requires working with the dog every single day. That is why I use a professional trainer.
But it's even more than just wanting a dog with lots of ribbons. I try to choose my dogs using the pedigree and all of the information available to me I can. Ultimately it's a crapshoot. You never know what the ability of a dog will be until they are trained. I love my dogs regardless of how many ribbons and titles they might have. But as an owner of a sporting dog I feel it is my responsibility to my dog to allow it to go as far in its abilities as it can. If I have a grand quality dog then I will support it all the way to the grand. If I have a dog that does not have the ability to be anything more than a family dog I'll love it the same. They are like my kids. I want to help them be as successful as they can possibly be. If your kid plays baseball and it's something they love you help them any way you can to be successful at the game. It's the same thing.
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Hate to burst your idea but there isn't a professional field trial/hunt test water dog trainer in America making 7 figures only training dogs. Lardy,farmer & Rorem don't make 7 figures combined and they have a waiting list. Lardy rarely handles dogs anymore and makes his off his DVDs and seminars, as does Rorem and Farmer. Being a professional dog trainer will Never make one rich, its the
Proverbial law of diminishing returns job; limit to how much even the best can charge, limit to how many can be trained successfully in a day, limit to $$ for capital equipment, limit to travel and grounds. There's a whole lot of expenses and labor involved before they make a dime. That's why many "B" list trainers went to the bomb dog companies 5 years ago... Pay and benefits.