Meet the trainers

Meet Steve

Steve began training retrievers in 1989 when he purchased his first black lab puppy, Sam. He quickly came to love the work of training, watching the dogs learn and grow, and competing in hunt tests and field trials.

Through years of self-study, attending many seminars, working for other pro trainers and a lot of hard work, Steve began training professionally in 1997 when Otter Tail Kennels was founded in Glenwood City, WI.

Over the years Steve has trained thousands of dogs, many to the Master Hunter (MH) or Hunting Retriever Champion (HRCH) level. Not to mention the successful hunting dogs.

He also regularly competes in both AKC and UKC hunt tests.

Otter Tail Kennels ran from the Glenwood City location until 2003, when the operation was moved to Sulphur Springs, TX. In 2005, due to unforeseen life events, we were forced to close Otter Tail Kennels.

Rising from the ashes

Through God’s grace, in January 2019, we reopened Otter Tail Kennels at a new location south of Menomonie, WI. After serving 26 years on the St. Paul Police Department, Steve has retired and now dedicates his time to training and competing retrievers. We continue to specialize in retriever breeds— Labrador, Golden, and Chesapeake Bay, however, we now limit the number of client dogs to eight. This allows us to dedicate a lot of “one on one” time to each dog, meeting each dog’s specific training needs.

Steve has no training assistants, so at Otter Tail Kennels, you always know who is training your dog. And if you have questions about your dog’s performance and progress, Steve will answer those questions directly.

Meet Jody

Jody began training professionally in 1997 when Otter Tail Kennels was founded in Glenwood City, WI. During those early years, she spent the majority of her time working dogs on obedience and force fetch.

With the reopening of the kennel in Menomonie, I (Jody) continue to work with the dogs on obedience and force fetch. I also spent a substantial amount of my time on office work, managing the website and social media accounts, and writing posts for the education portion of the website.

References readily available

Your dog is an important part of your family, so we understand the need for references. Be sure and check out our reviews on Google. If you want other references, simply give us a shout and we would be happy to provide contact information for past clients.

Ongoing support

Dog’s and owners that go through a program at Otter Tail Kennels, are never left on their own. While your dog is in training, Steve and Jody take time each week to contact you to provide an update on how your dog is progressing in training.

After your dog completes his/her training, Steve is available for calls and emails whenever you have a question or concern. We want you to be satisfied long-term! In addition, you are welcome to join us for training during the week. Just give us a call and we will let you know where we will be training for that day. This helps your dog remain solid in their skill, as well as keeping you, the owner, polished in handling.