SW Retrievers

SW Retrievers Golden Retriever breeder that specializes in early puppy development and training.
▪️AKC
▪️OFA
▪️Genetic Testing
▪️Member of the West Volusia Kennel Club

✨ Outdoor Time ✨
08/05/2026

✨ Outdoor Time ✨

08/05/2026

✨ Sound Habituation – Garbage Truck 🚛 ✨

I love when the pups get the chance to experience new sounds naturally while they're out enjoying some outdoor playtime!

Today, the garbage truck made its way down the road, giving us the perfect opportunity for some real life sound habituation.

These everyday experiences help build confident, resilient puppies who learn that the world is full of interesting sights and sounds, and that there's no reason to worry about them 🥰

08/05/2026

✨ Crate Training ✨

Even if you never plan to have your dog use a crate at home, they should still be crate trained.

Why?

🐾 Veterinary visits or unexpected emergencies may require your dog to be kenneled.
🏅 Dog sports and training events often require dogs to relax in a crate while waiting their turn.
🚗 Travel, boarding, grooming, and other everyday situations are much less stressful when your dog is comfortable in a crate.

Crate training isn't about confinement, it's about teaching your dog that a crate is a safe, calm place to settle, no matter where they are.

Hazel has a scent work trial coming up, and while she's never spent a single night sleeping in a crate, she is crate trained. Watching her quietly settle at events reminds me why I put in the work when she was a puppy.

Those early lessons mean I can confidently take her anywhere life leads us and this is the reason I introduce all of my puppies to the crate ❤️🐾

08/05/2026

✨ Recall ✨

Recall is one of the most important skills a puppy can learn and we introduced it from the very beginning during mealtimes. By pairing the cue Here! with every meal, the puppies quickly learned that coming to me is always a rewarding experience.

Now that they understand the cue, we're practicing it in a whole new environment.

Instead of calling them when they're already paying attention to me, I wait until they're outside playing, exploring, or otherwise engaged in something else. Then I'll call, Here! and reward every puppy that makes the choice to leave what they're doing and come running over.

This helps build the habit that no matter what's happening around them, coming when called is always worth it. A reliable recall isn't just a fun trick. It can be one of the most valuable skills your dog ever learns, and these little scholars are off to a fantastic start! 🥰

08/05/2026

✨ Place ✨

This is one of my favorite stages of training because it's where we get to see the puppies start thinking for themselves. Instead of relying on constant guidance, they're learning to process what they're being asked to do, work through the problem, and make the correct choice on their own. Watching those little brains at work is so rewarding!

Now, I'll simply tell them, Place and then I wait. I don't repeat the command or give additional hand signals. From there, it's up to the puppy to think through what I've asked. Sometimes I'll quietly talk to them to keep them engaged, and sometimes I'll stay silent. It all depends on the puppy, but I always give them the time they need to work it out on their own.

Some puppies figured it out within a few seconds, while others took a little longer, and that's perfectly okay. The important part is giving them the opportunity to think instead of immediately stepping in to help.

It's amazing what puppies are capable of when we have the patience to let them learn. Every single puppy was able to self correct and return themselves to the correct down position, and I couldn't be more proud of them 😁

We also started adding more duration, asking them to remain on their place mats for longer periods of time. They are making incredible progress and are truly doing so, so well! 🥹

Good morning 🌞 from Winston 💙
08/05/2026

Good morning 🌞 from Winston 💙

08/04/2026

✨ Water Exposure ✨

It's taken 3 different purchases to finally find the correct adapter for this silly water toy to finally connect to my hose, but we now have this wacky wavy water toy and it definitely gets the seal of approval from Hazel 😂

Maverick 🧡 and Monty ❤️ also quite enjoyed the toy as well ☺️

08/04/2026

✨ Crate Training & Sound Habituation - Children ✨

We're continuing to build positive associations with the crate so the pups see it as a safe, happy place. Giving them a bone or special chew while they're inside helps them relax and enjoy being there, teaching them that good things happen in the crate 🥰

Since they're already in a positive state of mind, this is the perfect opportunity to pair crate time with new sounds. Today's soundtrack? Children 💁🏼‍♀️

Kids have a special talent for producing sudden, high-pitched squeals and unexpected bursts of noise, so it's a great sound for the puppies to experience in a controlled, positive way!

A couple of the pups did have an initial "What was that?" moment and looked toward the sound, but once they settled back in with their bones, they couldn't have cared less.

We also had them practice sitting politely when they were ready to exit their crates

I ended up opening the doors for Winston 💙 and Poppy 🩵 after 15min because I'm not sure they were ever planning on asking to get out 😅

08/04/2026

✨ Fresh Food - Carrots 🥕 ✨

Once again, Poppy 🩵 our little food aficionado, was the first to discover that carrots are, in fact, delicious! She immediately started grabbing as many pieces as she could before running off to enjoy her prize 😂

The boys eventually realized that the little orange pieces scattered on the ground were actually edible. Most of them enjoyed munching on their carrots... or at the very least enjoyed making a mess with them 💁🏼‍♀️

Introducing puppies to a variety of fresh, puppy safe foods is a fun way to provide new experiences while encouraging curiosity around different textures and flavors 🥕

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Deltona
Deltona, FL
32725

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