When our pup was 3 months old, we attended a Rick Smith dog-training seminar in Nebraska.  It was a great experience and we learned a lot.  However, probably the most important thing we learned was that we really needed a good dog trainer to work with both of us and pup.  The analogy would be “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know!”

Our Brittany pup was 71/2 months old when we finally found Melvin.  This was our third Brittany.  Our first Britt had some decent breeding our second was a rescue dog, obviously very poorly bred.  This pup, however, was a real handful from the day we brought her home, compared to the first two.  She has at least 28 Brittany Hall of Fame ancestors on both sides of her bloodlines, most of them field trial and bench dual champions. 

At about 7-8 months, {the teenager stage} we had hit a wall with Josie, our pup, and felt we had taken her as far as we knew how.  We needed more help! 

Luckily, we e-mailed and talked to both Melvin and Julie over the phone and it finally seemed like we had found the right fit.  During our first visit to MJ’s Upland Dog Haven, both Larry and I looked at each other and smiled, because we knew we had found the right guy.

It was clear from the first few minutes of observation that Melvin just loves dogs.  Most of my teen years, twenties, and early thirties were spent around horse people.  I have always been envious of those who have ‘that sixth sense about them’.  They just seem to know what animals are thinking or are going to do, before they do it.  These individuals make great trainers, especially when combined with the talent to make the animal understand what behavior is required and desired of them, with verbal and nonverbal communication.  Always calm, firm and assertive, never heavy handed or abusive, combined with a mega dose of patience and you have a great trainer.  That is how I would describe Melvin.

Melvin’s has developed a unique training style that somehow allows the dog to train itself.  Everything has a reason and it makes it easy for the dog to understand what the end purpose is.  Dogs that Melvin trains are happy, enthusiastic and want to please.  I have seen many professionally trained dogs that are “hunting machines” that do everything right mechanically, but don’t necessarily like what they are doing.  Back to the horse trainer analogy, there are those who break horses and there are those who train horses.  With Melvin’s trained dogs, that ‘spirit or drive’ is intact and often is enhanced.

Melvin is always eager to share his tips and tricks that work the best for the dog.  I have seen him successfully correct problems with dogs that other dog trainers were having trouble with.  His willingness to share his ‘secrets that work’ with others, only attests to his confidence in his own abilities, and his desires to have the dog succeed.

Rather than leaving Josie at Melvin’s for training, only because I wasn’t sure I could live without her that long, also because of the close proximity of his business to our home in Colby, Mel allowed us to come over for “lessons” every week.  He would work Josie on birds and give us homework to do and concentrate on for the next week.  This teaching style allowed us to learn along with our dog. Often, Mel would work Josie with one of his dogs, sometimes those dogs would teach Josie as much or more than Mel could.  Many times, I found myself fascinated and almost spellbound watching him work with the dogs.  What a gift!

If you are having problems with your shooting skills or have a child or an adult who needs a good introduction to shot gunning, Melvin is an excellent instructor.  He can analyze problems and give tips to correct them. 

Josie just loves Melvin.  When she hears his voice she gets exited and wants out of the car NOW!  It’s the same when Mel walks into his kennel, all of the dogs are saying, “Pick me, Pick me!”

During these past six months, we have gotten to know Melvin, Julie and their two young sons quite well.  They are a wonderful, hard working, honest family, and some of the nicest people you could ever hope to associate with.

Our only regret is that our first two Brittany’s did not have the chance to be trained by this kind and gentleperson.  They could have been fifty times the ‘great dogs’ that they were!

Be sure to ask Julie to take pictures, she is a talented photographer! 

                                                                Sherry Barrett

                                                          Colby, Kansas