Christel is an instructor and a dog behaviourist in the Netherlands. She has been training her own dogs for decades. She has a broad experience across several dog sports including, of course, Gundog work. She has owned, bred, and worked, several Spanish waterdogs, and she currently shares her life with Spanish Water Dog Chazzy.
Training approach
Christel is a strong believer in force free training. She is creative, and enjoys finding unique solutions for training challenges. Her training programme is built around mutual respect and trust between handler and dog. Christel considers play as an important ingredient for success in any dog training programme.
Christel is a keen clicker trainer, as she believes it facilitates learning and precision. She incorporates target training into Gundog work, alongside many other tools of positive reinforcement training.
Gundog experience
Christel has trained her dogs to be gundogs over many years, specialising in retriever training. She is a keen a successful competitor, and she also goes shooting although training for competitions is her main focus.
Particular breed knowledge
Christel’s primary expertise is retriever training, but over the years more and more HPRs are taking part in her classes. She welcomes all breeds and mixed breeds. Christel has significant experience with breeds which are less common in gundog work.
Qualifications and other Accreditations
Christel is a member of the APDT- BeNe and a member of O&O ( Dutch association of instructors).
In 2017 she founded a foundation called ‘Stichting DogsJoy’, which aims amongst other things to improve the wellbeing of dogs in training and to increase the knowledge of dog owners about positive and force free training.
Services offered
Christel is a Foundation Instructor, although has permission to cover all grades, reflecting her experience and unique position as the only accredited Gundog Club trainer in the Netherlands. She is happy to work with those training for competition and with pet owners.
You can join classes for group training, which are running Tuesdays to Saturdays or book one to ones on these days. These classes take place in the middle of the country – Christel uses several fields on different locations in the province of Utrecht.
Puppy training is only possible in private lessons, these lessons take place in Zeist.
Contact Christel
Christel is looking forward to hearing from you and discussing your gundog training needs.