TOP GUN GOLDEN RETRIEVERS
Where Ethical Breeding Meets Expert Training.
Meet Samantha | Certified Dog Trainer & Golden Retriever Breeder
Meet Samantha Thompson, ABCDT, ABCSDT
Why a Top Gun Puppy Is Worth the Investment
You’re not simply choosing a Golden Retriever puppy. You’re choosing who will shape your puppy during some of the most important weeks of their life. For me, raising puppies is deeply personal. It brings together a lifetime of hands on experience with dogs, professional education as an Animal Behavior College Certified Dog Trainer and Certified Service Dog Trainer, and a full year of mentorship that allowed me to learn alongside an experienced professional. My passion is puppy development, especially building the confidence, resilience, trust, engagement, and foundational skills that may help prepare promising puppies for future service and therapy work. But those skills are not only valuable in a working dog. They are the same qualities families want in the Golden sleeping beside their children, traveling with them, greeting visitors, and becoming part of their lives for years to come. I put an incredible amount of myself into these puppies because I know I am not just raising someone’s puppy. I am raising someone’s future best friend. And when your puppy goes home, my involvement does not simply end. Every family receives a custom five week at home training plan to help you continue what I started and navigate those first important weeks together. My goal is for you to leave Top Gun with more than a beautiful Golden Retriever. I want you to go home with a puppy who has been known, loved, challenged, encouraged, and intentionally prepared for the life waiting for them.
Because the puppy you bring home may only spend the first few weeks of their life with me, but the foundation we build together can stay with them for a lifetime.
Education, Experience & Expertise
2025
Certified Service Dog Trainer, ABCSDT
Animal Behavior College
Completed Animal Behavior College’s Service Dog Trainer Program, expanding my education in the specialized development and training of dogs for service work. This education directly supports my passion for puppy development and preparing promising puppies with the confidence, engagement, resilience, and foundational skills needed for future service or therapy work.
2024
Certified Dog Trainer, ABCDT
Animal Behavior College
Completed Animal Behavior College’s professional Dog Trainer Program, including canine behavior, learning theory, obedience, problem solving, safety, training instruction, and hands on experience. I completed my training externship with a 98% overall score and an A, earning full points in obedience cue demonstration, safety, and problem solving.
1 Year
Professional Training Mentorship
Hands On Education & Puppy Development
Spent a full year learning alongside an experienced professional trainer, gaining practical experience that went beyond coursework and into real dogs, real families, and real training challenges. That mentorship helped shape the way I raise puppies today, with an emphasis on understanding the individual dog rather than using a one size fits all approach.