The Wildrose Mississippi Staff

Tom Smith - President/Owner of Wildrose Mississippi

Tom became the President/Owner of the Wildrose Oxford facility after 4 years as the General Manager. After training his first dog in 1998 the American style, Tom visited Wildrose and decided to join the pack. Wildrose Dixie became his best friend, hunting partner and office companion in 2008. He then became an associate trainer in 2010. After selling his industrial construction company, and deciding to further the never-ending adventures with Wildrose, Tom joined the Wildrose staff full time as the General Manager in October 2014. He received his bachelor's degree in history from the University of Kentucky and served in the military as an Infantry Officer from 1990 - 97 in Georgia, Alaska, Thailand, Japan, Egypt and Virginia. He is originally from Tell City, Indiana. Tom and his wife, Tina, reside on the property with their dog Dixie and Spot the cat.

Our friends at Tom Beckbe wrote a quick article explaining Toms story: British Labs American Dreams

Blake Henderson - General Manager

Blake began working for Wildrose as a part-time kennel assistant in January, 2007, while attending the University of Mississippi. He was promoted to Keeper in 2008 with responsibilities that included maintenance, facilities, grounds and exercising sires and dams, then moved to a full-time position in 2010. Blake was promoted to apprentice trainer in 2013 and advanced to trainer in 2014. His keen interest in waterfowling and hunting sports along with his exceptional communication skills have proven invaluable to his success as a trainer and to the Wildrose client experience. Blake is a natural craftsman with an eye for detail and change. His versatile skill set allows us to modify processes and upgrade the grounds and buildings for continuous improvement to our facility. Blake resides in Lafayette county.

Ryan Alderman - Trainer

Originally from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, Ryan advanced his education at the University of Mississippi majoring in Sports and Recreational Administration. Ryan directs Wildrose training services in the Teton Valley, Idaho for six months of the year, in association with the renowned Blixt & Company, which is a driven shooting estate in Tetonia, Idaho. Ryan is charged with onsite kennel operations, training and directing the gundog program. He also manages the staff for picking up birds while “roughshooting” on behalf of Wildrose and Blixt & Company.

After shooting season is completed in Idaho, Ryan returns south to Wildrose to serve as a trainer at the Oxford facility. Ryan extends the Wildrose Way for basic gundog, seasoned and finished retriever training to the Northwest, further broadening our services to clients and their Gentleman's Gundogs. Ryan and his wife, Kelsey, reside in Oxford with their 5 dogs.

Bryan Pala - Trainer

Bryan grew up in Hernando, MS as an avid outdoorsman. He has always had a passion for hunting and dogs. Bryan started with Wildrose as a part-time kennel man in January of 2017 while attending the University of Mississippi. After graduating with a degree in Criminal Justice with an emphasis in Homeland Security and a minor in business he decided to pursue his passion of dogs and earned his position as Trainer in 2021. Bryan resides in the Denmark area with retired stud Murphy and his yellow female Miller.

Will Zizmann - Trainer

Will grew up in Hernando, MS and joined the Wildrose staff as part-time grounds management in 2016. Since that time he has graduated from Ole Miss with a double major in Real Estate and Managerial Finance with a minor in Entrepreneurship. After several months as the Facilities Supervisor, Will joined the training team. Not only does Will train gun dogs but he also trains Adventure Dogs which coincides with his love for outdoor activities and exploring the area hiking and kayaking. Will is an avid golfer with a scratch handicap. He resides in the Denmark community with his dog Julep.

Lily Hohmann - Wildrose Trading Company Store Manager/Apprentice Trainer

Lily grew up in the North East, where she graduated with an Associate Degree. She favors the outdoors greatly and has been traveling, living in various states for years. She found herself in Mississippi at the start of 2023 and started as an assistant trainer on March 1st, 2023. Since she has been working as an apprentice trainer and got her first Wildrose dog Peach in July of the same year. Lily loves to be outside, practices photography often, and enjoys spending time adventuring with her personal dogs, Sirius and Lucky.

Lanette Drewrey - Health Care Supervisor

Lanette joined Wildrose in June of 2002, as an animal health care specialist and was promoted to health care supervisor in February, 2004. While pursuing a biology degree at the University of Mississippi, Lanette worked part time as a veterinarian assistant for the Lafayette Animal Clinic from January, 1999 through February, 2004, assisting in surgery and on-farm calls. Currently, Lanette supervises the Wildrose husbandry programs and health care for our sires and dams along with the dogs in training. She is responsible for supervising the Wildrose Super Learner Program (SLP) and the Super Scent Series (SSS). Lanette resides in the Denmark community with her son Aidan and their dog Ginger.

Shelby Rushing - Health Care Assistant

Shelby joined Wildrose in November of 2023 as a health care assistant and has since learned and become accountable for the wellbeing of the dogs kept on property. She is responsible for conducting monthly health checks, vaccinations and making sure the puppies are well socialized before going home. She believes growing up with dogs in her home is what led her to a career surrounded by them everyday. She and her daughter Khloe spend their free time outdoors hunting, fishing, and spending time with their family.

Mindy Ladner - Office Assistant

Mindy is an Oxford native who has a B.A. from the University of Mississippi. She has a lifelong love for animals and worked as a receptionist for Lafayette Animal Clinic from 2007 to 2012 where she became acquainted with Wildrose Kennels. She began working with Wildrose Trading Company in retailing and customer services in 2014. In 2020 she became the office assistant with duties including: accounts receivable/payable. In addition to her office duties, her love for animals makes her an exceptional puppy backgrounder socializing client puppies and acclimating them to the home environment while introducing basic obedience skills. Mindy enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including fishing, hiking, camping, kayaking, and mushroom hunting with her husband, Kel.

Scott Wilson - Service Companion Program

Scott was born in Milwaukee, raised in Baltimore, studied biology and chemistry at Gettysburg College followed by structural chemistry at the University of North Carolina, and worked three decades as Director of Materials Chemistry at the University of Illinois before retiring and immediately acquiring his first hunting and fishing licenses since high school. Anxious to find the perfect canine companions for numerous upcoming adventures, Scott and his wife, Roxy, researched breeds and kennels nationwide for six months. They selected their first Wildrose pup, Cora, in 2013 and their second Wildrose pup, Suzy, in 2015. Scott adopted Widgeon, who took to his retirement career as a therapy dog and earned his AKC THD in less than a year. After 2 years volunteering with Widgeon as a therapy team, Scott is now a licensed Pet Partners therapy team evaluator. Beyond helping to focus the Wildrose Service Companions program since 2016, Scott enjoys trekking, training, hunting, and fishing with his Wildrose companions.

Erin Shay O’Reilly

Erin joined Wildrose as an associate trainer in 2014 with her focus on obedience and backgrounding. In 2017, she was promoted to associate trainer. She was based in the Chicago suburbs specifically in Valparaiso, Indiana. In March of 2020, she moved to Oxford to join the training team full-time as Senior Trainer. She is also an emergency room nurse who specializes in trauma. Erin is a lifelong learner of animal psychology, healthcare, and husbandry specifically related to dogs, horses, and exotic parrots. Her passion for animals was professionally developed as a domestic and exotic veterinary technician, as an Indiana DNR research assistant studying sport fishing in Lake Michigan, and as a horseback riding instructor. She is a member of the National Association of Dog Obedience instructors, Hunting Retriever Club, and the Association of Professional Dog Trainers. She is an active waterfowl, upland, small and large game hunter, enjoys competing in hunt tests when she is not exploring the abundant opportunities for Adventure Dog training with her dogs Ben, Luke, and Ghillie.

Daniel Adams

Lexington KY, and Placida, Florida

Daniel is a licensed retired Mechanical Engineer who specialized in Thermodynamics and Commercial - Industrial Air Conditioning. He has trained hunting Labradors in the Kentucky Bluegrass area since 2004 and is an avid waterfowler and upland bird hunter. His experience with training the Wildrose Way began in 2019 with Wildrose Boca, an excellent example of a Gentleman’s Gundog. Boca recently achieved certification as a registered Therapy Dog. 

His training emphasizes manners, control, and family compatibility, with outstanding field performance. In addition, exposure to both every day and adventure type experiences such as boating and fishing are an important focus.  He lives in Lexington, Kentucky and on Palm Island, near the Boca Grande area of Florida with his wife Mitzi, Boca, and their two lovable lap dogs, Sassy and Coco. They have 3 adult children Abigail, Barret, and Braden happily residing in the Central Kentucky and Southwest Ohio region.

Travis Facemyer - Associate Trainer

West Columbia, WV

Travis is from West Columbia, West Virginia, where he owns and operates Facemyer Lumber Company. He is an avid wingshooter, hunting all over the country and Canada every year with Wildrose Rogan, Wildrose Faolain and his Vizsla, Piros. Travis has a diverse sporting gundog training background to include both retrievers and pointing breeds. He is a member of the Appalachian Valley Chapter of North America Versatile Hunting Dog Association, a pointing dog organization that sponsors "Hero's Tribute Hunt" for disabled veterans. Travis bought his first Wildrose dog in 2011 and he has been a constant participant and instructor at Wildrose workshops over the years. He became an Associate Trainer with Wildrose supporting the West Virginia region of the country in 2016.

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Sarah and Rob Reffett - Associate Trainer

Eutaw, AL

Rob and Sarah Reffett are both avid animal lovers from West Central Alabama.  Rob grew up training dogs for HRC hunt tests with his father and trained horses in high school.  Rob and Sarah both work for Alabama Power Company where Rob is a lineman in the Transmission Crew and Sarah is an Engineer in Power Delivery.  Sarah bought her first Wildrose dog, Gunner, in 2009 and immediately started training him the Wildrose Way (Gunner later won the Gun’s Choice Award at the Double Gun and Retriever Classic in 2011).  Rob and Sarah joined the Associate Trainer staff in the spring of 2011.  Both Rob and Sarah are avid upland and waterfowl hunters and enjoy traveling the country with the Wildrose pack searching for the next great hunting adventure.  Rob and Sarah share their home with 5 Wildrose yellow labs (Gunner, Meca, Roost, Nola and Beasley), 2 rescue dogs (Kate and Scarlett), and 1 cat (Tigger).  Wildrose Deep South is located in West Greene, Alabama

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Clayton Mayer - Associate Trainer

Clayton has always been an avid hunter and outdoorsman. In 2003, he found a true passion in duck hunting and began training waterfowl retrievers. Clayton continued to train waterfowl retrievers for years, but he was still looking for a quality gun dog. One day while watching Ducks Unlimited TV, Clayton heard about Wildrose Kennels. He was instantly intrigued and had to know more. Not long after that, Clayton purchased his first Labrador in Oxford, Mississippi. He is now a part of the Wildrose family and has been an associate trainer since 2016.

Hunting was once a hobby but has now grown into a way of life for Clayton. He hunts over two hundred days a year and has dogs in the fields nearly every day. Clayton guides hunts from Canada to Texas and has made appearances on television shows such as Drakes Migration Nation and Campbells Outdoor Challenge where he was recognized for his record winning Antelope. Clayton is an avid hunter of all things, but he most enjoys hunting waterfowl and anything he can shoot with his bow. He never goes on a hunt without Wildrose Master Chief by his side as well as any pups he may currently be working with.

Clayton is from Makanda, IL where he currently lives with his two sons, Ty and Chase. He enjoys spending his free time with his family, fishing, playing basketball, and – of course – hunting. 

Tim Clancy - Associate Trainer

Whitman, MA

Tim is a Lieutenant Firefighter/Paramedic on his hometown fire department in Whitman, Massachusetts. Tim is married to Danielle and they have one daughter, Kiley. Tim bought his first Wildrose dog in 2007 and has been training The Wildrose Way ever since. Tim assumed his position as an associate trainer in the fall of 2009, expanding our training capabilites into the Northeast. Tim participates in the started dog program and assists with on-the-road Wildrose seminars and events, including the Orvis Cup in Sandanona, NY at the Orvis shooting grounds.

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