I am looking for the first gun dog, live in CO, hunt and will be hunting pheasants, quail, rabbits, ducksin eastern CO. Big yard, small kids, 2x3 hrs alone in the yard/ house M_T.
Any rccomendations? Thanks.
i agree with Doc E a lab would be perfect. they are so good with kids and can trust them by themselves during the day. i also might consider a GSP. they have a bit more energy, but you said you have a big yard. All the GSP i have been around have been good with kids. i have one of each and have had very good success in eastern colorado.
I have a 3 1/2 year old son and decided that a Pudelpointer is going to have absolutely everything I need in a hunting dog at the same time being a great member of the family (well, maybe not with the cat, but we'll see).
One of the good things about the first three breeds I have listed (maybe the Munsterlander as well, I'm not sure); none of them are recognized by the AKC. So, none of the breeders will be breeding show dogs. They are all hunting dogs. This is not the case with other breeds, which only means the excercise of finding the right breeder could be more difficult; especially if you don't know a lot of people in the dog world.
Any breed will do you right if you seek the right breeder that produces pups that work for you. Eastern Colorado hunting and Western Kansas is taylor made for big running dogs. Big milo, wheat, and CRP grass. It does not get terribly cold. My first choice would be a NAVHDA bred shorthair or a Deutsch Kurzhaar. Maybe even an English pointer.
I disagree with the lab thing as I lived and hunted in eastern colorado for many many years. It is not like hunting in the midwest. Unless you hunt river bottoms strictly, that is pheasant hunting made for dogs that will run wide open.
Laufer
Are you wanting an all around dog for fur, upland and waterfowl? Then a versatile or pointing lab would suit you. But if you're just wanting an upland dog then you may also want to check out the english setter. I'm kinda of bias though. Everyone worries about their coats but a simple brush or trim the feathering and you basically have a brittany with a tail.
If you get one, get a Llewellin setter x English setter (most english setter have Llew blood in them anyways). But generally, the crosses tend more towards the english (stylish points and run big) but retain the Llew bird drive and nose.
Any breed will do you right if you seek the right breeder that produces pups that work for you. Eastern Colorado hunting and Western Kansas is taylor made for big running dogs. Big milo, wheat, and CRP grass. It does not get terribly cold. My first choice would be a NAVHDA bred shorthair or a Deutsch Kurzhaar. Maybe even an English pointer.
I disagree with the lab thing as I lived and hunted in eastern colorado for many many years. It is not like hunting in the midwest. Unless you hunt river bottoms strictly, that is pheasant hunting made for dogs that will run wide open.
So you would prefere pointer to flushers, but not pointing labs?
Thanks for your comments.
I have a 3 1/2 year old son and decided that a Pudelpointer is going to have absolutely everything I need in a hunting dog at the same time being a great member of the family (well, maybe not with the cat, but we'll see).
One of the good things about the first three breeds I have listed (maybe the Munsterlander as well, I'm not sure); none of them are recognized by the AKC. So, none of the breeders will be breeding show dogs. They are all hunting dogs. This is not the case with other breeds, which only means the excercise of finding the right breeder could be more difficult; especially if you don't know a lot of people in the dog world.
Any breed will do you right if you seek the right breeder that produces pups that work for you. Eastern Colorado hunting and Western Kansas is taylor made for big running dogs. Big milo, wheat, and CRP grass. It does not get terribly cold. My first choice would be a NAVHDA bred shorthair or a Deutsch Kurzhaar. Maybe even an English pointer.
I disagree with the lab thing as I lived and hunted in eastern colorado for many many years. It is not like hunting in the midwest. Unless you hunt river bottoms strictly, that is pheasant hunting made for dogs that will run wide open.
So you would prefere pointer to flushers, but not pointing labs?
Thanks for your comments.
I think you would be happiest with a dog that runs rather big in that country, at least 100 yards out but more (within reason) is better. I don't think too many PL naturally have that kind of range. If you could find a breeder who produces bigger running PL's, it would probably work great.
Gun dog for Colorado
