I think you can talk in generalties based on what and where you hunt when it comes to choosing a particular breed. Yes, any dog within any breed can make a great pheasant dog (or even a mutt as far as that goes), but whata person needs to look at is the percentages. Every pup or dog is somewhat of a crapshoot....you can get a pup from the best bred litter in the world and it can still be a dud. When looking at a breed to do a particular job, you are going with the percentages as well as what you personally like. If a pointing dog is what a person really wants, they will never be happy with a Springer (or any other flushing dog) regardless of how well a flushing dog might work, and vice versa.

Percentagewise, the best bet for a flushing dog is a good Field-Bred Springer. I really can't comment on the pointing breeds as I haven't seen very many that are really good at holding a true wild pheasant, but the guides I know here in Montana use German Shorthairs.