I' m a brittany man from way way back. I currently have a 2 1/2 year old male and he is still learning They fully mature at about 3 years. #1 family pet: brittany' s are a very loving dog, they take to family life wonderfully. But they will not put up with the children being cruel, kicking hitting etc. they will defend themselves. My brit lives in his kennel daily, in the evening he is brought in the house to chew on a bone and to get his love time with the family. He sleeps in a veri-kennel cage in the house, he knows when 10PM is he gets up goes to the door and go' s out, does his duty for the last time. Comes in walks into his cage is given a milk bone and he goes to sleep. #2 Choosing a Pup: look for one that is very agressive, it is very easy to get a timid brit. if it appears to the bully of the litter that is the one you want. Or if it seperates from the pack and goes off exploring things alone or leading others that is a good sign. Make sure the parents are OFC certified for no hip problems. #3 Training, brits are what is called a soft dog to train, most trainers don' t want them until they are a year old. But you can train them to come, heel, whoa, retireve and even sight point a wing as a puppy if you take it slow and make a game of it. Make it a happy time and do it at least 5 days a week, it is not the quality or the quanity, it is the being together. A wise trainer once said, " you and the dog are a team the more you practice together the better team you become." With a brit this is so true.#4 Hunting, I had my Brit pointing planted birds on 20 ft lead a at 7 months and he held steady to flush. He just stood there and watched them fly away. He held his points as long as the bird held sometimes 3 minutes or more. A word of caution, Brits do not take to hitting in training, hit it and you could be done as a friend and trainer. Speak with a soft voice so when it goofs you can shout at it and it will respond to the change in voice. if you lose your temper and you will, I still do at times, do nothing. Just put the dog away and call it a day. Brits are very eager to please, they will even do things because they think you want them too. They will do far more out of love than out of fear. Well now that I have wrote a book, I hope this helps, if you need more e-mail me, I' ll be happy to try to help. oh one more thing , my dog always travels in a veri-kennel cage, it is much safer for you and the dog. I had mine cage trained by the end of the 1st week. Bob[8D]