Originally Posted by
Father Forkhorn
My household recently got an australian shepherd puppy and I think he might be able to do some hunting. He's a herding breed, but he definitely has intelligence and he shows a decent nose. On one of his first walks, he got downwind of a big feather and caught the scent of it. He definitely knew something was up. He was crouched down and barking at it.
I'm thinking there's a fair chance to at least teach him to root out a rabbit or maybe even kick a bird up out of the weeds.
That dog is too fast to hunt rabbits, you would not be able to get a shot because the dog would be too close to the rabbit if it was chasing. A herding dog would chase by sight, a hound chases by scent. There is a reason for certain breeds for certain tasks. There are hundreds of years of selective breeding in hunting dog and the same goes for herding dogs. Shepard dogs have the instinct bred into them to herd, keep animals together and run strays back to the herd. If you want a hunting dog, buy a hunting breed from a good breeder. You will be much happier with the results than to try to fit a square peg into a round hole.