I don't know if I'm lucky or just have dogs that are willing to please, but I have had no problems with my two Chessies. In fact, every streotype that is written about the Chessie, just hasn't been true with mine. However, mine are housedogs and socialization (bonding) was, has been and will always be my first step to training a bird dog. IMHO, what a person wants out of a dog -- regardless of breed, all depends on what that person is willing to invest (love, time, exposure to birds etc.)

By the way, although I do hunt waterfowl on occasion, my dogs are true upland hunters, having hunted 15 different species of game birds all across North America.