GREEK HUNTER

i'm new to bird hunting doing mostly phesent. and so o whats a good dog to use for that.... not going water fowl hunting just fields

Scott Labs

I have an excellent liiter of yellow lab pups with pointing bloodlines and other championship lines. My ad is in here . It starts with AKC lab pups ready middle of april. If any questions just reply to me or email me . [email protected]

AK GSP

I am not going to try to sell you a dog.. But, I do have my opinion. I hope that this helps your decision.....

If you are looking for a pheasant dog, my suggestion is one of 3 breeds. 1) The English Pointer. They are hard headed dogs and very hard to ruin. They have instinct to point like nothing can beat. For anyone that is a "first time" pointing dog owner, I normally suggest the EP.

Now, I also suggest a GSP (German Shorthaired Pointer) and the Viszla. These two are versatile in their abilities. They come out of the womb pointing and just keep on going! The GSP and the Viszla are awesome house companions and work great in the field all in one dog.

I have owned, raised and trained GSPs and Weimaraners for over 11 years. I have been working with other peoples pointing and retrieving dogs for 8 years. I have seen many owners make mistakes as to the type of breed that they need for what they want the dog to do. I highly reccomend a pointing breed for pheasant hunting. If you are looking more toward the flushing breeds, a Lab or the English Springer Spaniel.

I hope that I did not offend anyone, but since I have been working with pheasant/quail and chucker dogs for many years, this is just my opinion. I have seen very bad things from un-informed "new" owners of hunting dogs.

Another suggestion that I have is.. no matter what breed you decide to go with, please check the breeder out well. Look for AKC registered parents, make sure that the breeder gives a health guarantee in writing or at the very least has the whole litter taken to the vet and health certified as puppies. Also, ask to see the parents. Ask to see the pedigrees of the parents. Look for hutning specific titles in the heritage. The American Kennel Club's website (http://www.akc.org) is very imformative. It will explain what the titles mean and where they are located in a dogs's name on its pedigree. Look for those titles no more than 3 generations back. If there are no titles in the pedigree, ask to take the parents hunting if possible. Don't be afraind to ask the breeder anything. Ask for references! The good ones and the BAD! Not alot of breeders will give you the bad ones too! Talk to those references. Ask them what they think of the dog that they purchased. Did they purchase it for hunting or a family companion or both?

I hope that I have given you alot to think about. I also hope that this will help you in your search for the perfect dog for you. Good luck in your search!

h2oknine

I run Labs with the pointing line in them, but if I were to pick a pointing breed I would lean torwards the Visla not to say that would be my final pick but one of my top 3 to choose from

hoggard

I am a professional trainer. http://www.hoggardkennels.com My pick is the pointer. I train all the breeds and they are good ones in all the breeds.

lriley185

hi my names lee un i live in the uk. i fly a female harris hawk she flys at 2lb 7oz in my line ov work i would surghest that a (springer spanial) would be good

Mite

I would also look into a Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB) registered dog. Unlike the AKC, FDSB are hunting/field trial lines. Most will not have any bench or show lines in their ancestry. They have all manners of hunting breeds registered, pointers, setters, visulas, german short hairs, etc.

FDSB and AKC are somewhat mutally exclusive although you may find a line dually registered. But the common is FDSB only and AKC only. FDSB is owned by American Field out of NY and is actually older than AKC.

As to my choice, EP is a great first dog, but not people oriented. You can't go wrong with them. They just need alot of exercise. English Setter is like a Pointer but more people friendly. Don't range as far. German Short Hair/Visulas/Germain Wire Hair I have no experience with. Brittany Spaniel is very close ranging and attached to one person.

isshe

I raise English Pointers..they are the dog of choice for me. There alot of good bird dogs out there...just fine the bred that works for your style of hunting.

The picture is my female pointing a quail.

RedDogRunner

you've been given great advice from the folks here! I too, like pointing breeds, of which, I happen to have stumbled on and stuck with Vizslas. So, there's my bias! I have friends that own GSP, Brittneys and labs, and have hunted with them all for over twenty years.
Its awfully thrilling to see a dog lock up on point, and you walk up and up comes a bird, you let it get out, so not to hamburger it, pop a cap in its butt, the dog runs out and brings it back to your hand!
The flushing/retrievers require a bit more savvy from you, the handler, to read their signs of birdiness, where as the pointer is a sort of, "no brainer they're locked up, and usually that means action!
The pointing breeds are usually going to work out of gun range, whereas the flushers/retrievers MUST work within gun range.
Considering your desire to work the uplands mostly, exclusively, my nod would be to the pointers, but, in a lot of pheasant fields, the cover is such, that a flusher/retriever is more ideal, in dense cover, a pointing dog may be locked up, and you can't see it, that's why technology has included tracking devices, beepers and such!
I should be breeding my female Vizsla within in the next couple of days, and a litter of pups to be whelped about 63 days later, making pups available around the end of June or early July if my math is correct as I type!
Feel free to query me at your leisure through here, I have photos, pedigrees and four references from my first and only litter as yet!
I'm not a pro breeder, so no guarantees or other perks they can offer, but, my female has been OFA'd (good) and the stud will be certified soon, he's going to be three yrs old in June, he's out of the Rebel Rouser Lines from Nebraska, a fine dog, my girl has a hall of fame gransire, a dog named "Golden Empire's Dr. T" and she has other championships in her background.
I HUNT, no tests, no trials, just hunt, and have been hunting Vizslas for about twenty-five years, I've owned four now, and hoping for my fifth, a pup out of my girl. My best friend has had four also, and is the owner of the sire!
They are beautiful dogs, good family companions, when I bought my first two, my daughter was about two yrs old, my son about ten.
They'll demand your all, and they'll give their all!

rutten

I am new to the board and stumbled accross this topic. I presently own a yellow lab that is a great upland bird dog and does a mighty good job waterfowling also. My hunting buddy has a lab with a pointing background that is a go getter in the field. With all that said there is no doubt that if you are going to be stictly upland hunting a pointing dog is the best way to go. Before my lab I owned a German shorthair pointer for 13 years and you can not beat them in the field. My opinion is to go with a GSP, Visila, English pointer, ect. My lab is as good a companion one could ask for and is a very fine hunter but when it comes to field hunting a pointing dog is hard to beat.
Scott