I am concidering getting a small dog for upland game hunting. I would prefer a 40/50lb, short haired flushing dog. Could you please make some recommendations as to what breeds i should look at.

Short hair?
why short hair and not long?

Good small dogs with longer hair: Britneys, springers, boykins, and Of course smaller Setters.

Good short hair dogs, but not always small: GSP, Eng. Pointers, Weimaraner.

The best fitI can think of for what you want would be a weimaraner. Smaller and short hair, great upland dogs. If you went to a longer coat, maybe a springer or boykin spaniel would work well, maybe a Britney..

I thought short hair so as it is easier to maintain the dogs coat, and take out snaggs and burrs from the dogs coat. I amjust in the starting to do reasearch end of things. I have a faer that if i got a puppy and for some reason it wasn't a hunter my wife would of course fall in love with the dog. And i would end up with a non-hunting dog for 10-12 years.

I have a brittany spaniel and the hair is not bad to maintain at all. She is a light shedder and an excellent upland hunting dog. She is around 30-35 lbs depending on the time of year.Good luck with whatever you go with.

Pat,
I was just wondering why short hair, because a lot of smaller upland dogs have longer coats. Like G force said, the brittany's are Great smaller upland dogs, and the coat is not bad. A long coat has its advantages in that burrs and stickers in thick cover will not slice a dog open as bad as short hair. Shedding is light, and hair is usually pretty fine, meaning if its inside, it will hide in the carpet so you dont have to vacuum every day.

I dont recommend a hunting breed for an inside dog though, they have lots of energy, and will tear your house up. If they are worth anything, they will go hunting with or without you eventually. I recommend keeping hunting dogs in an outside kennel. They shouldnt be spoiled inside, or they become lazy hunters and will not last all day.

Thank you all for the replays. From what i have learned from this post and posts on a few other boards, is that either a Boykin Spaniel or a French Brittney will suit my needs. The Boykin is a flusher and the French Brittney is a pointer. As a first time hunting dog owner, and first time hunting dog trainer, what type of dog would be easier to train? The pointer or the flusher? I would like the dog to stay within 50 yards of me out in the field so i could get a shot at the game.

they are both about the same, except that the brittany will point naturally, you will have to train him "whoa" and basic OB. The boykin will be abetter retriever, and you will have to teach them whoa also. But other than that its up to you. I know that the boykins are extremely versitle, upland and waterfowl.

pat,

You might also want to consider the braque francais. It is not easy to come by and it is a pointer not a flusher, but it is short haired like a GSP and looks similar but smaller. You might also look at a small munsterlander. These along with the French Brittany and Boykin are one's I've been researching. Also, don't leave out the springer spaniel or an english cocker. The Braque Francais may be rare but I hear they are among the very easiest to train. Also, similar to the French Brittany they are supposed to be more docile while in the home (provided you exercise them) than most American breeds.

Good luck

Spud

some labs are bred to be in smaller stature, our breeding female is 58lbs.
my favorite smaller dog is a springer spaniel but I have seen some field cockers from excellent stock that will bring you the phone if it rings, let alone what they can do in the field.

I've had Britts and Labs, but the Boykin I have had the past 8 years is by far the smartest of them all. She was very, very trainable. As far as the coat goes, I keep her trimmed somewhat and that takes care of the burr problem. I hunt birds with her mainly, but she does take to the water.......I haven't used her that much on Lake Erie, but when I do she goes full bore. She can't get a goose up on shore, but she brings them to the edge like a tugboat....funniest thing you've ever seen.
And she does live in the house, which in my view doesn't "soften" up a dog at all.
Check out this website, and some of it's links before you make your decision. www.boykinspaniel.com Pam is the person to talk to!!