Smaller Hunting Dogs

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G P

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So I am looking for a pointing or flushing dog that can also retrieve in water if needed, although primarily it will be for grouse and ptarmigan. This is also going to be a family dog and my girlfriend considers anything the size of a Labrador too big (there's no convincing her otherwise, trust me I tried :) ). So the main candidates so far are the english springer spaniel and the small munsterlander. How are these dogs around the house? Has anyone had experience with these dogs? Are there any good breeders of field dogs in Atlantic Canada that you recommend? Are there any other breeds I should consider?
 
Brittany Spaniel.
25-30lbs. Great family dog and one of the only spaniels that will point and flush in the field.
Good luck keeping it out of the water, always just before you want to leave the cottage. Splash its soaked. LOL.
Good luck.
 
I'm currently in the process of looking for the same thing.... and every time I start researching I keep coming back to the Brittany.

Just to start off, I've been called paranoid on several occasions because of my obsession with researching things before making a purchase. I call it time well invested. Here's what I've learned from a local dog expert that both trains and runs a kennel.

Its not really called a spaniel anymore because its more of a pointer but can easily be trained to flush and retrieve.

The Brittany is the smallest of the gun dogs and is apparently really good with kids as long as they are socialized early. When it comes to training, I'm told there isn't much to it because of the nature of this breed but of course you still need to train.

I'm also told prices vary greatly but you always get what you pay for when it comes to dogs. Research the breeder and if they have any problems answering your questions, take that as some indication. The breeder here in Saskatchewan is called Prairie Storm Kennel and they have been great. They answer anything and everything that I've thrown at them and have the papers to back their claims about health and genetic testing. They also have a 30 month health guarentee which I found quite odd but they say if there is anything that becomes a problem, like hips and eyes or things like that, they will take the dog back, have it fixed, and then give you another dog. The dog then becomes a pet on their farm and is taken out of the breeding program.

I'm pretty excited to take a look at these pups this week. I guess they're pretty popular and they usually sell out fast when you can find them.
 
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I know in many breeds the females are smaller, I don't know if this is true with Brittany's, english springers etc. . .
 
I have a springer spaniel (male) who live in the house with us. "Us" is myself and the missus along with 4-10 kids depending on the number of friends visiting.
He is just a 40 lb lap dog if allowed to be. Well behaved when alone in the house and very loving when we come home. My kids are all teenagers now and they walk him as easily as I do. Very easily trained and obedient. The only time they can't control him is when I speak to him because he is my dog and he sees me as the alpha male and will ignore others.

Great dog, willing to hunt hard all day long. I have used him on pheasants chuckers and pigeons but they will adapt to any bird with practice. One guy has trained his for retreiving geese.
Springers do love the water and retreive willingly from it
You wont be disapointed with one.
LSB
 
Don't over-look a cocker spaniel! Perfect little affecionate family dog, but amazing in the field for patiently working out smart old pheasant roosters.
They just love all the time you will spend on them, getting burrs out of their hair and long ears!
 
Just remember there is a BIG difference hunting behind a flushing breed vs a pointer. Depends on your preference, but I prefer pointers for the birds that you describe. Hunting open country birds like ptarmigan behind a flusher would be less effective than it would be with a good pointing dog, but of course a springer or cocker can be very effective for retrieving.
Look at the versatile breeds of dogs tested through the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association. They provide standardized tests that are as close as possible to an objective measure of a hunting dog's ability to point, track, and retrieve on both land and water. Looking at test scores is a good way to narrow down your search.
Back to your question of breeds, you could find what you're looking for in a Brittany, or Small Munsterlander, and you could also consider small framed dog from the following list:
BI Bracco Italiano
BA Braque D’auvergne
BB Braque Du Bourbonnais
BF Braque Francais
BS Brittany
CF Cesky Fousek
DP Drentse Partridge
ES English Setter
FP French Spaniel
GL German Longhaired Pointer
GS German Shorthaired Pointer
GW German Wirehaired Pointer
GO Gordon Setter
IR Irish Red & White Setter
IS Irish Setter
LM Large Munsterlander
PT Pointer
PO Portuguese Pointer
PP Pudelpointer
SH Slovensky Hrubosrsty Stavac
SM Small Munsterlander
SP Spinone
ST Stichelhaar
VI Vizsla
WM Weimaraner
GR Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
WV Wirehaired Vizsla
 
casterpollox said:
They also have a 30 month health guarentee which I found quite odd but they say if there is anything that becomes a problem, like hips and eyes or things like that, they will take the dog back, have it fixed, and then give you another dog. The dog then becomes a pet on their farm and is taken out of the breeding program.
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That is not odd, it is the sign of a reputable kennel and a breeder who is genuinely concerned with the future of the breed. A dog with ANY genetic health issues should be fixed; in many countries the dogs are killed.

Cockers can be fantastic hunting dogs and were once very popular, but poor breeding has left them a little sketchy (in general) as to suitability as a hunting dog. Whatever breed you decide on, make sure your breeder is breeding for HUNTING, not trials, not conformation, etc. Be cautious of the words "Dual Champion"; this is part of the AKC / CKC half-assed testing program that is supposed to show that their show dogs can also be useful hunting dogs. Sure, just like a dog that can fetch a tennis ball is automatically a good duck hunter.

If you decide to go with one of the versatile breeds (small munsterlander, brittany, etc.) make sure your breeder is testing their dogs in NAVHDA. This organization tries to judge a dog's ability against a standard that is appropriate for it's breed, unlike field trials that test dogs against each other, where the fastest, thoroughbred of a dog always wins (i.e. GSP's) regardless of whether or not they make a good hunting partner.

I would suggest a pudelpointer, but they are probably too big.

Good luck.
 
The most important thing once you have chosen a breed is to do what PudelPointer said and research breeders to ensure they breed proven working dogs. You'l have the dog a long time and this is very important if you want a great field dog.

If its going to be used for a fair number of cold water retrieves and a lab is too big then you perhaps should be looking at a GWP or a Pudelpointer. Otherwise I'm sure you will be very happy with the breeds you mentioned.

I'd love another dog, unfortunately I take longer to make up my mind than CasterPollox. :D
 
casterpollox said:
...I'm also told prices vary greatly but you always get what you pay for when it comes to dogs. Research the breeder and if they have any problems answering your questions, take that as some indication. The breeder here in Saskatchewan is called Prairie Storm Kennel and they have been great. They answer anything and everything that I've thrown at them and have the papers to back their claims about health and genetic testing. They also have a 30 month health guarantee which I found quite odd but they say if there is anything that becomes a problem, like hips and eyes or things like that, they will take the dog back, have it fixed, and then give you another dog. The dog then becomes a pet on their farm and is taken out of the breeding program.

I'm pretty excited to take a look at these pups this week. I guess they're pretty popular and they usually sell out fast when you can find them.
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You certainly are going to pay for a well bred dog but not all "expensive" pups are well bred. The price should reflect the number/quality of titles in the pedigree of the pups. Health guarantees are standard practice with a quality breeding. While any decent kennel will only breed a #####/sire with health clearances for hips, eyes, EIC, elbows, etc but the health guarantee is just one more protection for the consumer.

A thorough amount of research is needed and will most likely result in finding the best dog for your own situation. However, make sure to research both the breeder and the breeding. I personal stay away from line breeders so researching the breeding is more important to me then the researching the breeder.
 
I've got at Brittany, 3yo male and he's a small 49 pounds(can still feel ribs and see his waist) He'll run all day, play all day, swim all day or sleep all day, depending what you feel like doing that day. best dog imo, he's a house dog who loves to go hunting pheasants.
 
warrenb said:
The most important thing once you have chosen a breed is to do what PudelPointer said and research breeders to ensure they breed proven working dogs. You'l have the dog a long time and this is very important if you want a great field dog.

If its going to be used for a fair number of cold water retrieves and a lab is too big then you perhaps should be looking at a GWP or a Pudelpointer. Otherwise I'm sure you will be very happy with the breeds you mentioned.

I'd love another dog, unfortunately I take longer to make up my mind than CasterPollox. :D
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I do take a long time don't I.:redface:

When I found the local breeder I started making some calls to vets in Saskatchewan and they all said good things about this kennel so I'm confident about their dogs.

I guess the only reason I thought the health guarenttee was odd is because I had never heard of one before but now that we've talked about it, it should be the industry standard.

All I can say to the OP is to do your research. I've had a lot of fun checking out different breeds and learning about different dogs and what they can do.

Keep us up to date on whatever you get.

Here's the pup I'm checking out this afternoon.

meadow_mr_blue1_600x400_20090521.jpg



meadow_puppies2_600x400_20090521.jpg



one on the right


meadow_puppies5_600x400_20090521.jpg



one in the middle
 
what about a Nova Scotian Duck Tolling Retriever? I have a friend who has one and they are great. been hoping to get one myself.

h ttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_Scotia_Duck-Tolling_Retriever
 
fader said:
what about a Nova Scotian Duck Tolling Retriever? I have a friend who has one and they are great. been hoping to get one myself.

h ttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_Scotia_Duck-Tolling_Retriever
Click to expand...

Yay, another Toller fan. :)
Great dogs for birds and family and depending on the breeder, can range from 30 - 50 lbs. We got ours @ 7 years ago, before I was interested in hunting, and she's gun shy now so we don't hunt her. We are working on the issues and then who knows. Great flushers, not much for pointing tho'.
The long coat is a bit of a bugger with burrs, etc. but it also serves to allow the dog to survive the cold water for way longer than the short hairs.
And, I have to add, way smarter than a Lab, 'specially our Daughter's chocolate Lab. ;)
 
scruffee said:
My chihuahua hunts flies.....
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Haha. Embarrassed to admit this, but my wife has a couple of those little land piranha's. The little female (3.5 lbs) does a pretty good job of flushing Hun's along the canal where my wife walks them. The wife says I should take her hunting with me and my pointer - unfortunately, the chihu'i would likely stroke out if I ever shot over her :eek:, so nope.
 
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