Waterfowl Dog!

[colombe]

RE Waterfowl Dog
I have owned quite a few Labs.
I will not have any Males anymore, they tend to urinate on everything.
They also like to wander. Sometimes they can be mean.
I will only get females now. They are very affectionate and have lots of heart.
They are better hunters and they are easier to train.
They are very good with kids and are not mean.
The only drawback with a lab is the shedding of hair.
They will do anything for a cookie.
But when they hunt they don't care about food, they are all business.
I've had one chocolate lab, never again, [too exited and too hyper, and not a good hunter].
I would only have black labs now.
Good books to train is Water Dog, by Richard Wolters.
Good breeder is Peter Martin, Kap retreiver and outfitters, in Kapuskasing..
Take Care

 

[Winchested]

Dont waste you $ on water dog by wolters. I bought it and 40-50 year old info is that OLD NEWS!

Go with a proper retriever program. Mike lardy, bill Hillmann, Evan grahms smart works, fowl dawgs, even the old Dobbs tri Tronics book I better than water dog. I've done a lot of reading and research.

I want to get Tom Dokkens books and DVDs through gun dog mag as well. Seems like a good program too.

 

[CDNbear]

Get a couple of good dog training books (Water Dog worked for me), make every walk a training session ...get him/her swiming as soon as you can (it will learn to love the water) use your calls, fox 40, training dummy, starter pistol ... make it as real as possible for the dog, it will learn to love the game..... as for bread, I have had a couple of Labs (yellow female , chocolate male) the female was by far the easiest to train (male is head strong), but that will be your choice. No one has mentioned the german short hair, irish setter, nova scoita troller. So the options are numerious to say the least. What it comes down to is if you do your job what ever bread you choose the dog will most certainly do its part.

 

[norman]

I got a 3 year old registered female yellow lab a couple years ago. She had no retrieving training prior to that.
Last fall she retrieved mainly canada geese and some ducks in the water. Shes not so good on land yet.
The giant canadas are bit heavy for her....on land. She is about 70lbs.
She sheds, is hyper, barks all night, much too friendly and needy for attention.
Best dog I ever had!

 

[captonion]

Absolute bullsh*t!

Not really...I tend to agree with waterhen19 on the Lab vs Chessies...

 

[waterhen19]

I'm not saying you are mistaken Shane but I would love to see a pic of your dog. The biggest working CBR I've seen went maybe 90pds. At 140 he should be able to retrieve ostrichs'!

It is actually my dogs father that will get up to 140 lbs in the off season (yet to see him that big just what owner told me)...

I am not sure in the weight of my dog right now I will have to weigh him and get a couple resent pictures to and put them up.

"Cinch"

I am not going to sit and argue with you on which dog is better!!! That was my opinion from research and from owning a lab and 2 chessies.
My chocolate lab would not retrieve waterfowl and would not fetch in the water and was hyper. Was great hunting Grouse couldn't ask for a better dog.
My first Chessie didn't get any hunting time in because the wife ran him over
The Chessie I have now isn't a year yet but worked with him a fair bit last fall (not in field) and he is off to a good start. I have used a goose and a duck for training and he fetched them everytime so, I know he will retrieve waterfowl atleast....

Like I said in previous post it is personal preference and the chessie was my personal preference....

BTW that is my only personal experience with hunting dogs. I am no expert and am not saying I am either.

As far as I am concerned a dog is only as good as its owner/trainer....

Shane

 

[Pudelpointer]

I wouldn't pay more than the adoption fees at the pound for a lab I couldn't see the Hip (and probably Eye) test results for. In fact, other than rescue or pound dogs, don't by from any breeder of almost any breed who doesn't get hip x-rays evaluated.

Just my opinion.

 

[TheCoachZed]

You are far more likely to get a dog with degenerative disease due to inbreeding than you are from getting a dog that's been bred naturally - as in, the first opportunity that sniffs the kennel door.

I've had two labs. Both were fine, healthwise; one was from a reputable breeder, one not. The one from the reputable breeder was crazy, though. She bit people, when we treated her like gold. The breeder took her back, thinking we'd screwed up her training, and he could fix it. Then she ate her puppies. Then she slaughtered a henhouse singlehadedly, twice. Then she was shot.

If I wanted a guaranteed healthy dog, I'd be just as likely to assume a Heinz 57 farm dog would be genetically sound as some purebred.

Go with a mutt And possibly spend thousands in vet bills. Etc.

Buy a reputable breed from a breeder with papers and a MUST is health clearances.

Do your research and don't rush.

I have an 8 mo old chocolate. He is 58 lbs. probably won't go over 75 maxed out.

Watch the parents run if you can. A dog is a 10-12 year investment and friendship. Spend some $ up front and buy one that will do the job. Purchase price is the least of your worries. I'd say so far without pro training I have close to $2500 into my dog and dog supplies for training etc.

It isn't cheap. So don't be cheap about it.

 

[TheCoachZed]

I love labs. But I'd really like to try a NS duck toller for my next dog. The trouble is, they've been bred in such a small region, that the lines have really been crossed and recrossed too many times. There are some good breeders out there, but for a while, at least, they had a reputation for inbreeding problems.

I've never been fortunate enough to hunt over any decent dogs. My labs were pets. My brother in law takes his chocolate lab sometimes, but she is dumb as a box of rocks. To me, that's worse than no dog. If I have to watch a dog run all over the place and scare off birds, and still end up swimming for the ducks myself, then the dog is worthless. The nice thing about a duck toller is that you WANT them to run all over the place, so even if you get a dumb one, you are OK.

 

[Bland]

Had a Lab (toughest), a golden/wolfhound mix (smartest), English Setter ( grouse machine but hated swimming ) and currently on my second brittany. My neighbour has a great Chessie. These were/are all good pets. Of all these breeds the Golden is probably the most placid and can get by with the least activity. The Lab wasn't cut so that made life interesting. They are total sluts so do not even think about not fixing your dog, it lessens the complications. The Brittany will do it all with enthusiasm but is a small breed so if you are after the big stuff that can be a problem in the water. They are a "high energy dog" do not take that description lightly. All these breeds come with characteristics. Pick one that suits your nature. A gun dog needs work to be content and is a daily responsibility; the returns on all this work are unforgettable days in the field. These dogs all got me off the couch on days that might not happen otherwise. Those walks are good for more than the dog. There are many dog training books and I have a small library of them. They tend to contradict each other. One common thread these books have is repetition is the main key and planning for success in your training. Oh right and you are not supposed to get pi$$ed off. Well good luck with that part. Hunting breeds are usually smart so that usually costs you extra in ways you have not even conceived of yet. The current mutt, Harley, likes eye glasses. He had already chewed the better half's so I decided to hide mine, which I did, in the bedside table in a closed drawer. At six months that barely slowed him down. And at the risk of derailing this thread, Lab colours are just that and have no bearing on behaviour. Just had to throw that one in the mix. Good luck with your new pup.

 

[Cinch]

Not really...I tend to agree with waterhen19 on the Lab vs Chessies...

It is actually my dogs father that will get up to 140 lbs in the off season (yet to see him that big just what owner told me)...

I am not sure in the weight of my dog right now I will have to weigh him and get a couple resent pictures to and put them up.

"Cinch"

I am not going to sit and argue with you on which dog is better!!! That was my opinion from research and from owning a lab and 2 chessies.
My chocolate lab would not retrieve waterfowl and would not fetch in the water and was hyper. Was great hunting Grouse couldn't ask for a better dog.
My first Chessie didn't get any hunting time in because the wife ran him over
The Chessie I have now isn't a year yet but worked with him a fair bit last fall (not in field) and he is off to a good start. I have used a goose and a duck for training and he fetched them everytime so, I know he will retrieve waterfowl atleast....

Like I said in previous post it is personal preference and the chessie was my personal preference....

BTW that is my only personal experience with hunting dogs. I am no expert and am not saying I am either.

As far as I am concerned a dog is only as good as its owner/trainer....

Shane

I'm not saying Labs are better, nor am I going to waste time to defending Labs or attacking Chessies. Both breeds make excellent retrievers. Any difference between the 2 in terms of quality of working dogs is directly related to the individual pedigree/breeder/kennel and or owner/handler/trainer not the breed. People considering either (or any sporting dog) need to do their due diligence researching/selecting possible breeders/litters and realize a well bred/well trained working dog is a significant investment in time and money. Compromise on either and the chance of ending up with a useless Lab or Chessie goes up significantly!