Brittany spaniel

1

12gaugedust

New member
Just wondering about your thoughts on brittany spaniels? I have a brittany spaniel he is 10 months old and is already fully trained, and ready for this hunting season...
 
I run a Boykin Spaniel (just Google it) on pheasants and he does a great job. I love to see when he gets birdy and starts to bounce around. I think a spaniel is the perfect size, can travel well, and is a great family dog too.

One word of caution, the long hair can be a problem. The first time I took my dog to SD he was about 10 months old too. Beautiful long wavy hair. Within the first 10 minutes he came back looking like a brillo pad. The cockle burrs had tangled up in his hair so bad it took me 3 hours to comb and cut them out. They had got up in the private sensitive area and rubbed him raw. I kept him in the truck for the next day to let him recover. Now I shave him close before we go.
 
Get him a small cordura vest and he will be fine. I have had britts for 20 years now. They are great hunters and family dogs. They don't like being yelled, so positive reinforcement is a must. He is young so let him have fun and don't get mad if he bumps birds or don't hold that point. Let him get a nose full and you will have a partner for a long time:cheers:
Kick'em Up
 
I have heard that they are amazing upland bird dogs, and I hope to get to hunt behind one someday, but I have to say I find it hard to believe that he is "fully trained" at 10 months. This is going to be his first hunting season, so how do you really know?

Welcome to the forum, and good luck this hunting season!
 
Hes been through school twice already, once at 5 months and i go and pick him up tomorrow. I shouldnt say fully trained i appoligize for that, but he is deffinetly started, and know how to hold point, whistle trained, all the things that come with it. He pointed 4 wild quail at school the other day with no help from the trainor and was able to shoot them all with out him moving.
 
12gaugedust said:
Hes been through school twice already, once at 5 months and i go and pick him up tomorrow. I shouldnt say fully trained i appoligize for that, but he is deffinetly started, and know how to hold point, whistle trained, all the things that come with it. He pointed 4 wild quail at school the other day with no help from the trainor and was able to shoot them all with out him moving.
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It does sound like you have a fine dog, it was just the term fully trained that caught my eye.
Good luck on your hunting this year.
 
I got my first brit around this time last year. She's got limitless energy, almost a lunatic at times, and insatiable drive to find birds. Incredibly quick, although doesn't have the same top gear that pointers and setters seem to have.

I agree with KickThemUp's observations. Very sweet personality, and responds to consistency and a gentle hand/kind voice. You should have seen her freak out and then pout at the vet after getting her vaccinations. You would have thought the vet was using an icepick or something...

As long as I don't do anything stupid, I think she might turn out to be my best hunting dog yet. She's got more wheels than any of my past dogs, and is similarly loving and devoted. But it's still a little early to say for sure with only a few true hunts under her belt. Still I was impressed with what she was doing last year at 6 months old, so this year who knows...

Lots of great dog breeds out there, and Brits are one of 'em.:D
 
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peterpointinglab said:
They are no longer called brittany spaniels, just "brittany". but awesome dog none the less.
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You are correct. The word Spaniel was dropped from their name some time ago. Now commonly called just Brittany or American Brittany. Not to be confused with the French Brittany.
 
I am a Brittany man. Love them.
 
My two buddies have Brittany Spaniels. I'm old fashioned and stubborn.

They are great dogs. The guys do have vest/skid plates for them. We just hunted for 6 days in ND.

Walt MI/USA
 
I have hunted over a few Brittanies and one of them was one of the best "dead bird" dogs I have ever seen. Most of my dogs have been Setters but my one little Pointer was a dynamite dog, great around the house and on fishing trips.

I am not sure where I read this, I believe it's a line from George Bird Evans, so feel free to correct me. "There are no outstanding breeds, only outstanding individuals".

I just don't put a lot of stock in generalizations. As soon as someone makes a comment along the lines of "all (fill in the breed here) are worthless" or one breed is better than another, I start looking for an exit.

I just like bird dogs.
 
Dog Gun Time said:
I have hunted over a few Brittanies and one of them was one of the best "dead bird" dogs I have ever seen. Most of my dogs have been Setters but my one little Pointer was a dynamite dog, great around the house and on fishing trips.

I am not sure where I read this, I believe it's a line from George Bird Evans, so feel free to correct me. "There are no outstanding breeds, only outstanding individuals".

I just don't put a lot of stock in generalizations. As soon as someone makes a comment along the lines of "all (fill in the breed here) are worthless" or one breed is better than another, I start looking for an exit.

I just like bird dogs.
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+100

My dad had a couple of Brittany's when I was growing up and too young to hunt. He had them professionally trained and I went a few times and saw the dogs work. They did great but were never house dogs and I couldn't imagine those two being house dogs.

My personal preference is shorter haired dogs for in the house and now that I am a little more experienced breeds that are not quire as active in the house as others.

I had a Weim that was pretty active in the house as well as out. I got a Vizsla because I was really going to hit the hunting harder and have but that sicker is so crazy in the house Momma didn't ever want to get another hunting dog. He's over 10 now and people still think he's a 2 yr old with how active he is.

I got a Braque Francais (French Pointer) because they are supposed to be calm in the house, is short haired and hunt. He is all of those things. I think certain traits are common with certain breeds but in those traits are wide variations.
 
I would't trade my Bittanies for anything, but I was raised on them. Some call them "boot bumpers" but I can assure you mine are not.
 
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