I am new to this site. First site that I joined because it seems to have an excellent collection of hunters, my favaorite being pheasant hunting. We have had great danes, boxers, weiner dogs ( mini dachshunds), and enjoy them very much. Our next dog will actually be a pure hunting dog. My brother has had black labs and they have been relentless hunters and excellent family dogs. A black lab took the national field trials. My grandfather had a springer called Ike that was pure hunter- except it took weeks to get burrs out of his coat. I am leaning toward the lab, a chocolate lab that has been bred for upland bird-primarily pheasant. We are in NW Illinois and may be looking to bring home a chocolate lab this spring. What shoud I look for when researching for a proven bird hunter and what characteristics would I look for in a pup? Does the color have any influence on the ability to hunt? Any input would be appreciated including any breeder suggestions for chocolate labs.
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chadsbritt
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I would suggest posting your questions to the bird dog portion of the forum.
As far as selecting the right puppy, make sure you do your homework. Don't settle on a breeder, but find one you feel comfortable with and seems to truly have the interest of the dogs in mind. Obviously, you want the parents to have a strong hunting pedigree. Some lab guys will tell you a lot of labs have been bred to compete in field trials and have become too hyper over the years. Many say the labs with british blood lines may have a more easy going tempermant and may be less hyper. How true it is, I'm not sure. This is only what I read when researching the different breeds I was interested in. Although I ended up with a britany, I love labs and hope nobody takes offense to this.
Once you've found a breeder, you want a puppy that seems alert and interested in his surroundings. Feel free to bring a pheasant wing with you and see which pups have the most interest in it.
As far as selecting the right puppy, make sure you do your homework. Don't settle on a breeder, but find one you feel comfortable with and seems to truly have the interest of the dogs in mind. Obviously, you want the parents to have a strong hunting pedigree. Some lab guys will tell you a lot of labs have been bred to compete in field trials and have become too hyper over the years. Many say the labs with british blood lines may have a more easy going tempermant and may be less hyper. How true it is, I'm not sure. This is only what I read when researching the different breeds I was interested in. Although I ended up with a britany, I love labs and hope nobody takes offense to this.
Once you've found a breeder, you want a puppy that seems alert and interested in his surroundings. Feel free to bring a pheasant wing with you and see which pups have the most interest in it.
Get in touch with me on what you find I would like to get a Chocalate Lab, I hear the black is best......I live in NE IL