Spaniels..... .anyone hunt cockers?

A good friend of mine has had field Cockers for years. They seem to do a decent job and show a lot of energy, but I think they are too small and have trouble in some of the tougher cover. I think a Springer would be a better choice if you want a flusher. Just my opinion.
 
Had a hunting cocker in the mid sixties. My Dad got him in Canada. Were not a lot of birds then, but he did ok. Did not retrieve tho did not work with him much. He caught cripples and would sit with his front paws on them. He had long legs and was almost as big as a Springer.
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VAAAPP
 
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I train w/ a lot of field bred English cockers and Iâ??ve gunned several cocker trials. If I were primarily a grouse & woodcock hunter, I think theyâ??d be almost perfect. They defiantly â??punch above their weightâ?�. Iâ??ll use the analogy that they are like using a 20 gauge for pheasants. It can surely be done under the right circumstances but there are probably better choices in heavy cover.
 
I have a buddy that has two cockers. Those things are machines in the brush and retrieve well. He has a springer as well but i like the cockers better.
 
I have seen plenty of both hunt tests, trials hunting ect. The cocker is a minni version of a springer basicaly. I will stick with the springers because they are a better dog in the bolder cover. Cattails canary grass ect. but the light brush with open cover they work well. They both were bred to eachother way back before recognized breeds came along over seas and when the registry's put them on board everything 28lbs and over became a springer. They used to all be called field spaniels. Very similar styles just size and mobility differance now.
 
as the name implies I own 2 cockers. I like the analogy that they punch above their weight, because they certainly do. i would also agree that in very heavy cover they do struggle but they would never admit it. They ahve as much heart and drive as any other flusher Ive hunted behind. Theyve got great noses and retrieve really well although I need to work with mine a little more with actual birds. We got ours as a lap dog initially for the little lady but when I saw how birdy they were i had to try them in the field! I have yet to try them for grouse but I plan to this year.
 
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