what do you guys think?

[wesslpointer]

I think that the closest thing to the "truth" is that you need to evaluate what you do as far as hunting, are you a 50/50 guy, upland mostly waterfowl a little or the opposite. Then you need to pick a breed that you like that will do what you want.....then and most importantly you find a Breeder that specializes in breeding the type of dog that you want.....
If your wanting a pointing type breed to hunt both upland and waterfowl then i would look at versatile type breeds first, Pudelpointers,German wirehairs,Drahthaars,wirehaired pointing griffons would be at the top of my list. A properly bred dog from one of the above breeds should have no problem both upland and waterfowl hunting.
Now nothing handles super cold ice breaking waterfowling like a lab or chessie....and nothing handles warmer weather hard charging upland like a EP. But a versatile will handle anything in between and handle it well.

It sounds like you took this right off the www.wesslpointer.com website. :thumbsup:

 

[Bob M]

Lots of good ideas and advice precede this post. Heres mine.
I had pretty much you same question for about two years. I am a die hard waterfowl hunter here in SW Arkansas, with a trip or to out west for phez and quail most every year. My mainstay dog for several years has been a Chessie I raised and sorta trained. She has served me well but is getting some age on her and is ready to retire.
Some 4 years ago I started reading and studying every breed I could think of to arrive at a dual purpose dog. I talked to many trainers and breeders and after a lot of thought I picked a Springer from Blue River Kennels (FC Springer). I have had my pup, Gus, since early last summer and I am not disappointed. He hunted Kansas with me last November as a learning youngster and did an outstanding job. He got a little taste of Arkansas dove fields and duckhunting and did well.
This season he will get the full dose of duckblinds and jumpshooting here at home. He is becoming everything I wanted in a dog. Medium size for easy keeping and use in the boat or pirouge, excellent nose, strong retreiving instinct, super soft mouth, a huge love of water, and the smartest/easiest trained dog I have ever encountered. To top it off he stole this ol man's heart the first day! Your choice needs to be "your choice" based on your ideas, but this is mine. Good luck in the searching....

Gus and his first Gadwall
BobM

 

[daniel77]

Agree with just about all that has been said already. First of all, you should assess what type of hunting that you really prefer to do. I would say that the way you raise your pup and how you train it will have a lot to do with the outcome as long as you are starting with a dog that has the will to hunt and desire to please. I went with an English Setter and couldn't be happier with his versatility. Thankfully, nobody told him he wasn't supposed to retrieve my ducks.