12-04-2012, 06:38 PM
I've never duck hunted and stopped upland game hunting a few years ago and miss it a lot. I've tried the pheasant farms, but it just isn't the same if you grew up hunting wild pheasants. That said, I've had two bird dogs (still have one, though she's semi-retired!). Neither of which recieved any formal training other than me taking them out hunting.
The first was a black lab names Boogus. (Boojus). A great family dog, and was a wonderful "flusher" and retriever, but would not point to save her life. Once a shot was fired however, she retrieved every single bird and had an uncanny ability to find downed birds. She would go into the deepest junk, or swim in the coldest swamps to retrieve the birds. She died at about 15 years old, and I don't recall her ever pointing a bird out once. I never took her duck hunting, though I think she would have been an excellent duck dog.
We then bought a Weimereiner. This dog has the most natural pointing ability I've ever seen in a dog and she is a joy to go out hunting with. Once out in the field her whole demeaner changes and she is all business. She can find, track and point in all conditions and is an excellent pointer. However...she is NOT a retriever. In fact, once she has done her job and has pointed out the bird, and it flushes....she watches to make sure you hit it (and gives you a crusty look if you miss), but then it's as if that bird is now history, and she is off sniffing out the next point. I've tried to make her retrieve birds, but she will have nothing to do with them. Her name is Ginger. She's 10 years old now and her last trip out was a couple years ago. I enjoy taking her to the pheasant farms just to see her work, but shooting those tame birds are no fun for me.
I think if I could cross both of my dogs somehow, it would be the ultimate single dog to have...OR...just have one of each and take them both! I DO believe that pointing and/or retrieving/water use has to be inbred as I have had little luck teaching dogs new tricks. (Old dogs AND new dogs). Both of these dogs were/are good swimmers, although the Weimer just goes in to swim, or to sniff out ducks while they are swimming, but she WILL NOT go into the water to retrieve a downed bird. The Black Lab was an excellent water retriever however. (We shot many a pheasant that landed in the water, and she always just went right in and got them)
My Son in law and my daughter own Llewellyns. They have two of them. A male named Smokey and a female named Cabela. They are pheasant hunting machines, and I know they point, as I've seen pictures, but I don't know how they do on the retrieval part of the game and not sure how they swim.
...Curiously, the black labs mother WAS in fact a Weimerener...but she never pointed like like her mother did. It would be cool if you could just take two dogs with good traits and breed them together to produce one with both traits...but it doesn't always work that way. I have seen Weimereners that retrieve also...and I guess I could have trained her harder/better to do so, but Ginger just never showed any interest at all, and was so good at pointing that I overlooked her retrieving pitfalls.
I'd probably stick with a lab for pure waterfowl hunting. I never hunted ducks, but the black lab would have been excellent for that type of hunting, since pointing is not usually necessary when duck hunting.
Randy
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The first was a black lab names Boogus. (Boojus). A great family dog, and was a wonderful "flusher" and retriever, but would not point to save her life. Once a shot was fired however, she retrieved every single bird and had an uncanny ability to find downed birds. She would go into the deepest junk, or swim in the coldest swamps to retrieve the birds. She died at about 15 years old, and I don't recall her ever pointing a bird out once. I never took her duck hunting, though I think she would have been an excellent duck dog.
We then bought a Weimereiner. This dog has the most natural pointing ability I've ever seen in a dog and she is a joy to go out hunting with. Once out in the field her whole demeaner changes and she is all business. She can find, track and point in all conditions and is an excellent pointer. However...she is NOT a retriever. In fact, once she has done her job and has pointed out the bird, and it flushes....she watches to make sure you hit it (and gives you a crusty look if you miss), but then it's as if that bird is now history, and she is off sniffing out the next point. I've tried to make her retrieve birds, but she will have nothing to do with them. Her name is Ginger. She's 10 years old now and her last trip out was a couple years ago. I enjoy taking her to the pheasant farms just to see her work, but shooting those tame birds are no fun for me.
I think if I could cross both of my dogs somehow, it would be the ultimate single dog to have...OR...just have one of each and take them both! I DO believe that pointing and/or retrieving/water use has to be inbred as I have had little luck teaching dogs new tricks. (Old dogs AND new dogs). Both of these dogs were/are good swimmers, although the Weimer just goes in to swim, or to sniff out ducks while they are swimming, but she WILL NOT go into the water to retrieve a downed bird. The Black Lab was an excellent water retriever however. (We shot many a pheasant that landed in the water, and she always just went right in and got them)
My Son in law and my daughter own Llewellyns. They have two of them. A male named Smokey and a female named Cabela. They are pheasant hunting machines, and I know they point, as I've seen pictures, but I don't know how they do on the retrieval part of the game and not sure how they swim.
...Curiously, the black labs mother WAS in fact a Weimerener...but she never pointed like like her mother did. It would be cool if you could just take two dogs with good traits and breed them together to produce one with both traits...but it doesn't always work that way. I have seen Weimereners that retrieve also...and I guess I could have trained her harder/better to do so, but Ginger just never showed any interest at all, and was so good at pointing that I overlooked her retrieving pitfalls.
I'd probably stick with a lab for pure waterfowl hunting. I never hunted ducks, but the black lab would have been excellent for that type of hunting, since pointing is not usually necessary when duck hunting.
Randy
[signature]
I used to N.ot have E.nough T.ime O.ff to go fishing. Then I retired. Now I have less time than I had before. Sheesh.