quote:

Originally posted by marley7x57:
They, Breeders, certainly have a higher opinion of themselves than I do.

Best dogs I had were the mutts, the Heinz 57's, and the strays. The Breeders pups were just so so.

But I do appreciate their effort in maintaining bloodlines and salesmanshp.

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my wife told me I could not have a bird dog until I fully retired.

quote:

Originally posted by subsailor74:
very true - on my first Submarine, USS Parche (SSN 683), the Captain had a plaque in his stateroom that said in all capital letters " I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THIS SHIP" - and below it in small print it said "and I have my wife's permission to say so"
I think this situation is more true than not!

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
[QUOTE]I need a parche hat - only admiral grade Big Grin

Mike
Stolen Valor, Stolen Valor!!!!! :-)

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Originally posted by crbutler:
I am kind of two minds regarding this.

I don't really have the time to work my dog like I should. He has a lot of bad habits. Subsailor would NOT want to hunt with my pup though- pretty much everything he complained of, he does. His manners are pretty good, but he does have a tendency to need correction frequently.

That being said, his number one job is being my buddy. He is lying on my feet most evenings.

I paid a fair amount for him. His training cost even more. His dog food and treats actually over time cost more yet.

But- I find some of the stipulations from breeders a bit much given the money they charge. Either they are doing this out of love of the dogs, or its money to them. My current dog the biggest stipulation the breeder had was he would have to live in the house with me. Fine, that was the plan anyhow.

The papers don't guarantee that the dog is actually up to snuff- it may be an indication of higher likelihood, but hardly is a guarantee.

The more important money is in the training- unless you have the effectively unlimited time to do it yourself.

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Originally posted by Beretta682E:
I would only buy a dog from a breeder that

(1) is on ar and serious into what they breed - I have seen some nice hunting dogs advertised here.

I have little interest in hunting dogs - I only like German shepherds even though I am allergic to them (sense of smell and taste is overrated any way)

(2) I would buy only from a breeder who is hesitant and very careful in choosing buyers.

I imported a dog from Europe with pink papers and all and got a lemon of a dog. Dog has numerous health issues including dysplasia of both hip and elbow (turned out to be the smallest issues - dog is perfectly mobile and strong as a bull). His main issue is allergy to environment - mainly Florida grass which is everywhere. I spend many a African safari or more on vet bills. I have him placed in the international rescue basket as he would have been put down in Europe. He is a great dog otherwise.

The breeder and importer went radio silent.

If I get another dog I would go over to Europe and meet the breeder or find a good breeder in us.

Commercial for profit or livelihood breeding makes me highly suspect. I want a breeder who is not in it for money - why they can be choosey on clients.

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by Big Wonderful Wyoming:

quote:

Originally posted by Beretta682E:
I would only buy a dog from a breeder that

(1) is on ar and serious into what they breed - I have seen some nice hunting dogs advertised here.

I have little interest in hunting dogs - I only like German shepherds even though I am allergic to them (sense of smell and taste is overrated any way)

(2) I would buy only from a breeder who is hesitant and very careful in choosing buyers.

I imported a dog from Europe with pink papers and all and got a lemon of a dog. Dog has numerous health issues including dysplasia of both hip and elbow (turned out to be the smallest issues - dog is perfectly mobile and strong as a bull). His main issue is allergy to environment - mainly Florida grass which is everywhere. I spend many a African safari or more on vet bills. I have him placed in the international rescue basket as he would have been put down in Europe. He is a great dog otherwise.

The breeder and importer went radio silent.

If I get another dog I would go over to Europe and meet the breeder or find a good breeder in us.

Commercial for profit or livelihood breeding makes me highly suspect. I want a breeder who is not in it for money - why they can be choosey on clients.

Mike

Odds are very low you would get a quality dog from a breeder in Europe.

They are tired of Americans taking all the best dogs. Was a common source of contention every time I lived there.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill/Oregon:
Subsailor, I have a deposit on a French Brittany from a sound breeder in the Phoenix area. His momma just whelped six pups -- four males and two females. I will likely end up with a male. Really looking forward to this, my last dog. I just hope I can be half the human he believes me to be. I hear and see Gambel's quail every day at work. Big, vocal, active birds making a living among the mesquite, cholla, prickly pear and creosote bush. Our NM quail season runs Nov. 15-Feb. 15. I need to start working with the little Yildiz .410 double so as not to shame myself in my pup's eyes.

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Originally posted by subsailor74:
Truth in advertising - I lost my first wounded bird with my French Brittany Spaniel last year. Here is the story:

As a non resident hunter, I have hunted private land near Gettysburg, SD for the past two seasons. I hunt there because of the the superb habitat and the large numbers of pheasants, sharptail grouse and Hungarian Partridge. While I have shot my limit of roosters every day I hunted in SD, my best story is about a bird I did not end up retrieving - yes, it happens on occasion, but it never before happened like this to me.

I was walking counter clockwise around the edge of a cattail slough with Brie, my French Brittany Spaniel. Our guide was walking in the clockwise direction around the slough with his 2 labs and the other hunters in my group. I was instructed by the guide to not try to retrieve a rooster that went down in the cattails - rather I was to mark the spot with flagging tape, and he would take his labs in to find the downed bird later. I had not walked 100 yards when a rooster flushed from about 20 yards into the cattails. I shouldered by Browning Superposed Superlight, and dumped the bird. I was sure the bird was dead in the air. I called Brie off the retrieve and marked the spot with flag tape as instructed. Reloading and walking about 10 yards further, a second rooster flushed from the cattails and headed out into the wheat stubble. A shot from my Superlight folded the bird just as it crested the hill. Brie was after it in a flash for what I thought would be an easy retrieve. About 5 minuted later, Brie had not come back with my bird, so I trecked up the hill. She met me at the top, but my rooster was nowhere to be found. We looked for that bird for an honest 20 minutes, but we never found it. Walking back down the hill, I showed my guide the flag and where I thought the dead bird was in the cattails. He took his labs into the thick stuff and immediately coilected my dead rooster. He then said, “so you already got the other bird up the hill.” I said “No, Brie did not come back with it.” The guide told me he watched the whole thing from the other side of the slough. He saw the bird flush, the bird folding at the shot, and my French Brit running to make the retrieve. He said he was certain he saw Brie with the rooster in her mouth coming back to me. As she was coming back, she bumped a bedded whitetail buck right in front of her. Both dog and deer jumped back from each other, startled. The buck ran one way, Brie ran the other, and in the process she dropped the pheasant which took off running in another direction. The guide said it was on of the funniest things he had ever seen pheasant hunting. We looked for another 20 minutes for that wounded rooster, but we never found it - that was the only sad part of the story, but hunt wild pheasants enough, and losing a bird once in a while happens to all of us.

quote:

Originally posted by subsailor74:

quote:

Originally posted by subsailor74:
Truth in advertising - I lost my first wounded bird with my French Brittany Spaniel last year. Here is the story:

As a non resident hunter, I have hunted private land near Gettysburg, SD for the past two seasons. I hunt there because of the the superb habitat and the large numbers of pheasants, sharptail grouse and Hungarian Partridge. While I have shot my limit of roosters every day I hunted in SD, my best story is about a bird I did not end up retrieving - yes, it happens on occasion, but it never before happened like this to me.

I was walking counter clockwise around the edge of a cattail slough with Brie, my French Brittany Spaniel. Our guide was walking in the clockwise direction around the slough with his 2 labs and the other hunters in my group. I was instructed by the guide to not try to retrieve a rooster that went down in the cattails - rather I was to mark the spot with flagging tape, and he would take his labs in to find the downed bird later. I had not walked 100 yards when a rooster flushed from about 20 yards into the cattails. I shouldered by Browning Superposed Superlight, and dumped the bird. I was sure the bird was dead in the air. I called Brie off the retrieve and marked the spot with flag tape as instructed. Reloading and walking about 10 yards further, a second rooster flushed from the cattails and headed out into the wheat stubble. A shot from my Superlight folded the bird just as it crested the hill. Brie was after it in a flash for what I thought would be an easy retrieve. About 5 minuted later, Brie had not come back with my bird, so I trecked up the hill. She met me at the top, but my rooster was nowhere to be found. We looked for that bird for an honest 20 minutes, but we never found it. Walking back down the hill, I showed my guide the flag and where I thought the dead bird was in the cattails. He took his labs into the thick stuff and immediately coilected my dead rooster. He then said, “so you already got the other bird up the hill.” I said “No, Brie did not come back with it.” The guide told me he watched the whole thing from the other side of the slough. He saw the bird flush, the bird folding at the shot, and my French Brit running to make the retrieve. He said he was certain he saw Brie with the rooster in her mouth coming back to me. As she was coming back, she bumped a bedded whitetail buck right in front of her. Both dog and deer jumped back from each other, startled. The buck ran one way, Brie ran the other, and in the process she dropped the pheasant which took off running in another direction. The guide said it was on of the funniest things he had ever seen pheasant hunting. We looked for another 20 minutes for that wounded rooster, but we never found it - that was the only sad part of the story, but hunt wild pheasants enough, and losing a bird once in a while happens to all of us.

quote:

She would dread the day when the owners of the dogs she worked with would come to pick up their dogs because , as she would say, now the real work begins

quote:

Picture of chas257

I had the wonderful opportunity in the mid eighties while going to school & finishing up my tour with the Army, to work for a trainer near Berthoud Co. Running field trials & hunt tests with her retrievers. She would dread the day when the owners of the dogs she worked with would come to pick up their dogs because , as she would say, now the real work begins.