The Best All Round Breed

[jagen mit DDrs]

Right, I saw that in one of the annual registration/testing books.

The thing is, what we consider versatile is typically a fraction of what they are doing with theirs across the pond.

Over here people consider a NAVHDA test a versatile hunting dog test,which it certainly isn't.

[huntingfamily]

The other thing that should be mentioned is that the DD is bred for one purpose, versatile hunting.
The point being is that they are not for everyone!
If you live in the city or can't give them sufficient (daily) physical and mental stimulation, there are likely to be problems.
But if you enjoy training dogs for a variety of tasks and hunt hard regularly, they will be happy. And so will you!

[Danny_29]

How are these dogs in icy cold water which is pretty common for the waterfowl hunting that takes place after Christmas? Do they handle the cold well?

Not as well as the wire haired breeds with an undercoat.

[180grainer]

Thanks for responding everyone. I have had an English Springer when I was a kid. Untrained and exposed to hunting at the age of 5, that dog was pretty damn good. I'll probably go that route again. I wish I knew that dog's lineage as he was pretty amazing. And big too for a Springer. Great water entery and big freaking paws to go with it.

[labguy]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^


EVERYONE thinks their dog is the best......and no one is wrong....

The most important thing with any of them is selecting an ethical and responsible breeding, done by people who know what their doing, that insures all the health clearances related to that specific breed are done prior to breeding.

The next most important thing is proper care and training for whatever your planning on doing with them.

[Foxton Gundogs]

Best post yet thanks LG

[Montana]

I've hunted over or seen most gundog breeds over the years. We get a lot of non-resident hunters here every fall, and they come with every breed imaginable. If you're looking for an all around dog that is a flusher, non better than the Springer. They train easily, have a ton of natural ability, and are super eager to please.. Like one well known gundog writer once wrote, "If you can't train a Springer you should probably take up golf....you were never met to own a gundog". And you'll not find a better family dog. After experimenting with different breeds I settled on Springers 30 years ago and haven't looked back.. If you want a pointing breed, one of the versatile breeds would be the way to go as has already been mentioned. Of course I'm not biased....I currently have 5 Springers and have bred them since 1988...

[835]

lol.. Well that went how I had imagined....

I don't think there is any "best" partially because there are Flushers, pointers and retrievers.... some will cross train better than others. but it really goes down to what is your dog... you picked Springer.. I love English Springers... long long family history with them, my great uncle bread them. Just make sure you do some very in depth research when shopping for a Springer, they are very "polarised" for lack of a proper term..... finding a proper field dog is critical with them.. Talk to Foxton.

I went from Sprnger to lab as dad and I started hunting ducks more... we don't hunt ducks much at all anymore do to me moving away from where we hunted.. but we still are on Labs.
my thought is if you are looking for a versatile dog just don't go to some super obscure fringe breed cuz the name sounds cool...

[Iron Glove]

Interesting post and I agree that Lab Guy nailed it.
Brother In Law and Sister raised Springers over 30 years ago before they switched to non hunting breeds, I understand there are a few HBCers that had Springers from them.
We have Tollers, love them and don't regret getting them at all. OK, other than the shedding in quantities that can be overwhelming.
When we get asked "what's the best overall Breed" we usually say "Lab" but it depends on intended use.

[Montana]

lol.. Well that went how I had imagined....

I don't think there is any "best" partially because there are Flushers, pointers and retrievers.... some will cross train better than others. but it really goes down to what is your dog... you picked Springer.. I love English Springers... long long family history with them, my great uncle bread them. Just make sure you do some very in depth research when shopping for a Springer, they are very "polarised" for lack of a proper term..... finding a proper field dog is critical with them.. Talk to Foxton.

I went from Sprnger to lab as dad and I started hunting ducks more... we don't hunt ducks much at all anymore do to me moving away from where we hunted.. but we still are on Labs.
my thought is if you are looking for a versatile dog just don't go to some super obscure fringe breed cuz the name sounds cool...

Good points for sure. My suggestion is to focus on what a person hunts the most. If it's waterfowl first and other game is only hunted occasionally, a Lab would be hard to beat. I primarily hunt pheasants. Springers are considered the best choice for pheasants, and rightly so. I've never hunted over an English Cocker, but from what I've been told they are right there with a Springer when it comes to pheasants. I use my Springers on Huns and Sharptails as well, but a wide ranging pointing bred is really best for those species. I have a Setter also that I use when I need a dog to cover a lot of ground. I think the bottom line is to get the dog/breed you want but understand that most people only hunt a few weeks out of the year. So, a dog that is going to be a good family dog is very, very important...even more important than field ability (IMO). What good is a dog if it has a poor temperament and can't double as a family companion? And as you say, be careful when it comes to getting any pup (Lab, Springer, or otherwise)... Most of us know that there is a huge difference between field and show lines, but you'd be surprised how many people do not...

I've had somewhere around 25 Springers in the past 32 years ( I need to count them up one of these days!). I've never had a dud....not one, but I did a lot of research over the years to learn what type of dog I wanted. Some of these were from my own litters and some came from breeders I've gotten to know. I've usually only had a couple of litters each year. I've probably placed somewhere around 450 pups in hunting homes. Again, I've yet to have one person come back to me and say their pup was a flop...never had one report of a temperament problem either. I'm on my 4th Setter. I usually have one for the wide open spaces, as I have mentioned. I had one Gordon Setter that wasn't much to write home about, but since then I've had two Llewellins and both were outstanding...