What is the best hunting dog?

[Sitkaspruce]

The choice is actually quit simple..............a Chesapeake!!
Some one once described the chessie as a superb hunting dog and from what l have seen, l agree. Although particular breeds lend themselves better to certain quarry, the Chessie is at much at home in the field as in the water.

X2

They can be stubborn, hard headed and very strong willed, but by far and away they are the hardest working, toughest and loyal of the hunting breeds. They are family friendly, happy go lucky dogs that have a strong nose, great eye sight, are amazing swimmers and can hunt in the cold, when others are stuck back at the cabin lying in front of the wood stove.

Sitka has been going strong now for 11 years and this was the second season that I did not hunt her. She still wants to and can retieve with the best of them, but she stiffens up fast now and is much more comfortable lying back at home, then standing in a cold, wet blind.





We now have an 20 month old yellow lab as well, but she shows no interest in retieveing. She loves the water and will swim out and get the dummy, but then gets easily distracted and will drop it and go for a swim for something else that only she see's. She loves to dock dive and is very birdy on upland game, so maybe will start to work with her on that, only if there were a few grouse around on the North Island.....

What ever you choose, feed them well, look after them and they will be your best friend for their whole life.

Cheers

SS

[Timber-hunt]

Here is a place that few friends of mine got some good hunting dogs that they adopted good luck!!

DOGWOOD RESCUE
where the dog comes first!
dogwoodrescue@shaw.ca or lichen-t@shaw.ca
604-926-1842
West Vancouver, BC
POINTER(S)/VIZSLA/WEIMARANER RESCUE
www.dogwoodrescue.petfinder.com

[Marc]

Sitkaspruce your girl is looking pretty good for 11. I've got to say Marshall's first year has been pretty good so far. He's retrieved over 30 geese I figure and at least as many ducks for me and everyone who's hunting within 100 yards of us.

This spring we work on the blind retrieves and more scent work. Hard to beat a Chessie when it comes to extreme temperatures and environments.

[bc sportsman]

I've got an airedale...great hunting instinct, points, retrieves birds and everything else, very gentle mouth, but afraid of gunshots &^&^!!!

Great companion, doesn't shed, just too bad about the guns.

Otherwise would have been a great hunting dog. They were bred for all types of hunting...all purpose breed...not great aat anything in particular...just good all around.

[jessonml]

Duck Toller! I love my little man. He's 5 months and training is going well. Smart and a great personality. Loyal to my fiancee and I.

I personally think that any dog can be a good companion. If you are just looking for a hunting companion there are plenty of really cool mutts out there. Saw a really nice border collie lab for example.

[Ben Fougere]

You are 100% correct they are amazing hunting dogs, but can be as stubborn as an mule so you have to be all over the dog when it does somthing wrong. I was warned away from them by an experianced dog handler because they can be so tough.

I will also have to say Chesapeake. From what I've been reading about the breed and from what I've been seeing with mine, it's a tough breed.

I wouldn't say that the chesapeake is a stubborn dog. They can appear stubborn, but are only testing you. They want to see if you mean what you say. Testing them can be a challenge, but as with any dog, when the time is taken to train them the results will come.

[tinhorse]

I have a german pointer and he is awesome. It took some time and training but he is incredable in the bush. He is also a great retriver. I lived up in Fort Nelson and he was great with the bears and could track moose like no other. Even in the cold weather he would come out in the bush with me

[Wolfman]

Chessies are pretty darn good, though Chihuahuas rate a close second - especially a trained pack of them, which I hear can overpower a grizzly or samsquantch - but then again, I hear that Todd Bartell can do the same thing with mind-power alone


Mike

[Islandeer]

I think Chessies are smarter than that Bartel kid .... but still aways away from equalling the hardiness of a flatcoat.

[kinderdoggin]

These type of threads almost invariably to get "what is your favorite breed" or "what kind of dog do you have" answers.
Before you decide, you need to think about what exactly you want the dog to do, if anything, while it's hunting with you.
Are you looking for a dog to just keep you company while you are hunting? Any quiet dog that is weather resistant would probably work.
Are you looking for a dog that will help you track wounded game?
There are a lot of good hunting and hound breeds out there suitable for this, but almost any dog with a nose can be trained for tracking a fresh trail.
Thinking about dabbling in bird hunting? A field-bred Lab, Chessie, Golden or Toller would be a great choice for waterfowl. There are many good pointing breeds for upland as mentioned already in some of the answers.

There are a few breeds that can do it all. And as also mentioned, many good companions and hunting dogs are random mixes.

Since we're talking preferences, I'll vote for my breed- the Lab. Is there anything a Lab can't do? (I don't think so - good duck dog, good upland dog, good family dog, can be easily trained to track, fetch beers from the fridge, turn off the lights, etc). The best part about Labs is that they are generally pretty cooperative and can be trained by a beginner. There's a reason they are the most popular breed year after year Chessies are also excellent dogs and would be my second vote if you have experience training a dog- they do tend to test their trainer a bit more and aren't as forgiving with corrections.

Good luck in your search!
Erin