Shed Hunting Puppy wanted

[Brambles]

I'm looking for a puppy to train for shed hunting and take on alpine hunts.

Not terribly concerned about breed/s. By all means it can have a mix or two or three or four in its makeup as long as they complement the dog

I wanna work it off leash so I want something that is gonna stay reasonably close and can be called back if needed. Rules out some hounds. Or a smaller portion of the gene pool like 1/4 ish hound

I'm thinking its gotta have some Labrador Retriever in it since almost every resource on the internet says Labs are the best for shed hunting, I just don't want a purebred for various reasons.

For a very rough example something like a.

Lab crossed with a Setter or Spaniel and a dash of Border Collie and hound.

[Brambles]

any other combo recommendations also welcome

[Foxton Gundogs]

Go to the source, PM "montana" on this site. Tim is the fellow who got me started training Shed Hunting Dogs. I have done about 1/2 doz. now and IMO springers are by far the superior breed for this(that is not a bias because I breed them but more due, I think, to their natural hunting style)

[kinderdoggin]

You want the nose of a Lab, the brain of a Lab, the retrieve drive of a Lab, the will to please of a Lab, the hardiness of a Lab. Yup, I vote for Lab. Mixed with more Lab. :) :) :)

Seriously though- if you are aiming for a mixed breed for whatever reason, don't worry about the breed combo. Just evaluate the specific dog. My vote would be for a young adult shelter dog as you will be able to see what you are getting. For a shed dog I'd be looking for retrieve drive, confidence, energy level, and no obvious structural flaws that could make the dog prone to injury while spending a lot of time on the hunt. A 'mixed breed puppy' could wind up being far from what is expected and is more of a gamble. JMHO.

[Brambles]

I'm waiting to hear back on a lab/springer cross!

[killman]

Lab/chessy great dogs.

[Brambles]

See there are some Lab/border collies in Abbotsford.

Lab/Chessy would be a good combo, guarantee'd stinky coat though with two water dogs I'm guessing.

[tinhorse]

I have a Lab/retriever cross and he is amazing on a scent, my other friend found a lab/pointer cross for sale a few years back and it has made a great hunting/tracking dog.

[BromBones]

My youngest mutt is a Lab/Rottweiler cross. I think it's a good mix.

He's got the nose of a lab and is a good retriever, and is pretty smart and easy to train. He's got the muscle and athleticism of a Rottweiler, very powerful dog and can work like you wouldn't believe.

Both my dogs are half Rottweiler, and I like the guarding breed mentality for dogs that are gonna be off-leash. They have no desire to be away from their 'person', or to chase game which is great if you use them for packing on mountain hunts. They'll run a bear out of camp but stop the chase when they figure it's far enough away.

[Montana]

Here's the thing about Springers..... There is no other breed except for probably an English Cocker (from field lines) that will scour the brush like a Springer.......both breeds were basically one in the same at one time. They go over, under, and through every inch of ground like no other breed and they naturally work fairly close. Their desire to seek out game is second to none and this desire translates over to shed hunting. Will other breeds (or crossbreeds) make a good shed hunting dog? Of course they will. Labs get the publicity, but that's probably because there are more of them around than any other breed....they are everywhere. Some great, some absolutely terrible.... You'd better know what you're doing these days if you get a Lab because everybody and their brother is breeding them and most don't have a clue what they are doing. Labs also get the press largely due to the fact that they guy who has the DVD out on training dogs to hunt sheds is a Lab breeder.

Any dog that likes to pick up and carry things and has a good nose and a desire to hunt should make a decent shed dog.... Take your pick. I have a Chessie and used to breed them until recently. They will find sheds also, but when I go out with the dogs the Springers find more. Springers cover more ground and like I said have been bred to bust heavy cover. I also use my Springers to track deer that have been shot/wounded, and of course I hunt birds with them, obviously... They are truly a multi-purpose dog. They are an extemely easy dog to train and take to shed hunting at a young age and love it. They make wonderful family companions. They have wonderful temperaments. A well bred Lab from a reputable breeder is comparable to a Springer as far as trainability, intelligence, temperament, etc. but if you get one be prepared for a lot of shedding and I don't mean antler shedding. My neice has 3 Labs and she tells people they consider dog hair a condiment. :)

Mixed breeds are a crapshoot. You don't know what genes the dog has inherited. You could end up with a good dog or you could end up with a dog to feed for the next 14 years.

The other day I was out doing some raking and I had Charlie, one of my Springers, out with me. He went across the fence and a few minutes later I look and he's laying next to the car chewing on an antler he'd found. It was an older antler that he'd found somewhere or another.. I snapped a photo of him with it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/stonebroke/Charlie-March28--2013017_zps150980dc.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/stonebroke/media/Charlie-March28--2013017_zps150980dc.jpg.html)

Here's a photo of two of my Springers that found a buck I'd shot with my bow year before last. I shot it right before dark and couldn't find it so I went back the next morning with my dogs. It took them about 15 minutes to find it. This is Charlie and Lil.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/stonebroke/DeerandDogs-CharlieandLil-Sept152011011_zps5c994b2f.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/stonebroke/media/DeerandDogs-CharlieandLil-Sept152011011_zps5c994b2f.jpg.html)

Back to shed hunting. Dogs will increase the number of sheds you find, but I still find more than the dogs do.

I think you should get a breed you like. If you think you'll like a Lab instead of a Springer, get one. Finding a mixed breed that will work could be a challenge.

Good Luck!

[Brambles]

Just got home with my new baby girl named "Sadie". Labradinger....Chocolate lab/Springer spaniel. Quite the sweetheart so far! talk to me in a couple days!

[BlacktailStalker]

Pics are in order :)

[WKCotts]

How is she? Picked up a chocolate lab pup 2 weeks ago from lethbridge area. He's awesome!

[Brambles]

She's learning fast. Opening up a bit more and getting more playful after the big change! I found a smaller 3 pt mulie shed that I had misplaced and put it on the floor 4 feet or so away, she immediatly took it and started wrestling and chewing it, looks promising!

[Jim Prawn]

One of the best dogs I ever knew was my ex girlfriends black lab mutt she got from the spca from a litter that had parvo. I worked that thing from a pup on grouse wings on my parents property and it was going to be amazing....
Then she moved to Alberta.
JP