Bapak - Hope I didn;t sound like a know it all, I'm always learning from better dog men than myself. Just wanted to outline the amount of work to get a good dog working for you.
Mutphy and Chicken - I understand your comments. We all have our favorite dogs based on what we've experienced and what we want to do. I wanted a large dog that was great in the house and with kids, but could do well on upland and waterfowl. I hunted over Brittanies for years and my Brohter in law still keeps a good Brittany that we hunt with; love them! He will go out 90 yards and lock up on a bird, then we run up to the bird in case the bird starts to run or flushes. They usuallly hold, but those Chinese Ditch Parrots can have a mind of their own.
THor is trained to hunt 30 yards out and then circle back. He has been very disciplined that way and seldom gets our of range and busts birds far out. He is an American lab rather than the British build and has very long legs. He busts through thickets and thorns with not problem, and has done well for me in all game we have tried. In a field he flags in a cricular pattern that can keep the roosters from escaping further down the field. The grouse hunt this fall was his first run at them and by day 4 we limited out before noon. He just had to figure out that particular species, and it was a joy to watch. We leave in 2 weeks to hunt ducks off of Cape Hatteras, and he won'r hesitate to retrieve in that cold water.
Murphy - We have been discussing a second dog and i'm thinking my next will be a Braque. Thor has a tough time in the heat and a smaller pointing dog would round out the family well, I think. I was surprised your Braque didn't do well in ke the thorns. Where did you go for yours? I was going to see 2 kennels up in Grand Rapids. You are dead right on the importance of a calm dog in the house. Thor is a house dog all year and hunter for 4-5 months. If he wasn;t chill at home it would be a problem.
Mutphy and Chicken - I understand your comments. We all have our favorite dogs based on what we've experienced and what we want to do. I wanted a large dog that was great in the house and with kids, but could do well on upland and waterfowl. I hunted over Brittanies for years and my Brohter in law still keeps a good Brittany that we hunt with; love them! He will go out 90 yards and lock up on a bird, then we run up to the bird in case the bird starts to run or flushes. They usuallly hold, but those Chinese Ditch Parrots can have a mind of their own.
THor is trained to hunt 30 yards out and then circle back. He has been very disciplined that way and seldom gets our of range and busts birds far out. He is an American lab rather than the British build and has very long legs. He busts through thickets and thorns with not problem, and has done well for me in all game we have tried. In a field he flags in a cricular pattern that can keep the roosters from escaping further down the field. The grouse hunt this fall was his first run at them and by day 4 we limited out before noon. He just had to figure out that particular species, and it was a joy to watch. We leave in 2 weeks to hunt ducks off of Cape Hatteras, and he won'r hesitate to retrieve in that cold water.
Murphy - We have been discussing a second dog and i'm thinking my next will be a Braque. Thor has a tough time in the heat and a smaller pointing dog would round out the family well, I think. I was surprised your Braque didn't do well in ke the thorns. Where did you go for yours? I was going to see 2 kennels up in Grand Rapids. You are dead right on the importance of a calm dog in the house. Thor is a house dog all year and hunter for 4-5 months. If he wasn;t chill at home it would be a problem.
