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Hello

I plan to take the next year and look hard for a puppy. What I am looking for is the best breed of pointing dog. I just read your article and loved it!

I have some questions -

I hunt grouse and pheasants and this takes 2 hunting styles as grouse flush much easier and the dog needs to be easy to train for both birds - what breed would be best?

In that breed - what is inportant to know when buying one?

How do you get the best puppy when picking one out?

Is there a good place to buy this breed?

Thank you for your help!

Glad you liked the Pointing Lab article. Recently a friend of mine stopped by to show me his new puppy. It happened to be a Pointing  Lab. He's had Yellow Labs over the years and they all been phenomenal  hunters. He also spends a great deal of time working with and training his dogs. Despite what some people say, no matter what lineage your dog comes from, you still have to teach it to  coomunicate with you in the field and that takes time.  Since I didn't know much about Pointing Labs I decided to do some research on them.  For the most part I am like what I  learned. They seem to be very versatile in the field and have all the charming  characteristics of a Lab which so many of us enjoy.

What is important to know when buying one? Be sure it is a reputable breeder. Are they really pointing labs or is that a term being used to follow the latest trend? If you can get a reference from someone who already has one and is happy with it, that's a pretty safe bet. Someone who offers to meet you somewhere with a puppy or does not let you see the parents, or offers many differetn breeds for sale is someone to avoid at all costs. Another good sign is a breeeder who asks questions about you. DON'T be offended, it's a good sign that they want to place their puppy in a good home. Questionable breeders don't care - and that filters down to what kind of puppy they have raised......questionable breeders don't care, as long as they get their money. I suggest going to some field trials to watch the dogs in action. Talk to the owners/handlers and ask lots of questions. If time permits, most are more than happy to talk to and educate someone interested in their favorite breed.  

When you go to pick out a puppy, ask the owner to describe thei different personalities of the litter. You want to go with the middle puppy. Not the shyest one, and not the most rambunctious one. Throw your keys on the floor to make a startling noise.......you want the puppy that isn't afraid to go check out what made that noise. 

I don't know of such a list. The difficulty in creating such a list is who is to say who is reputable. One of the big misconceptions is that if it has papers, it is a good dog. NOT! Papers only track the lineage of the dog. It has nothing to do with quality. When someone asks me about papers, I often suggest they might as well use them for paper training.  (That's for humor purposes only, because I don't recommend paper training.) 

English Springers excel at the trailing and hard flush of many birds, particularily pheasants. Brittneys are more of a pointer. Other pointers include English Pointers, German Shorthair pointers, and English Setters. What is the best breed? Tough question. Depends on what you are looking for in a dog. Research is the best way to find out specific characteristics of the various breeds and see what appeals most to you.

Differences between a purebred dog and mixed breed? Sometimes a dog with mixed heritage can bring the best of both breeds forward. Sometimes they have fewer health problems than a purebred dog. I've seen some awesome mixes, like a Black Lab and Golden Retriever mix who did wonderful in the field. I've also  seen a Great Dane trained to pheasant hunt and perform better that many sporting breeds who went untrained. That just goes to show how important training is. Developing a strong bond with your dog (becoming best friends) will make the dog want to please you even more than they naturally do. That's one reason more and more hunting dogs are becoming house dogs. The more time you spend with them the better friends you become and the more they learn.

Good Luck and have fun!