Hunting dog suggestions?..(see inside)

[The Yeti]

Me and my wife plan on getting a puppy in the spring. Torn between a chocolate lab or a golden retreiver. I hunt mainly grouse and duck. Any suggestions for which breed, breeders and good training books? I want to train our dog right. Thanks much.

[Sartell Angler]

We have a 9 year old golden, and I couldn't be happier with the great family and hunting dog he has become. Although he sleeps in the house, he spends plenty of time outside and has no problem hunting in the inclement weather, or even busting a little ice. It is all based on personal preference. Myself, I'd like my dog to live as long as I do....when he's gone, I just can't imagine finding one that can come close to replacing him. My uncle had a chocolate lab, and that was a great dog as well. Good luck with whatever you decide.
S.A.

[Goldy]

Both breeds will do everything you need them to do in both hunting upland and waterfowl. You need to weigh the advantages/disadvantages and decide what fits you best. From my name you can see I hunt over Goldens every weekend so my view will go towards the Golden. Advantage, most Goldens are excellent people dogs(kids pulling on the tail just gets a what are you doing look). Advantage, more relaxed about everything. Disadvantage, no wake zone usually doesn't apply to Goldens. Disadvantage or advantage, the HAIR!!! The Labs hair is small and oily and sticks in fabric. The Goldens have more hair (but easy to sweep up) but when you hunt upland around the old farm house with the burrs don't plan on going out to eat with your buddy for a couple hours when you get home. I hunt with a couple guys who hunt Labs and they do an excellent job of hunting and retieving but the extra energy is something that 20 years ago I might be able handle. I enjoy the more relaxed golden that will do everything I ask her to do but will take a lot longer to accomplish the task at hand. I'm only giving you guys my two cents worth not trying to start a Dog war like the one a couple months ago on GWH/Lab comparison. Hopefully others will give you plus/minuses and don't rush your decision and pick the breed that fits you not somebody else.

Good luck
Goldy

[Sartell Angler]

well put Goldy. ftripley- i know what you mean....we got our dog (9yrs old now) when i was in 4th grade, before i hunted. when i got into hunting around the age of 13, he just picked it right up with me and my younger brother....retriever training came from throwing a tennis ball into the lake / river, and as he matured, he became adept at sitting quietly in the blind and watching for ducks......couldn't ask for more. I'm a freshman in college now, but have still hunted 20 days so far this season, and he gets better every year.

[Guest]

I have a Golden Retriever as well. While I do not hunt Grouse or Pheasants much, he is a great duck dog along with being a fantastic family dog. I too can not imagine when the time comes how i will find another like him. Almost everything that mine knows about hunting he already had. Way more instinct than training. All I had to do was reinforce a couple of things and he had it. He even barks at me when i miss a bird.

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Fishin' on Saturday
Baseball on Sunday

[CornPirateKiller]

Both breeds are great hunters and wonderful companions. Of course every breed can have a bad apple too. I've hunted with both goldens and labs and my preference runs to the labs mainly because they're less maintenance. Take a golden out into the fields or woods and you can be sure it'll come back with burrs and dirt in it's coat. If you don't mind brushing them out and maintaining their coats, the goldens are great dogs. Labs can run through burrs and sticktights all day and if any hang on, they come off with a swipe of your hand. Dirt and mud will come off with little work. Dirty goldens require a full blown bath and often have to be groomed to remove hair mats. I love both breeds, but at the end of a long hunting day, I'd rather be relaxing rather than picking burrs out of my dogs coat.

Good Luck with whichever you choose!!

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Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati

[yellowlab]

By my name you can see what dog I have. I agree with all posts that both breeds are great. My hunting partner has a golden. It really comes down to what you like. My children love our dog. Both breeds are great family pets. The reasons I went with a lab are 1 my father breed his dog and 2 the short hair for cleaning after the weekend.

[Long Gray Line]

My choc lab is up at On-Line Retrievers being violated, er, bred, this week. The pups should be ready to pick up in March. Mom is a hell of a hunter and family dog with strong FC and AFC blood lines, OFA hips checked good. Dad is a chocolate factored black lab (Mako) SH, OFA hips excellent from On-Line. If the breeding takes, the pups should statistically be 1/2 blacks and 1/2 chocolates but we know how that works!!
E-mail me at [email protected] if you're interested and I can fax you the pedigrees on mine and the sire.
LGL

[Bryce]

These are some serious pups that LGL is breeding depending on his female. Well worth looking into. Mako is the stud we are currently using. LGL... our first litter was 50/50 choc/blk. Best of luck. Hope everyone has had a chance to read Labs4me's post on this same thread on the pheasant forum. Right on the money. Emphasis on money.

[Long Gray Line]

Thanks Bryce. David up at On-Line has been my dog's trainer for a couple of years now and he's been very helpful. He's asked a couple of times about breeding mine with one of his studs. My female's sire is Paco at Elk River Kennels and it seems like joining the Paco and Mako lines should produce some pretty good dogs. Should also make for some pretty interesting names for the AKC....

[chow]

Some great advise above and I concur that either breed can handle waterfowl and upland, and family pet with ease. I would only add a few comments as the owner of a 22 month old golden. She is GREAT. We hunt grouse, ducks, geese, and pheasants. Combined I believe she has retrieved close to 180 birds for her life. I could not be happier with her and she is not even in her prime yet.

Whichever way you go do some research on the breeder. Make sure both sire and dam possess clearances for hips/heart/eyes/etc this does not garantee anything but it should help. Also look at the pedigrees or ask to see the parents "work" in the field. Look for Hunt Test titles to ensure that you are getting a "hunting" dog and not a couch dog. The breeder should also be willing to place a written guarantee on the pup for at least 22 - 24 months for any major health issues. (This shows the breeder stands behing the pups and is in it for the betterment of the breed, quality pups, not just a 'puppymill' or $$$.)

One tip for golden owners and burrs is to spray your pup down with "show sheen" (horse grooming product). Prior to the hunt. It makes the hair slippery and much easier to get the burrs out at the end of the day.

Lastly books. Two that come to mind right away are: The 10 minute retriever by John/Amy Dahl, and Water Dog by Richard Wolters.

This is getting long so enough for now.

chow

[This message has been edited by chow (edited 11-12-2003).]

[This message has been edited by chow (edited 11-12-2003).]

[This message has been edited by chow (edited 11-12-2003).]

[Roosterslayer05]

I have hunted over both breeds and here are the real advantages/ disadvantages------ lets start with goldens- Advantages- They dont get so beat up by the weeds cause they have more hair, on average goldens have better noses, It seems to me that goldens naturally work closer and quarter better than labs but that may just be the dogs I have hunted over. Disadvantages- the long hair atracts burs but you can fix that easily. First get the dog cut real short, second- you dont need to pick the burs out the dog does it themselves, both goldens I have had pulls them all out exept for the few he cant get to. To get them clean I just have them swim in a river or lake. Lab- Advantages- sometimes have more energy so they dont wear out as fast, burs dont stick in there coat. Disadvantages- If you want to hunt upland game for more than three days in a row watch out. The labs dont have as much hair on there underbellies and they get beaten up more. We have had a couple days this year when we couldent pheasent hunt cause my uncles lab was too sore and red from the weeds. Both are good dogs I would recomend a golden if you mostly upland hunt though, like my uncle who bought a lab for the little waterfowling he does. Now wishes he bought a golden/flat coated retriever because even though his lab is a good dog he doesent have much hair and he gets way to sore and we have days when we can only duck hunt cause the dog cant pheasent hunt anymore, and that sucks when there are no ducks around. But that only happens if we go on 4-7 day trips. If you just hunt 2-3 day trips you will be fine with a lab.

[Cut'Em]

I personally lean towards goldens but also have no problem with a lab of any sorts. I believe everyone has good points. One thing that you have to take into account is what your going to be hunting and a way to get more energy out of a golden or a lab is to try and pick out a smaller one. I personally have a 3 year old golden and he weighs about 60 pounds and can hunt all day. He is great I would not trade him for any dog. On the other hand I picked out a golden for my sister for christmas 2 years ago and he turned out to be a horse weighing in around 90 pounds. He is still a very good dog and very protective of her, loves to fetch, and swim. His draw back is he slows down quickly while in the field and ends up walking behind us. I tried not to choose a big pup for her but who knew?
A couple of things that people have brought up is the burr situation and the hair getting rubbed off by hunting to much(on labs). One of the things I do to combat that is get him trimmed short before hunting season, brush him out while taking a break over lunch it is a lot easier to do it a little at a time rather than all when your done hunting. I also have him wear a neoprene camo vest when hunting ducks(which is also very warm for him) and then a nylon orange vest when hunting upland birds. Both help keep the majority of the burrs off, but the orange one serves as a great saftey precaution for him as well. I mean we wear orange why shouldn't they? If something doesn't feel right when picking a pup walk away. Picking a pup can be a very exciting time, but also a very trying time.
Happy hunting.

[The Yeti]

Thank you all so much for the replies.! The FM family has been great! Getting a pup is a huge responsibility and it's so easy to ruin a dog. All the info here is going to be extremely helpful. I think we are pretty set on getting a golden. There are a couple breeders we have in mind.

[Cut'Em]

Good luck and I hope everything works for you with the Golden they are wonderful dogs!!