Dual purpose golden?

[BeccaB]

Hi everyone

My family has owned a Golden Retriever for 10 years now and just added our 2nd one to the family last week. My Senior golden girl Ginnie will be 10 next month and for the past 4 years my mother has used her to hunt and retrieve squirells. We never trained her on birds as there was never any interest to bird hunt, we've always been a die hard Deer/squirell hunting family. The new puppy is a now 10 week old female Gracie. My mom has full intentions of training her to be her next squirrel dog as ginnie is getting up there in age and has arthritis and is slowing down. This time around though she is toying with the idea of maybe training her on birds, she's just not sure how to go about it or if it can be done. Gracie will be introduced to her first squirrel in the next 2 weeks timeframe. Since her primary role is to be a squirrel dog....mainly retriever as where we hunt its got plenty of steep terrain and its sooo much easier having the dog retrieve them for you, mom is concerned if she trains her for birds too that she wont be as focused. We do not compete with our dogs, just have them as hunting companions so really dont need something trail worthy trained. So those with experinece please tell me....are we completely crazy here thinking of having a dual purpose golden?

Thanks for your time

Becky

[setternewbie]

I'm sure you'll get plenty of varying replies here, but I'll just tell you what I know from similar experience. I never had pointers, I never hunted with dogs. I did have a family pet Golden Retriever. He would chase anything you wanted him to fetch until it killed him if you let him go that far. I have no doubt that he would have retrieved any bird, squirrel, rabbit, frisbee, clay pigeon, or anything else he could possibly have chased and brought back for me. He loved it and loved to please. I started taking him in the field with me when I'd scout for game, and more than once he pointed and held pheasants and woodcock that I otherwise would have walked over or by. He had NO training, and was 10 years old at that point. I wouldn't have known how to train him if I wanted, but his instinct was nearly perfect even if it was in the raw and unpolished. My point is, I think we give these animals far to little credit. I personally think that short of the rare exceptions, if they can be exposed to the game you want them to hunt, and praised for doing what you want them to do on a consistent enough basis, they'll probably catch on. Especially an animal as willing to please as most Golden Retrievers are. Just my opinion.