Gun Dog Forum

What are the preferences of current GunDog Forum members and why?

How many owners of each breed are currently represented on the Forum?

Tell us why or how you got into dogs.

If you can read this VOTE in the poll.

You are going to see a large number of gsp owners here. Reason is cause they are the best.

You are going to see a lot of GSP owners here because they think they are the best. I have Brits because they are smaller, easier and cheaper to keep, and a great disposition to be a family pet and still hunt well. I don't think they are better than other breeds but just fit into the average family's livestyle better. Good bird dogs come in all breeds.

Ezzy

GSP's Great dogs, both hunting and as family pets. Get two and you don't need a TV, they will keep you entertained

Ditto what EZZY said.

Weimaraners. Because they match the furniture

Aline

http://sitekreator.com/zzfarms

Vizslas... brains and beauty

gsp's for drive skill and manners

I have a lab because its my first hunting dog so my dad basicly said he wanted me to train retreiver just because they are the only dogs he is experenced with. The reason I didnt go with a golden was because we lived in texas and so we didnt want a dog that would be hot all the time and the reason we didnt go with another type of retriever was because the breeders are harder to find.

When I first decided I wanted a gun dog I quickly narrowed my choices down to GSP or V based on how I want to hunt and the coat. I was leaning more toward the V because I like how they look :roll: I had figured I would end up with a GSP because they are easier to find. My wife found an ad on Craigslist for a V looking for a new home last July and the rest is history.

Vizsla, because they're so darn good looking! Not to mention compact, short coated, bloody brilliant, & nutzo on birds!!

English Setters ! I went with Ryman\ Old Hemlock type of setters because not everybody has one. When they are on point with all the hair it takes my breath away..............Scott

I got my Chessie because everybody and their dog had a Lab. Turns out to be the best dog I could hope to have.

Partial to Springers - have just one, & she's all I need. Springers can do it all & are excellent around children plus are the right size for indoor living.

GSP - 1st bird dog, to be honest I went with the breed b/c my brother had one a few years ago. Have been very pleased w/ her.

Pointer - Bird finding machine + STYLE ..... enough said!

I have a V and a GSP. Both are great.

In the past, I've had pointers, setters, and labs. All had their strengths.

Greg J.

I have owned and trained all of the breeds listed and that is why I now have coverdog bred setters and pointers. I don't enjoy hunting over a flushing dog in the woods and after owning and training 15 Vdogs trying to find one that was as good as a setter or pointer in the woods I have given up on them!

I own and run a weim because they fit my style and needs better than any other I think

Killer Instinct wrote:Partial to Springers - have just one, & she's all I need. Springers can do it all & are excellent around children plus are the right size for indoor living.

I'm Partial to Cocker's actually, why aren't they on the list? haha . Good size for thick brush, tough, soft mouth, likes the water. I agree great size for indoor living, no tail to clear things off the table. Cockers fill their own special niche.

I hunt over a CCR - that's a Curly Coat Retriever. I've had Chessies, Goldens, and a setter, and the CCR is by far the smartest and has the best nose. Great in the water and the uplands. You just have to get used to explaining that no, it's not a Labradoodle, and yes, Curly Coat Retriever is a real breed.

Dare to be different!

I have a lab and a gsp. Hunted waterfowl a bit more during college so that explains the lab. Just recently got a GSP because I enjoeyd hunting behind other peoples pointers and hunt waterfowl alot less.

The GSP is definatly a different personality than a lab so it is nice to have a bit of both worlds.

I have a Bittany. My decesion was made based on temperment, hunt drive, intellegence, and I wanted this to also be a family dog that I could have inside the majority of the time. What a great choice I made

GSP is my favorite. While a lot of dogs can do a lot of the same things, the look appealed to me and I don't ever have to pick out cockleburrs. Besides looks, she is an all around great versatile hunting partner, a lover of both people and other dogs, a great late night couch companion, and compatible with my energy level and lifestyle. This is my first gsp, purchased last August......................and I hope to add another in 2009.

I also have an 11 year old rescue lab mix. Despite her unknown/mixed heritage, she's been a great flusher over the years and a great pet. We didn't go that direction again due to us being lazy hunters, her always being so hot in our warm Iowa summers, and the huge yellow furballs she leaves down my hallway every other day. :roll: Love 'em both though. Denise

Brittany, not because they are the best (pointers are), but because they like me best.

Neil

We setter folks seem to be gaining some ground on this bb.

GSP's and one very nice britt. GSP's are "it" around here and it's all I'd have but my wife had two britt's when we married.

No other breed across the breed produced dogs that could do everything I require of a dog with the same endurance and longevity, ease of training, and still be wondeful house dogs.

If GSP's didn't fit well into the life of the "average family" they would not be the most popular breed of pointing dog in the country. If they were the least popular pointing breed though they'd sill be "my breed" since they fit my lifestyle and needs so well. CR

My last two dogs have been DD's. I have owned labs,gsp and a gwp in the past. I chose to stick with the DD because of its ability to preform a variety of hunting tasks and do them well.

Gsp and Pointing Lab nough said.

I bought my first German Shorthaired Pointer 31 years ago. After a several year period without a bird dog, I bought another last fall for my 14 year old son and I to enjoy. I have been reliving my youth and having a ball.

I love Shorthairs...in my opinion they are the king of upland. Labs work pheasants well, but I want to see my dog point her birds...it's more than half the pleasure.

highcotton wrote:We setter folks seem to be gaining some ground on this bb.

Hear! Hear!

I'm going to have to go with the forum favorite!!! I bought mine on sheer impulse.....but luckily it has worked out for me.

I originally started out wanting a lab throughout the 80's and early 90's since I was mostly waterfowl hunting, but for various reasons never got one. When I moved to CO began trying my hand at pheasant hunting and kind of liked it, so I began wanting an English Setter (my dad has always raised them). Unfortunately, walked into one of our local sporting goods stores and someone had a litter of the cutest GSP puppies right inside the door......it was entrapment I tell ya'!!! Luckily, they caught my wife too!!! As I said, I was darn lucky and it worked out, but I wouldn't recommend it for a standard dog purchasing practice. I'm currently looking for a second one, and am doing a weeee bit more research this time!

I've owned Setters (and Pointers) off and on since the mid 70's. I have two Setters right now.Setters are usually personable dogs and easy to train most times. Though it usually takes them longer to mature then Pointers, once they get it they Got it.

I currently have 2 pointers. I started with a pointer at 14 years old, it was too much for me, then I got 2 GSP's and they were just right at the time, now I have pointers again....because afterall.... Pointers set the bar!!!!!!!!

John Bellah

Pointers.

They are the best upland bird dogs on the planet. Nothing else comes close.

GSPs are great starter dogs though...

Why my vote? Because, IF IT'S NOT AN ENGLISH SETTER, IT'S JUST ANOTHER DOG !!!!

lol...sorry folks, just an old saying in my neck of the woods.

I worked my way from GSP to GWP to DD now.
I love the testing system, the versatility of the dogs, and the BEARD!

What gun dog breed do you currently own and why?

GRIFF MAN,

Thats probably the best looking Griff I've ever seen. I like how you can actually see its head and its not just a ball of fur!! (Other fluffy Griff owners please don't take offense )

We got started on GSP's about 6 years ago. We started field trialing with the Blackbourn's here in WI. We got our first GSP 4 years ago. I love the GSP's! They are smart, sometime's too smart! They are tough, go all day, and love to "work" hunt. They are great with our girls, and just a whole lot of fun! Their tails are short enough so they don't whack your leg or whack a kid in the face, as a lab would. Their coats are short and stay much cleaner than a long coated breed, and the kids can't pull their hair (just their ears and jowels) :roll: They are just AWESOME!
We are with the GSP's as we wish to carry on what the Blackbourn's have taught us and worked towards in their kennel for the GSP breed.

My husband would like to add a GWP or English Setter, but I don't. I don't like the messy beards of the GWP and I don't want a dog with a longer coat than a GSP as it will collect sooo much dirt and mud and I don't want to deal with that. But I have seen a few GWP and English Setters that are to die for, just not in my house. Our next breed would probably have to be a pointer if we got a different breed than the GSP.

Each breed will have good points and bad points, depending on what side of the fence your on and what your interests are. So to each their own in respect to what breed they prefer.

A Llewellin, my first hunting dog, very impressed with the breed so far.

I'm a Drahthaar fan. I have to admit that I am facinated by many of the breeds represented here but for me the DD is where it's at.
I started with a DD because of the integrity of the breeding program. Within the breed all dogs must be proficient hunters as evidenced by the required testing in order to be certified to breed. With regulations like that in place I believe the odds of your new pup having talent goes way up over some other breeds.

GSP- All around best dogs! Accept no substitute!!! Best field dog in the world, and they are awesome at home with the family. They have great personalities and most enjoyable to hang with away from the field. One of the only breeds that can go from hunting to trialing, then home....with a different personality for each. To not love the gsp, is to never had the pleasure of owning 2.
After my 1st gsp, the 2nd was a no brainer. I can't wait for number 3 in the fall. It should be entertaining watching all 3 mixing it up.

GWP - Versatile Dog with the right kind of coat to hunt in Wisconsin.

Most of my hunting is done in October, November, and December, after that a couple of game farm hunts to wrap things up but the weather gets pretty cold and the dog coat is holds up well to all of it.

Prior to my GWP I had a Golden and a Springer.

They both held up well to the elements as well.

two britts, there is something in a brittany's eyes that can melt the biggest of men.
There seems to be a light switch in my dogs, in the house they are like throw pillows, in the field they are orange rockets...

the size, the maintenance, the short yet long coat, and their efficient gait which allows them to hunt for miles and miles it what i love.

but of all things, it has to be the eyes.

on final thing, froglegs while laying on their belly will make anyone laugh.

GSP and they are the best with the family and a pet and a great bird dog to boot.

Jerry

GWP because I love to hear my friends say "your dog sure is ugly....but "bleep" can he really pin down the ruffed grouse."

ESS why not?

I own two French Britts. I have owned several breeds including the GSP and I find that for the cover I hunt here in New York they have proven to be the best choice. They are small family loving dogs that fit well in your home. They are a cobby dog, small in build that work very dense cover with ease and they tend to naturally range closer than other breeds from what I can see. My dogs have hunted a large variety of upland game without any problem switching from one bird to another and they retrieve the larger birds such as pheasants without any problem (some people say otherwise). But again as youve heard a thousand times. Every breed out there has its good qualities and bad