Next dog

[jaredgreen]

What kind of cover do you hunt? A pointing lab would be great on pheasants and quail in heavy cover, but cover a fraction of chuckar country compared to pointing breeds. Pointing breeds require more attention and exercise or they will get into mischief. Labs are definitely much easier pets/house dogs, but there is no comparison in big country. Currently have a GWP, GSP, and a Griffon. The GSP is the best chuckar dog and pet, the GWP the best duck dog, the Griffon the least stubborn and quirkiest. All harder to have around the house than a lab, but worth it. Good luck!

 

[Mike7]

I am on my second French Brittany Spaniel, and burs are a non issue for the majority of their flat coat. Trimming the fur on their ears/head 1-2 x's a year will take care of 90% of the burs...and depending upon the particular dog's coat you may have to trim along the back of the legs.

I chukar hunt with friends who have Setters and GSP's mostly. I would say that my dogs have been naturally better at finding and retrieving downed birds with no formal training, but tend to stay closer to me and be quicker to break point when the birds move on the ground. Some of the other guys I hunt with though like for their dogs to roam big, and have all sent their dogs for a lot of formal training.

 

[gwl79902]

Thanks for the kennel info I will check them out.

Mike7 do you have any breeders to recommend. We had lady here who breed french brits but she go arrested for something and is gone.

 

[Kevin Dill]

Sounds familiar. We started with a GSP-Brit cross which happened to be a phenomenal dog. Next up was a chocolate lab for 13+ years. THEN I got serious about research and discovered the versatile breeds, which led me to the Deutsch Drahthaar. I did my homework...a lot of it...and felt that DDs offered a phenomenal combination. Superior hunting and prey drive. Hardcore tracking. Outstanding pointing instincts. Excellent temperament. Easy handling. Super-muscular physique and strength. High pain tolerance. Almost entirely free of genetically passed diseases. Bred to standards so high it amazed me. I figured I couldn't afford one, but I was wrong.

We selected a kennel in PA and talked to the owner who is a dedicated bird and deer hunter. I got lucky. I was #1 choice on the next litter, and when the call came in I was worse than a 5 year old at Christmas. We made three 5 hour drives to meet the family, the dogs and see the litter. In the end we selected TWO sisters and brought them home.



They are as different as night and day in terms of personalities and appearances, but they have been an absolute pleasure in our lives.




Both are incredible hunting machines and they DON'T quit any pursuit until exhausted. This is Deika...



...and sister Dascha.

 

[Mike7]

Gwl,

That Drathaar sounds like a good dog (wasn't on my radar though when I chose a dog) and I had considered a pointing Griffon as well due to temperment and health, but finally settled on a French Britt. I don't generally hunt water fowl.

My first French Britt was out of a small breeder in Portland that no longer exists. He was a great dog with incredible heart and pain tolerance (he would run himself to death while out hunting if you let him...3 days of chukar hunting on ice with bloody feet, 25 mile mountain bike rides in the mountains, running on 3 legs with a large cactus needle in one foot going after a bird, etc. were routine for him). His dad was from France and mother was from Plum Creek Kennels in Montana. He could retrieve jump shot ducks from icy creeks/rivers in the middle of the winter while upland hunting, but he would not have been good for sitting in a cold blind, particularly while wet.

My latest dog is from Les Bois Brittany's down in the Boise area. She seems to have amazing instincts, but hasn't really been hunted much yet as she has been my wife's house dog until recently when my old dog/friend died a few months ago at 13 yrs old. When I have had her out hiking, she naturally quarters, points rabbits, etc. I think she will be a great hunter and is very sweet and responsive, but is a little more tightly wound than my male. For my personality, I think I would probably lean toward getting a male French Britt, if I were to get another dog in the future.

 

[BroodBuster]

Great looking pups KD!

I have trouble getting good pictures of my Britt. She's either a blur or asleep .

 

[parshal]

I've owned Vizsla's, a Pudelpointer, a wirehair and now shorthairs. I'm heavily involved with NAVHDA. It was founded by Germans in the late 60's and is based on their testing system but modified for North American style hunting. There's less focus on fur than the German systems. If you decide on a continental breed you should call NAVHDA and ask about breeders they may recommend. Do your research. You can easily search their site for test scores of the parentage of any breeding you might be looking at. If it's a repeat breeding you can look at the offspring tested from the previous breedings. I'd also look at the test results of siblings of the parents. All of that information is available for free and will help you find a good breeding. Most of the successful NAVHDA breeders will have a long waiting list sometimes stretching years. Most every NAVHDA breeder is a hunter first. Few show their dogs, although some do, but hunting is the number one goal of NAVHDA.

 

[camelcluch]

I love my pointing lab. Best of both worlds, points and strong retrieves. Plus she also loves the water and is an awesome family dog. With out a doubt I would get another.

 

[2ski]

They've been kind of mentioned in passing, but not suggested so I will. A Wire-haired pointing Griffon sounds exactly what you're looking for. They can have a bit of a shaggy coat but you also need to strip their coat twice a year which would give them a slicker appearance. Also, find a breeder that breeds for more of a slicker coat. Just call breeders and ask tell them what you're looking for and they can help you. I have been told to stay away from most west-coast breeders. I know of 2 in MT that are putting out good dogs. And I know 3 times that many in MT to stay away from. I don't have a griff yet, really want one, but I've looked at enough pictures and been around enough of them to know what a crappy coat and a great coat looks like. There's one breeder who's dogs I see all over MT that are big dogs(80 lbs) and have terrible coats. But they put out pups every year.

Griffs are kind of goofy, they're great hunters, but they make great family dogs as well. They know when to shut it off. Let you're wife look at some griff pics. Noone can resist that goofy face.

The other dog I would look at is a pudelpointer. They breed to a standard and there are quite a few breeders in the west. Cedarwood Kennels in Boise is about the standard for everyone. Bob Ferris is the PP guru. You can't go wrong with a PP. You have to be a little bit picky when you look for a griff breeder.

http://cedarwoodgundogs.com/ Can't get the page to load right now, so I don't know what going on.

http://www.earmtngriffons.com/page5.htm This is not a breeder that I would buy from. They obviously breed for show and I wouldn't buy from a show breeder. A show breeder will generally charge you more too. If you look down the page at Demi, you might look for a dog with a coat more like that. The rest of their dogs are quite shaggy and look a little big to me.

http://www.glacierkennels.com/doc.html Another coat I kind of like, but another show breeder. These guys had a great dog that they got from Europe that they bred once and then neutered. That litter, The Park litter, had some good dogs in it, so I've been told. http://www.glacierkennels.com/gralig.html A coat I really like.

If you got a griff, be prepaired to constantly answer, "What kind of dog is that?" There's actually a Facebook group called, "what kind of dog it that"

 

[2ski]

Sounds familiar. We started with a GSP-Brit cross which happened to be a phenomenal dog. Next up was a chocolate lab for 13+ years. THEN I got serious about research and discovered the versatile breeds, which led me to the Deutsch Drahthaar. I did my homework...a lot of it...and felt that DDs offered a phenomenal combination. Superior hunting and prey drive. Hardcore tracking. Outstanding pointing instincts. Excellent temperament. Easy handling. Super-muscular physique and strength. High pain tolerance. Almost entirely free of genetically passed diseases. Bred to standards so high it amazed me. I figured I couldn't afford one, but I was wrong.

We selected a kennel in PA and talked to the owner who is a dedicated bird and deer hunter. I got lucky. I was #1 choice on the next litter, and when the call came in I was worse than a 5 year old at Christmas. We made three 5 hour drives to meet the family, the dogs and see the litter. In the end we selected TWO sisters and brought them home.



They are as different as night and day in terms of personalities and appearances, but they have been an absolute pleasure in our lives.




Both are incredible hunting machines and they DON'T quit any pursuit until exhausted. This is Deika...



...and sister Dascha.

Man, you got some beautiful dogs there. Love the look of them.

 

[2ski]

http://www.glacierkennels.com/parkpups.html The park litter. Love the look of Skookem

 

[gwl79902]

Well it was about two years ago that I started this and now I need to update. My old lab passed away October of 16. She went quick and with dignity. I was happy for that.

Yesterday we got our new pup. I we have a 8 week old male french Brit tri color. My gosh puppy's are work. He is a lot of fun and my 8 year old boy is doing a great job with him. My older dog is not impressed at all.

I will try to figure out how to post some pics.

 

[woodmoose]

have fun with the pup!!

 

[slick]

Pups are always exciting. Glad to hear that when the old one went, it was quick. Good luck and I'm looking forward to some pictures.


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[Timmyy44]

Check out wired hair pointing griffon ( wpg ) I got my a year ago he was a rescue.He was 6 months old when I got him . Minimal shedding awesome with kids and awesome hunter.He does have a slicker coat witch is great for hunting upland birds.

 

[Mike7]

Gwl79902, where did you end up getting your French Britt? They are great dogs.

I will be up for another dog within the next few years and saw another dog that sounded similar to a French Britt but with short hair (and sadly though some potential for hip problems while French Brittanys are so healthy). They are called Braque Francais. I wonder if anyone here knows much about these dogs?

 

[TheJuice]

Just ran across this thread as I'm a first time dog owner. The wife and kids were relentless until I finally broke down this fall.
We ended up settling on a French Brit and I couldn't be happier.

I will be training him at a local bird club and hope to have him shed hunting as well.

Got him from Trinity Kennels here in central IA. They have been exclusively breeding FB for the last 25yrs. We settled on them because of their impeccable record for healthy dogs. They offer a money back or new pup guaranty for a bad hip check at 24 months. They claim a perfect record. Not a single hip dysplasia in 25 years.

Here is a pic at 13 weeks


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[TheJuice]

He is a mostly black Tri -Color. Heres a better pic of his over all color.

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[gwl79902]

THe Juice that is a good looking pup. Mine is a little lighter but real close to yours. We are having fun and he seems to be fitting into the family well. My old dog even tried to figure out hw to play with him. He turns around and started bitting her so she kindof stomped him. Oh well better try next time.

Mike 7 I got him from
French Brittanys | Epagneul Breton | French Brittany Puppies | Breeding, Training | Sun Country Bretons Don and Linda are very nice and care a lot about what they are doing. They are not. Cheap but I think they really work hard to produce good pups.

 

[Muleyczy]

Ive been following this thread because I to am in search of a new dog. Ive previously had labs but want to get a GSP. There's a ton of breeders out there. Does anyone have any recommendations for a kennel that produces great hunting lines?