Upland dogs that will also retreive ducks and geese?

LOL Got it!

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Originally Posted by terrym

You can always use the "too much choke" excuse. We would automatically back you up on that one.

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Cylinder and IC. Still too much choke!

Attachment 31947 yes they can

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Originally Posted by can-man

Attachment 31947 yes they can

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I don't know kinda looks like your the one sent out to retrieve. If that's the case your dog has you trained well. LOL

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Originally Posted by can-man

Attachment 31947 yes they can

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?????You must hunt in a strange area, everything is horizontal , even the dog and the hunter , is there a strange magnetic field there or something ?

Lol....haha

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Originally Posted by Fox

Any idea what dogs would be good for thick bush grouse hunting as well as retrieving migratory birds in the water and on land.

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Given your location status, I am pretty confident we hunt in similar habitats. I was in your position eight years ago; I wanted a dog that I could use to hunt waterfowl most of the time but also wanted a dog that I could use to chase grouse and rabbits.

I was initially interested in the DD but after having conversations with one breeder from the Canadian DD group he suggested that for a first time owner, his breeding may be too much for me to handle. In hindsight, I most certainly could have handled the breed(ing) but I heeded his advice and looked to my second choice which was the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon.

The griffon was bred specifically as an all purpose, all game hunting breed specializing in the marshy habitats of Holland (although developed primarily in France and Germany). In terms of the versatile pointing breeds they are one of the closest and slowest (most methodical) working breeds. This doesn't do you any good on the parries but is excellent trait to have in woodcock cover or for finding downed birds in the thickest cattails.

In the house they are a bit of a hunting dog paradox, they seemingly more similar to a cat than a hunting dog.

You mentioned in one of your replies that you may have some cost sensitivities; if you are hesitant at the cost of a well bred dog in the range of $600-$1000 then you are better off relying on waders and a canoe. By the time your dog has been to the vet for all of its' check ups, toys purchased, kennels purchased, food for a year, etc., you will already have spent more than the original cost of the dog. Further to that, if a 3-6 hour drive is enough to persuade you to another breed then you are missing the mark all together (pun intended) and you may as well go to the nearest shelter and secure a rescue.

If you look into the Griffon further and would like to see two of them in person, we can line up in the spring and I can show you what they can do. Another option is to get in touch with Ottawa Valley NAVHDA and come out to a couple of their winter/spring training events to see many different breeds in a training scenario. The group meets nearly monthly and usually in the Richmond area.

-Drew

awesome post, Drew (except the Griffon recommendation, just kidding ;) )

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Originally Posted by jobbershunting

Given your location status, I am pretty confident we hunt in similar habitats. I was in your position eight years ago; I wanted a dog that I could use to hunt waterfowl most of the time but also wanted a dog that I could use to chase grouse and rabbits.

I was initially interested in the DD but after having conversations with one breeder from the Canadian DD group he suggested that for a first time owner, his breeding may be too much for me to handle. In hindsight, I most certainly could have handled the breed(ing) but I heeded his advice and looked to my second choice which was the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon.

The griffon was bred specifically as an all purpose, all game hunting breed specializing in the marshy habitats of Holland (although developed primarily in France and Germany). In terms of the versatile pointing breeds they are one of the closest and slowest (most methodical) working breeds. This doesn't do you any good on the parries but is excellent trait to have in woodcock cover or for finding downed birds in the thickest cattails.

In the house they are a bit of a hunting dog paradox, they seemingly more similar to a cat than a hunting dog.

You mentioned in one of your replies that you may have some cost sensitivities; if you are hesitant at the cost of a well bred dog in the range of $600-$1000 then you are better off relying on waders and a canoe. By the time your dog has been to the vet for all of its' check ups, toys purchased, kennels purchased, food for a year, etc., you will already have spent more than the original cost of the dog. Further to that, if a 3-6 hour drive is enough to persuade you to another breed then you are missing the mark all together (pun intended) and you may as well go to the nearest shelter and secure a rescue.

If you look into the Griffon further and would like to see two of them in person, we can line up in the spring and I can show you what they can do. Another option is to get in touch with Ottawa Valley NAVHDA and come out to a couple of their winter/spring training events to see many different breeds in a training scenario. The group meets nearly monthly and usually in the Richmond area.

-Drew

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great summary

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Originally Posted by finsfurfeathers

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Sort of have to see it done to fully understand the inner workings hunting with a dog. You really have to be in tune with your dog ....

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Hunting with dogs is different - very rewarding, no matter if you bag game or not. and sometimes you have to take the second seat

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Originally Posted by Gunner 38

My German Wirehaired Pointer would flush on command . No matter what was required , he would point , flush and retrieve (land and water) on command . --- As far as hunting was concerned , he did just about anything but shoot the game . --- Yeah , I know , I am biased . I loved that dog . --- His only flaw : He was a fighter ! He didn't like other males . If I wouldn't have intervened he would have killed other males (on a few occasions) . He weighed only 80 lbs. but "out-fought" dogs that were 30 lbs. heavier than him .

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there's always another side to each coin. I haven't seen many dog fights in my life (just a few during large party hunts when I was a kid) - all that I can still remember is that at least one of the participants was a GWP/DD

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Originally Posted by werner.reiche

That can be a problem with flushers, pointers or just walking the bush alone. Try to keep the dog in close - within 20 yards.

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good advise for a flusher, but a pointer a "sticky" pointer is pretty useless.
on the other hand, I know of some who got versatile pointers and trained them like flusher as they were uncomfortable with far ranging dogs

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Originally Posted by jobbershunting

Given your location status, I am pretty confident we hunt in similar habitats. I was in your position eight years ago; I wanted a dog that I could use to hunt waterfowl most of the time but also wanted a dog that I could use to chase grouse and rabbits.

I was initially interested in the DD but after having conversations with one breeder from the Canadian DD group he suggested that for a first time owner, his breeding may be too much for me to handle. In hindsight, I most certainly could have handled the breed(ing) but I heeded his advice and looked to my second choice which was the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon.

The griffon was bred specifically as an all purpose, all game hunting breed specializing in the marshy habitats of Holland (although developed primarily in France and Germany). In terms of the versatile pointing breeds they are one of the closest and slowest (most methodical) working breeds. This doesn't do you any good on the parries but is excellent trait to have in woodcock cover or for finding downed birds in the thickest cattails.

In the house they are a bit of a hunting dog paradox, they seemingly more similar to a cat than a hunting dog.

You mentioned in one of your replies that you may have some cost sensitivities; if you are hesitant at the cost of a well bred dog in the range of $600-$1000 then you are better off relying on waders and a canoe. By the time your dog has been to the vet for all of its' check ups, toys purchased, kennels purchased, food for a year, etc., you will already have spent more than the original cost of the dog. Further to that, if a 3-6 hour drive is enough to persuade you to another breed then you are missing the mark all together (pun intended) and you may as well go to the nearest shelter and secure a rescue.

If you look into the Griffon further and would like to see two of them in person, we can line up in the spring and I can show you what they can do. Another option is to get in touch with Ottawa Valley NAVHDA and come out to a couple of their winter/spring training events to see many different breeds in a training scenario. The group meets nearly monthly and usually in the Richmond area.

-Drew

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Excellent post! :thumbup: