r/birddogs

Howdy everyone! I’ve been lurking here and on r/UplandHunting for a while now, and am in my 2nd season chasing birds in Southwest Idaho now.

In the next year or so, most likely after this season, I’d like to adopt my first bird dog. I’m having a hard time choosing what type/breed of dog I’d like and would be a good fit for me. My biggest concern is determining if I can meet the needs of a bird dog! I’ll be up front and say that I won’t get a bird dog unless I’m sure I can handle their needs. I’d rather take my gun for a nice walk and come home emptyhanded than adopt a dog I assumed I was ready for.

Anyways, about my lifestyle:

1. I work 8am-5pm, M-F. I have the option for 2 remote days a week, and can flex my hours if needed. I come home midday for lunch and to let our dog/any fosters out to potty and play, and sometimes I have to leave them in an outdoor kennel all day if I need to travel somewhere for work. I have no problem utilizing doggie daycare if necessary, our dog just doesn’t like it. A few times a year the dog will be in my wife’s care if I’m gone for a few days. We like to take our dogs on appropriate errands too.

2. We live in the suburbs of Boise, ID. I’m about 20 minutes away from Eagle Island State park - I’ve seen trainers using the fields out there and have taken our dog and foster dogs out there to romp around. Our backyard is roughly 70’x30’, and I really enjoy playing fetch with dogs that do so.

3. During the season I can commit to hunting at least once a week, and would like to go more. I haven’t been going as much since we foster dogs for a rescue, which we would cut back on if we had a bird dog during the hunting season. We have fostered a variety of dogs, some that were exhausted just from weekend activities and others that want to go all the time.

4. Touching on point 2., I’m concerned about activity level. We’ve fostered a hunting lab that had a TON of energy but all we knew to do for him was play fetch in the backyard. We’re a running family as well and if I’m ever injured from running I take our dogs on bike rides. I can commit an hour a day to exercise after work including fetch, training, bike rides, going to parks, etc. I worry that some breeds would be too energetic for that to be sufficient.

5. As far as hunting goes, I primarily pursue forest grouse, quail, and pheasant all on public land. I’m open to chukar and huns but am not likely to be walking miles and miles of canyons or hills for them all the time. I generally cover a few miles on my own, walking slow to try to flush birds. I’m in decent shape though and don’t mind covering more ground, I just go slow when dogless.

All that being said, here are my concerns and questions:

- I’m looking into labradors (potentially pointing labs) and Brittanys. The last hunting lab I fostered had a ton of energy and could fetch all day long in the winter, but we were stuck only doing that in our backyard. I don’t mind hunting at the dog’s pace, but I worry about the rest of the year and managing their energy.

What are the general exercise expectations daily/weekly for bird dogs of these breeds?

- As this is my first bird dog, is a flushing dog potentially a better fit in terms of training threshold? Given that I hunt public land in Idaho, would a pointer be worth the extra training for a beginner? I have experience training our foster dogs but mostly in basic manners, and would gladly work with local organizations for training.

I know this is a brain dump, but I’m happy to offer any clarification.

Hello,

I am new to Wisconsin and it’s been fun exploring the north for ruffed grouse. Everyone I talk to here cautions me about the wolf depredations on hunting dogs. When I look at information online it seems the vast majority of wolf depredations occur with hounds and not pointing dogs. Obviously the idea of my dog encountering a wolf is terrifying but I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on how big of a concern this should actually be? Would this keep you out of the woods?

Thanks

A year ago today I posted one of the hardest losses I’ve ever suffered in my life. My dude died in my arms. It wasn’t expected. I spent the last year in and out of keeping myself distracted, living with it tolerably and being completely broken.

I wrote a book that was intended to be my way of memorializing Cochise and dealing with my loss. First of all, I don’t even like to write long emails, so writing a 400 page book was a big undertaking for me. Reliving his life that soon after him losing it was brutal.

That said, in two weeks, the final edits of the book will be done. After feedback from immediate family and close friends I shared a rough draft with, I have been convinced to publish it on Kindle and release it as an audiobook.

I am not a writer. I hope I do him justice by following the suggestions of people who knew him.

Today I had a 6 Hour drive in a truck that will never feel full again. I am absolutely shattered right now and I feel like I am reliving last year in a horror version remake of Groundhog Day.

Love your family, love your dogs and remember every moment has the potential to be the last good thing you do with them. Treat the moment accordingly.