You can do both. And training for field trials shouldn't hurt your hunting. Our best field dog was our best hunting dog.
Yes I realize that. I have a friend whose dog was a National Champion. People would fly dogs in from across the continental U.S. for him to breed. He was an excellent dog to hunt with too, I was told.
For sure, i just dont feel the need to train her as rigorously as a field trial dog. Some of the tests in a field trial just aren't realistic hunting scenarios, ex: 200-300yd retrieves. Just my opinion. I enjoy watching my dog work with minimal guidance from me, she has an unbelievable nose and marks very well. I dont have to give a lot of sit whistles and hand signals, just a point in the right direction and "fetch it up". Just a personal preference i suppose, but if it aint broke.......
On the rice fields I see 200-300 yard retrieves all the time. But in marsh/tall grass or swamp land no way that long. So depends.
Prettiest thing I've ever seen was that same dog that picked up two on a run left the rice field and went into a soybean field adjacent. It was a couple hundred yards. I'm thinking, dam, that idiot. About 10 seconds or so later that big bastad comes hauling azz back with a duck in his mouth. Incredible nose. I knew I'd NEVER have another one like him.
Yeah, I have seen and sometimes heard some amazing retrieves. We have a little woody hole in the honey island swamp, very wooded area we don't want our dog just running out of line of site to much or to long. Well one of our labs had a never give up kind of personality. She marked a swimmer\broken wing that my dad had to call her back on. We get her back and the next time we sent her our, sure as hell she went right back to the swimmer first. It was getting late so my dad was like screw it as long as we can hear her, about 20 minutes later she comes back with the it. We took an older dog out last year on his first and last hunt. My dad never trained it that much, but he worked with him for a bit leading up to the season and figured he might do some simple marks. Well he was pretty good at retrieving decoys, he would run up on them and get the lines tangled up, think he got around 3 every time he broke. I was laughing, my Dad not so much.... Anyway that led me to go ahead and get my pup this year.
The one thing about the whistle I liked (and it's SO easy to train) is the one whistle = sit. When they're out running on the pond and happen to get off track they'll hear a whistle and look back. You can then use a hand motion. All you need to do is walk it on a leash (short enough to keep them on your heel) and when you say sit (and they're obeying) blow the whistle too. After a while you can just blow the whistle. One thing with my labs, "Sit" meant "Stay until further notice." As they gain discipline, add to it. :lol: Reminded me of a friend I'd hunt with in Grand Chenier who had a young dog that would bring a decoy back! We' piss him off calling his dog flambeau.
Here is some pics of my Puppy, she is a Deutsch Kurzhaar AKC calls them German short hair Pointers, we have been using this breed for the past few generations. She still has 20-30 pounds to put on.
