thinking of gettting a gun dog

[cap1len]

i have just joined a shooting syndicate and i am now considering getting a gundog i already have a border collie who is 18 mths and like most collies bright as a button could he be used?

if i do go down the new dog route would i be better with a pup or an older trained or part trained dog.

if i do get a pup at what age would you expect them to be ready for the field

 

any help or advice would be very helpful

 

thanks

 

Len

[casts_by_fly]

Len,

 

Personally I like a puppy because that gives you more time to bond with the dog during the early critical months. The downside is that you are responsible for all of the training and cleaning up.

 

I got Roxy (lab) in January, so when she hit the field to hunt she was already 10 months old. Since her job was to find and flush birds, she did a great job. I didn't expect steadiness, sit to shot, or anything. Just go out and find/flush birds. She needed to listen in the field, sit on command, and come/heel. From that criteria, she would have been good in the field from about 5 months old or so. I put her on her first planted birds when she was about 4 months old and seriously ramped up planted birds when she was around 7 months (just because of availability).

 

If you want to get a gundog, just make sure you have the time to devote to training. Spend time with the dog and make sure obedience is solid. The hunting will come from its genes.

 

As for the collie, if it is obedient then what can it hurt? All dogs have some sense of prey drive. All birds have a fear of dogs. So if you're in the beating line and can command the collie to work the field (whether it is using its nose or not) it will cross birds and they will flush. I'd give it a few practice runs first to make sure the dog is obedient with birds around, but you should be able to make it work. Maybe not as well as a gundog breed, but it could work.

 

Thanks,

Rick