What's the Best All-Purpose Hunting Dog?

I like labs also but the good ones are not as large as the average one you see today. My wife and I showed dogs for 25 years and she owns a boarding and grooming kennel. What we see today that is called a Lab is way to large. IMHO
 
The GSPs I've hunted behind were more like 40 lbs. Amazing nose for retrieving dove, pointing quail. Fearless around cornered hogs. One took a rattle snake strike to the sinus cavity and survived. Great with kids.
 
I would get a puppy, whatever breed you choose. Training should start early in their lives. You adopt a bird dog breed that has never been bird hunting, and it might chase birds but you will find it difficult to train it to be a useful hunting companion. A puppy that you have been working with since you got it home has potential with the proper guidance.

You can teach an old dog new tricks if it has been learning new tricks it's entire life. An old dog that knows little will continue to know little.
 
I had a German Shorthaired Pointer for 16 years, and will have to agree they are very good for upland game. He was a large male, around 75 lbs. Great hungting dogs, but I've also heard them used for duck, and other game.
 
I have a Jagd laying right beside my chair and I can tell you that they bring a whole bunch of issues with them. Don't get me wrong, they'll tackle anything and have a great nose. But they are not a dog for an inexperienced hunting dogman.

I've had many, many hunting dogs. A dozen or so hounds, handful of Mt. Curs, couple terriers/fiests and a some retrievers and pointers thrown in for good measure. The best bird and fur dog I had was a Golden Retriever. Pheasant, coon squirrel and rabbit. But even so the only thing it was good at was pheasant. On anything else it was so far behind a dog intended for fur it wasn't even funny. Yes it would bust out a rabbit but no way in hell wasit gonna keep up on a chase, wouldn't tree worth a spit but good enough to let you know something was "up there" in daytime hunting, etc, etc. That is pretty much the best you can expect from bird breeds (although you'll always here stories like "Uncle Jimmy knew a guy that had retriever that was the best dang tree dog in the county". It wasn't)

There are versatile breeds. As mentioned the Jagd is in there. Traditionally the Airedale Terrier was it and with good breeding still one of the best. The Drahthaar is probably the best going but rare in the U.S. Some use Pointing Griffons and wirehaired pointers as poormans versatile hunting dogs.

Personally I'd only look at a few of the common breeds for a versatile hunting dog. Retrievers and Wirehaired Pointer(2 place) if birds are the main coarse but you want to throw some fur in for fun. A Mt.Cur from good solid breeding for fur and maybe some birds. With the common breeds you try to make em something they're not and you end up with a Jack of all trades, master of none. Maybe not even fair at anything.

That brings us to Mutts. Now not all mutts are created equal. Many of today's breeds have had the nose/hunt completely breed outta of them and a mutt from these breeds ain't gonna be any better. But retriever, heeler, cur, pointer, terrier, poodle, etc mixes can sometimes make better versatile dogs that a more specialized breed.

No matter what I'm all for letting a dog have it's head and hunt whatever when in the field. I used to try to have a dog specialized for certain things but anymore meat in the bag is meat in the bag and I don't care what I bring home for supper. As long as it's under control I have more fun, less stress.
 
FWIW: a good hunting dog evolves from how much time its master spends training and having one on one contact with. Be it a mutt or a purebred. Some dogs have an ability to pick up commands & tricks quickly. Others it takes some effort on both the owner and his pooch to come to a meeting of minds. Personally I like any breed, size, color or age. Especially so when I sense the animal possesses a pleasant attitude. If the dog snaps at or bites humans over a trivial teasing occasionally perhaps by a child. Or is known to run the woods chasing deer. Straight up. It's history via my veterinary's clinic. I will not put up with a dog that possesses such disturbing behavior. I never think of my dog as being a family member. {can't say the wife has the same outlook} Doing so I think spoils a dogs sole purpose or ambition to please its master and increase's its anxiety to be over possessive I think. I've own good dogs and so so trainable dogs. But never a bad dog. All my little buddy's have managed to live out or beyond their expected lifespans here. That was my commitment to them for allowing me to be their friend & Master.
 
I agree Sure Shot. A couple of years ago after one of our Rottweilers died my wife went to the pound and on an impulse came home with a Dobie/Shepherd cross. I spent a year training her, but she never gained any confidence. She was fantastic with us, but a monster with anyone who came to the house.

That paid off once when I caught a junkie in the woods on our property casing my garage. Otherwise she was a liability. I took her to the vet and she's buried next to my other dogs out back.

The worst thing in a dog is fear.
 
Originally posted by L_Killkenny:

The Drahthaar is probably the best going but rare in the U.S. Some use Pointing Griffons and wirehaired pointers as poormans versatile hunting dogs.
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I have a registered Drahthaar layin' at my feet as I type this. If I wanted to register her AKC, she would be a German Wirehair Pointer. Kinda like a .44 Magnum and a .44 Remington Magnum. Depends on who you ask. Over the years I have had both. Drahthaar snobs generally claim their dogs are better because of the tests and the more selective breeding, and thus they should be considered a separate breed. If you're going to hang in those circles or wish to compete within, you'll need to cough up the bucks. For the guy who just wants to hunt with a versatile continental breed, they will never see a difference. As with any purebred dog, selective breeding is important. Reputable Wirehair breeders will be just as selective as Drahthaar breeders. Mom and pop and brother in laws, not so much. But again, this will be true with any purebred dog.

Trouble with versatile dogs is they are versatile. They instinctively will want to trail and hunt deer/rabbits/hogs when you and your buddies are hunting pheasants. They need to be trained to hunt what you want, when you want or not be punished or criticized when they follow their instincts. This is why they are not for everybody. But Versatile dogs learn quickly and have a strong desire to please. Their owners just need to have the time and knowledge to do so. Versatile dogs generally have a high amount of drive and need to be challenged and exercised daily. Don't have the time or desire, get something else. Versatile dogs love the water and will want to be in it whenever they are around it. This is what makes them good waterfowl dogs. Hounds, beagles are not good swimmers and do not like the water....thus ain't much for waterfowl. They also don't tend to retrieve like a Retriever or Versatile dog.. Versatile dogs tend to be pointers. If all your buddies hunt with flushers, and you have a pointer, you and your dog will become frustrated as the flushers crash thru your dog's point to flush. But if you are an upland bird hunter, you will never experience anything better than takin' a rooster, grouse, woodcock off a staunch point.

Over the years I have had Labs, Water Spaniels, Beagles, Walkers, GSPs and GWPs. They all are great dogs in their own sense and all served me well. The good lord blessed me with some good ones. All taught me as much as I taught them.

As I said, a good water dog loves water. When my dog is around water she will be in it....constantly. One good way to tire her out tho.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pu7h9S9Mow
 
I had good luck with a beagle x springer as an all around dog. Mostly for fur with some bird hunting. Was a tremendous rabbit and squirrel dog, satisfactory for my moderate pheasant and partridge persuits. Also made a good family, yard and watchdog.
 
I dont know. It will probably be the Mountain Curr. Having said that, A dog that is good for treeing squirrels is not the best dog for baying and catching hogs. The only thing I want my coon dog to hunt is coons. I do not really want my squirrel dog to hunt rabbits and I definitely do not want my rabbit dog to hunt squirrels. I am kind of fond of having dogs that hunt one thing. When I go hunt a specific animal, thats what I want to kill. I do not want to go Coon hunting and end up baying hogs or running deer or chasing rabbits.
 
There are a lot of good hunting dogs. I give the nod to Chindo. Korean hunting dog. They are smart fast and strong enough for hogs.

I do love the beagle though and they always excel on at least one animal. I've used beagles for rabbits, deer and pheasant. They are great dogs.
 
Originally posted by reynolds357 :

I dont know. It will probably be the Mountain Curr. Having said that, A dog that is good for treeing squirrels is not the best dog for baying and catching hogs. The only thing I want my coon dog to hunt is coons. I do not really want my squirrel dog to hunt rabbits and I definitely do not want my rabbit dog to hunt squirrels. I am kind of fond of having dogs that hunt one thing. When I go hunt a specific animal, thats what I want to kill. I do not want to go Coon hunting and end up baying hogs or running deer or chasing rabbits
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My sentiments exactly.

I don't want my 'bunny' trained beagle running coons, foxes, deer etc. Nothing ruins a good rabbit hunt faster then a dog taking off on a deer and running it into the next county. :mad:

Similarly, I don't want my bird dog tracking the furry friends either.
 
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Saying there is one best dog for everything, is like saying there is one best gun for everything.
The dog, as much as we love them, is a tool.
As for those of us that know tools, the more jobs you try to make it do, the less it does any one job very well.
 
Jo, I kind of suspected as much, but it never hurts to ask. I did begin this by asking if there was the equivalent of an 870 in a dog. An 870 isn't the best gun for everything, but it can do a lot. Thanks for the replies!
 
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