Are you going to be hunting mostly waterfowl, or mostly upland birds & dove? The lab retriever excels at the former, while dogs designed for upland birds excel at that (ranging, pointing, & land retrieving) - breeds such as pointers, setters, & spaniels. Such as a GSP (German Shorthaired Pointer).
However, be very very careful - there are a million and one bad backyard breeders out there. As with any dog, you need to find a breeder that breeds for the love of the breed, not principally for money!
At a minimum, find a breeder who:
-will let you inspect the breeding premises. If they won't, there's something wrong. Check for space, cleanliness, organization, overall care
-can tell you in detail in what manner he/she socializes the dog prior to you adopting them, using other dogs, people, noises & sights
-will give you a health guarantee
-has had the dog checked & certified on hips - you should absolutely require an OFA dysplasia certification
-will let you test and evaluate the puppies before making your selection of the litter
-asks YOU questions about the fitness of YOUR home, what YOU want to do with the dog - questions that show a concern for the health & well-being of the dog
-who is NOT wrapped up in conformation shows, which tell you almost nothing about the 3 most important things you are concerned with: Working ability, health, and temperament
-perhaps most importantly, can tell you the how/what/when/where/whys of how they make their breeding priorities: (a) working ability, then temperament, then health, or (b) temperament, then working ability, then health, or (c) working ability, then health, then temperament, or (d) [you get the idea]
-on working ability, find one that suits what you're trying to do. For quail & pheasants, you want to know how far their parents liked to range from the hunter while hunting, how good they work, how well they point, how well they retrieve, how teachable are they, etc. You want one really "birdie" - one that is highly motivated in finding birds.
PLEASE DO NOT REWARD THE IDIOT BACKYARD BREEDERS by getting a dog from them - search out and find a GOOD breeder such as I have described. Thank you for your help in preventing bad breeders from creating bad dogs with heath problems and little to no working ability. Sorry for the rant.
PS. AKC registered is *ABSOLUTELY* meaningless to what is important - working ability, health, intelligence, and temperament!
Do a search on the internet. At the very least they should have a good website & operation. Not just a classified ad. You might expand your search to neighboring states or all of USA or even North America, to find the best breeder for you. But as big as Texas is, and as many hunters are there, there oughtta be a few really good breeders within a 3-4 hour drive of you, almost certainly. Remember, the best breeders do not necessarily charge more than backyard breeders - usually the same, and sometimes less, unless they do actual training for you, or have highly prized bloodlines. Also remember, every backyard breeder out there has a good sales pitch about this bloodline or that bloodline, or blah, blah, blah....it's meaningless until you ask the hard questions. Say show me some pictures of mama and daddy and a pickup bed full of quail - the proof is in the pudding. For that matter, say let me see mama and daddy in person - inspect them for their health, their temperament, etc. If possible, view grandparents of the litter as well.
One more thing - IF the dog is going to be an indoor pet/companion, in addition to being a worker, then you may not want one too terribly excitable/hyperactive. Some instinct/working ability yes, but the ones very highly driven can make bad pets, as they are just too rambunctious to mesh with a indoor home, particularly with small children.
ONE more thing - If you DO go with a labrador - remember, they were bred for retrieving waterfowl, not pointing and working the land looking for birds. As a result, if that is what you plan to do, you MUST make sure that the particular bloodline of labs you're looking at has some pointing instinct like that - some do and some don't - be careful. They are ALL cute. But are you fully committed to take care of that dog for life if it grows up and cannot/will not point, and/or has serious health problems? If the answer is no, then you oughtta do some serious research on your breeder.
The last time I dove/quail hunted, I was the 10 year old bird dog, and I'd like to get a lab to do the leg work for me. It'll be my first experience with bird dogs, so I don't know what to expect. I've never been one to leave my dogs outside, so our lab will be an inside doga long with our two retired greyhounds, one Yorkshire terrier, and a cat. Will being a family pet interfere with the dog's training? I'd like a pet first, and working dog second. Is that too much to ask out of one dog? What should I look for, and does anyone have a breeder that they prefer in the central Texas area?
