Choosing the right dog for the job
By John Cowan.
I HAVE often been asked: “which dog is the best dog for me?” or: “which is the easiest to train?” Those questions were never easy to answer as everyone is different and a breed which would suit one person would not suit another. The shooting man has many different priorities: nose, biddability, ease of handling and training, temperament, and that’s before considering colour and if they would make good household pets.
I trained and owned dogs for over 40 years and also trained other peoples. It is for others to judge my ability in this sphere, all I can say is I did not close my eyes and ears during that time and learned a bit about dogs.
The most popular gundog is the Labrador which comes in four colours: black, the most common; yellow, not golden as sometimes described; red, an increasingly popular colour; and chocolate. Before I go any further, I must emphasise that nobody can predict how good or bad a dog will be based on its breed, colour or breeding.
