Jump to content
  • GUESTS

    If You  want access  to member only forums on FM, You will need to Sign-in or  Sign-Up now .

    This box will disappear once you are signed in as a member.

shorthair vs. lab


Recommended Posts

I have hunted with both shorthairs and labs and if I had to choose just one it would be a shorthair for sure. ( That should ruffle erics feathers lol) I have only had a shorthair for 2 years before that my old man alway had labs so I cant talk any s@!# about them, we have had some great labs.
But pheasant hunting with a shorthair is VERY IMPRESSIVE watching and training a shorthair from a pup, its amazing how much natural instinct they have. My shorthair amazes me every time we go out he goes longer harder and faster then any dog ive ever seen. At the end of the day when im tired I get in my truck and follow him along the ditch til he goes on point he just never stops EVER. When you have a pointer you have time to case and uncase your gun while hes on point maybe its just BUSTER BROWN but hes definately going to make me buy another when hes done.

Have you ever seen a lab and a pointer work together? Eric has a lab that is unstopable and when him and buster are together its more fun to watch the dogs then it is to bang the birds. When buster goes on point windsor waits for us when eric says when its all over but the pluckin.
Thats the reason I walk mile after mile chaseing a bird.

What kind of dog do you hunt with?

[This message has been edited by rt_sports (edited 06-04-2002).]

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Nothin beats hunting over a pointer....I'm biased towards My English Setter but watching any dog lock up on a bird is awsome! We just need some birds in Minnesota.

I've heard of pointing Labs but never seen one work.

------------------
cast,cast,cast,cast......

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now since it is my day to work in the store here is my view of this topic. Short hairs are great upland hunting dogs, but since we are compairing short hairs to labs i would really like to see brian take his short hair out at 3am break ice, shoot some ducks and then go right out into the fields for some pheasant hunting. His dog might have more speed and stanima in the fields but a short hair has nothing on a lab when it comes to duck hunting. I could just see it now, he will bring his dog out duck hunting this year and i will have to listen to brian and his dog whinning all day on how cold they are. It is bad enough just listening to brian, haha. I also think that springers are great versital dogs but man some of them are ugly looking.lol. Cant wait to here the sh** on that one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

r_t,
If your looking for a dog that will hunt ducks and then got for some cocks, a wirehair is the way to go. I have hunted with a lot of different breeds and my father in laws wirehairs out perform them all. They love the water and they love the heavy switchgrass and sloughs for pheasants. We hunt some of the thickest switchgrass in SD and those dogs get the birds out. That is where the birds are because generally no one wants to walk through that stuff. I know I hate it, but I know I will get some shooting if I follow those dogs through there. That is my opinion on dogs. You cant go wrong with a wirehair.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dark 30,
Do you hunt ducks with your dog? Did you self train and if so what are some good tricks. I have a 9 month old english setter that will lock up on anything that moves(including ants) but i'm wooried he will not train to point on scent.nick

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Years ago I had a Weimaraner in North Dakota that was fantastic for pheasants, sharptail grouse, Hungarian partridge, ducks, and YES, even rabbits when other game were closed. No dog could match that incredible Weimaraner.

Well, last September I brought home my 2nd Weimaraner. She's now 11 months old and seems every bit as savvy as her ancestor. I am looking for great things from her this fall -- trouble is, it's much harder to find access to land in central Minnesota. I may have to take a couple trips to North Dakota. I love it out there, anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Radke22....I use him for pheasants. Its getting tuff to find birds at least for me anyways but he loves to point water spiders down in the creek just as much!

I trained him to point with a pheasant wing on a fishing rod. Now I can't take him fishing cause he thinks hes supposed to get the lure!

------------------
cast,cast,cast,cast......

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

I would go with the Shorthair for Pheasants if I had to choose between the Two breeds but I am partial to hunting behind pointing Dogs I own two English Setters and I have been very happy with there performance I also prefer dogs with a lighter colored coat I seem to think that they run cooler than darker coated dogs Also if you plan to hunt out west the pointing dogs are the way to go
If I wanted ducks I would get a Lab Good Luck

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Springers and Goldens! I have a female Springer for Grouse, Woodcock, Pheasies, and Sharpies. I have a male Golden Retriever for the birds listed above and...oh yeah DUCKS!

------------------
Get wet, get muddy, get birds!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I gotta go with the shorthair on this one, only because I own 4 GSP's.I have a dad, the mom, and a litter made them. I kept one of the boys, and ended up with his brother as well.They are a blast to hunt with, and are a riot for home life as well. Nothing against labs, it's kinda hard to get lab pups out of two GSP's.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Bird hunting is all about my dogs and me getting out getting away and enjoying the great outdoors the Lord has blessed us with.If I didnt have dogs I would not hunt birds.Any breed of dog is capable of being your best friend,thus being the best bird dog in the world.If you are looking to bag numbers of Phesants the dog that dominates in the NSTRA is the GSP.So if you are looking to do well in upland competition go get yourselfe a nice GSP pup out of good field trial stock.If you are looking to have a nice relaxing afternoon in the field and numbers of birds doesnt really matter,just get Fido loaded into the pickup,grab a thermos of coffee and the old model 12,get down to your favorite woods and go thank your Maker you have the means to be out there and Enjoy your best friend and the beautiful countryside!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm with Dark30 on this one. Although I have hunted with most of the "popular" upland breeds, my two English Setters are the best I've ever had. As Dark said, birds around here can be hard to come by. But for me, just watching my two girls canvas a piece of land is reward enough. Birds in the bag are a bonus.

Dan

------------------
[email protected]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've had labs all my life. In fact I just got another one, now 12 months old, I can't wait to take him out. Pointers are probably better for pheasant alone, but I like the versatility of a lab. I can do pheasant, grouse, ducks, and geese, and the dogs will love every minute of it. No whining smile.gif And labs are also great family dogs.

Good Luck,
Rusty

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Labs get my vote! For general all around hunting both upland and water you can't beat them! Plus their personality is super - friendly, loyal, happy go lucky.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

For pheasant hunting its no contest... A pointer, doesnt have to be a gs but every dog has a great nose, labs flush they get on the scent there hot and there gone. Ive hunted both, mostly labs this will be my 3rd year with a shorthair and for PHEASANT HUNTING I will never go back to just a lab. ( I like to shoot birds not watch them fly away) My shorthair will stay on point as long as it takes me to get there and I always have a decent shot, If im going to pull the trigger im going to kill my bird not wing it because it was to far out. Ive shot far more birds in the past 3 years then I ever have and i will have to say its because of Buster my pointer..

Duck hunting my dog stays in the kennel but thats fine my uncles have plenty of labs to go round.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hunt with a Lab and he not only points and retrieves but he shoots them down too jk guys im a Dove hunting guy born and raised in south texas I would literaly step outside my house and shoot Dove and whitewing from our porch light up the BBQ pit and cook some birds never been pheaseant hunting would like to try but all my 12 gauges are in texas and dont know where to go any suggestions will be appreciated

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hunt with a Lab and he not only points and retrieves but he shoots them down too jk guys im a Dove hunting guy born and raised in south texas I would literaly step outside my house and shoot Dove and whitewing from our porch light up the BBQ pit and cook some birds never been pheaseant hunting would like to try but all my 12 gauges are in texas and dont know where to go any suggestions will be appreciated

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 weeks later...

hey you all havent seen nothing yet till you see a lab trained to point..i get the best of both worlds having a 6 year old chocolate lab trained to point, its great!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The best dog I ever hunted pheasants with is our mut. She mostly hunted ruffed grouse but I brought her out to South Dakota twice and down around the Windom area once each fall. We got her for free. I only had to train her to come and the rest she just seemed to know. She is chesapeake, golden retriever and some other breed, maybe brittany. When we lived north of Grand Marais she chased bears away and was always outide defending her turf. I hunted with her almost every day during grouse season. She is now almost 14 but could hunt well in heavy cover until she was 12 with no arthritis or hip problems. This year I will take her out for a few short hikes and I know she will act young until she gradually tired. In her prime she was never sick, hurt or even needed a bath because she was impecable about how she groomed herself. She would be muddy or stinky one hour and then clean the next. She pointed some but the thing I'll never forget was her athletisism and stamina. She caught two uninjured pheasants on the ground in really thick stuff and even grabbed one out of the air as it was trying to lift off! All were roosters as luck would have it. She wasn't the most stylish or refined dog, but I loved watching her hunt and I guess that is a big part of it. She is almost 14 now and I always wished she hadn't been fixed before I got her. Sorry if I am going on and on but I am getting nostalgic about her now that she is in her twilight. I'll bet many of you folks feel the same way about your dogs. I hope I can find another dog that can hunt well but I realinze that no two are the same and that is probably a good thing. Enjoy your dogs they are great companions!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some things to think about when chosing a pheasant dog-
First, most(seasoned, anyway) roosters will run b4 they fly. They will run right past and around a pointer. I have a buddy that has a great gs, and we have seen roosters run him ragged in an area that is the size of a cubicle, with 2 hunters kicking around, and we couldnt get the bird to fly.

To the guy who said that his labs would bust roosters wild, I had another buddy with a good lab, and it never(after its 1st season) bust a rooster wild, you have to train it to stay close, and we always got good shots at roosters.

How heavy is the cover you will be hunting?
For hunting around fencerows, trees, treelines, etc a pointer is great to watch, and a lab works good too. But get into the thickest, hairiest cover you can find (cattails, switchgrass up to your eyes, etc) you HAVE to hunt a flusher. I have seen many lost pointers in that type of cover, and it is almost impossible to bust a rooster and get a shot in that type of cover with a pointing dog. In the heaviest cover, you need a smaller, yet strong, flusher so you can get those birds to fly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Creators

Kdough, My thoughts exactly. The cover I hunt a pointer would be useless. When that rooster heads into the cattail slough I want my lab in hot persuit with me in there right behind. Both breeds are good at phesants but when its time to bust sloughs its a flusher and retriever you want. I dont like the idea of a pointer on point when the birds are running away either. Theres not that many phesants in Mn to let misses opertunities like that slip away. Whith a flusher your going to speed up your pace at times to stay with the dog, but better that then let the birds run away. My labs get on a sent and stay on it till that bird is airborn. Ive had them go 1/2 mile in the sloughs while on a sent. Ya its a lot of work but the reward it that much more.
You may think your pointer is the Cats meow, To Each His Own..............

[This message has been edited by Surface Tension (edited 09-19-2002).]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.


  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • leech~~
      Nope not me.  May want to go nextdoor and ask around?  
    • smurfy
      Looks to me like Leech brought his chair home!!😅😆
    • Brianf.
      I'm not there, so I can't tell exactly what's going on but it looks like a large area of open water developed in the last day with all of the heavy snow on the east side of wake em up Narrows. These two photos are from my Ring Camera facing north towards Niles Point.  You can see what happened with all of snow that fell in the last three days, though the open water could have been wind driven. Hard to say. .  
    • SkunkedAgain
      Black Bay had great ice before but a few spots near rockpiles where there were spots of open water. It looks like the weight of the snow has created a little lake in the middle of the bay.  
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   Thanks to some cold spring weather, ice fishing continues strong for those still ice fishing.  The bite remains very good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year, however, some still have fish houses out and others are allowing ATV and side by sides.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics. Reports this week for walleyes and saugers remain excellent.   A nice mix of jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon being reported by anglers. Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.     Monster pike are on a tear!  Good number of pike, some reaching over 45 inches long, being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 - 14' of water.   As always, work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always. Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends. On the Rainy River...  The river is opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.  This past week, much of the open water skimmed over with the single digit overnight temps.   Areas of the river have popped open again and with temps getting warmer, things are shaping up for the last stretch through the rest of the spring season, which continues through April 14th.   Very good numbers of walleyes are in the river.  Reports this week, even with fewer anglers, have been good.  When temps warm up and the sun shines, things will fire up again.   Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don't overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.   Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Sturgeon put the feed bag on in the spring.  The bite has been very good.  Most are using a sturgeon rig with a circle hook loaded with crawlers or crawlers / frozen emerald shiners. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing is winding down up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, and a number of various species in the mix again this week.  The bite is still very good with good numbers of fish.  The one two punch of jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is working well.   Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young's Bay.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.  
    • CigarGuy
      With the drifting, kind of hard to tell for sure, but I'm guessing about a foot and still lightly snowing. Cook end!
    • PSU
      How much snow did you get on Vermilion? 
    • Mike89
      lake here refroze too...  started opening again yesterday with the wet snow and wind...  very little ice left today...
    • Hookmaster
      A friend who has a cabin between Alex and Fergus said the lake he's on refroze. He texted me a pic from March 12th when it was open and one from 23rd when it wasn't. 🤯
    • SkunkedAgain
      I don't think that there has been any ice melt in the past few weeks on Vermilion. Things looked like a record and then Mother Nature swept in again.   I'll give my revised guess of April 21st
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.