Which puppy is right for me? That is probably the most important question you’ll ask yourself before you buy your new dog.
Now before we get to the point of no return on this, I completely support animal rescues and adoption. Buchheit donates to them quite often. I know there are a lot of people that would ask, why would you buy a dog when shelters are busting at the seams with dogs that need good homes?
Well, that’s simple. The dogs I train are bred for a specific job and are the best at it, and I want to bring the best of it out in them. Some may say you can teach any dog to fetch. Yes, you can, but a Yorki isn’t built to fetch a 25 pound goose through ice and snow or bring it across a partially frozen lake. I also believe if more people used the methods I am about to lay before you, there would be a lot less dogs in need of rescue.
Let’s get back to picking out which breed suits your needs. There are many different variables you should look at before you make up your mind. First, check your breed specifics and what they are bred to do. For example, if you like coon hunting then a Walker, or a Blue Tick coon hound may be the dog for you. If you’re a squirrel hunter, a Mountain Cur is a good choice. In my case, I love duck hunting and hunting upland game such as quail and pheasant. I am going to go with a breed that is good at it and loves it as much as I do. Being as I, like so many others with a family and livestock, am limited on how many extra mouths I can feed, I need a dog that can meet my needs, retrieving over water and pointing in the brush. That narrows down my breed options a little but there are still several breeds that meet those qualifications. I normally choose Labrador Retrievers because they are a jack of all trades and great with kids. But for this go around, I have decided to go with a German Short Haired Pointer.
Why the switch up? I have trained German Short Haired Pointers before and it’s fun to try to revive old skills. Every breed and every individual dog trains differently. After you make an official breed choice the next step is finding a reputable breeder. We’ll get into that next time.
I hope this is helpful and as always God bless you and yours from me and mine.
