Picture for a moment an NFL football player in March or April. Although he is not in the height of his season, regularly working with the team to improve plays and build stamina, he cannot afford to be stagnant. Athletes depend on their bodies to continually succeed, so they must train consistently, even when games and events aren’t regularly scheduled.

The same can be said of your hunting dog. Although you are not depending on his prowess during the lazy days of summer, it is still important to maintain your dog’s level of fitness and ability. You cannot expect the dog to jump back into the game without any maintenance of the dog’s skills. Your dog is an athlete who works strenuously to please you during the hunt. And the simple truth is this: it takes more than a week or two before bird season to maintain the level of skill necessary for a successful hunting experience. There is nothing worse on the first day of the hunt than having a dog full of a year’s worth of enthusiasm and only an hour or two of stamina.

Hunting can be tiring for us, but we are not literally running all day long, as are our hunting dogs. The dog enjoys this work, but it is still demanding on his heart and lungs. His muscles should be toned and ready for exertion. Another important thing is that your dog maintains tough pads on his feet. His feet should be able to physically withstand hours of running on rough and unpredictable ground. These are all things that can be maintained with mild, but consistent workouts consisting of runs, retrievals, and basic drills.

Another issue to consider is the dog’s exposure to climate control. If your dog resides in an air-conditioned home for the spring/summer/early fall, exposure to hard work in an uncontrolled climate can take its toll on the dog. The first day of the hunt has the potential to be quite warm or quite cold, depending on the area, and your dog should be prepared to work in that climate. It is not ideal to leave the dog outside all summer either, but consistent exposure to the outdoors will help to prepare him for hunting season.

Worse yet, the sudden exertion on the part of a dog that has been allowed to be lazy for 9 months can cause debilitating injuries. Muscles, tendons, and ligaments can be damaged if they are suddenly overused. Hunting dogs have such a desire and passion for the sport that they will actually hurt themselves in their enthusiasm. This can lead to a disappointing hunting season with your best hunting buddy out of commission.

An unfit, unprepared hunting dog reflects poorly on his owner. It is as if you have “put away” the dog during the off-season, much like you put away your orange vest. Spend a night or two each week during the off-season to exercise and condition your dog for the future hunt. Increase this time as the hunt approaches, adding drills, swimming, roading, and retrieving.

There are a few dogs out there that listen well enough while hunting that a e collar or shock collar are not necessary but for the majority of serious hunting dog owners sooner or later you are going to need to think about a e-collar.  When it comes to E-Collars there are almost as many choices as guns and shells.  Professional dog breeder Kelly Olson wrote a great article about e-collars and talks about a few different collars she really likes and why.  If you're in the market for a new collar check out Kelly's article:   E-Collars for Gun Dogs

I have a frined from India who is a excellent web programer but has a real passion for writing. For weeks he has been bugging me to try out his article writing services. The price was write and I am actively looking for good writers for our site (If your a freelance writter and looking for work writing about pheasant hunting give me a call 608-758-4841) so I agreed to have him write me a article. Since we just lanuched a new section of our site on gundog breeders the topic I chose was How to choose a dog breeder. I'm quite sure my friend has never hunted before and probally doesn't own a dog so take this article with a grain of salt. He did the best he can. For the most part I totally disagree with his recomendations but it but it sure an intresting perspective from a non hunter-

Choosing a Gun Dog Breeder

Usually, dogs get startled by hearing loud noises and when it comes to taking dogs out for hunting, people really need to choose their dogs appropriately. There are many breeds that have a comparatively soother temperament and they do not get anxious easily after hearing strident noises. In fact, every dog is different even if within the same breed, but if people wish to choose the most excellent gun dog, then they must opt for a reputed dog breeder.

Choosing Gun Dog Breeder

A gun dog breeder should be well knowledgeable about different kinds of dogs that are bred for various purposes. For instance, some dogs are specifically bred to point at prey and guide the hunter for shooting at the apt position, while some dogs are bred to retrieve the prey that has been shot dead and bring it back to the owner. Furthermore, there are some dogs that are bred for security reasons, while some are bred for tracking down animals by using their power of smell.

The dog breeder should know it very well that which specific breed responds calmly or agitatedly while gunfire is made. Also, he should be able to draw attention to the strengths and weaknesses of all the breeds and if the gun breeder that people are choosing does not know anything in this respect, then he should not be appointed for the purpose. From Pointer to Bloodhounds, gun dog breeder should be well versed of different kinds of breeds so as to suggest best dogs to the people. In addition to this, the breeder should ensure that the puppy should react bravely on gunfire and for this purpose; he should fire a starter pistol few yards away from the kennel. This test can immediately tell the owner whether the puppy he wishes to adopt is coward or brave.

Searching Websites

These days, there are numerous websites presented on the internet from where people can choose the best gun dog breeders that have a calm temperament. These websites make it easy for the dog lovers to choose a dog that can become a good companion while hunting. Most websites also make available the information about the different breeds and their pricing which facilitates people to decide on for the best dog that can accompany them. In addition to this, while surfing websites; people can come through some of the reputed breeders in the market that provide high quality breeds. So, feel free to surf the websites and opt for the best gun dog breeder.

So what's the take away for this article- NEVER HIRE A INDIAN NON HUNTER TO WRITE ABOUT DOG BREEDING.

It did make me think about dog temperments however. Do you think certin dogs are better tempered then others? Do you think temperment is related to gun shyness in dogs? Here is what I think. Each dog has a different temperment and gun shyness is more a result of how the dog was introduced to hunting then the dog temperment. For a really good article on choosing a puppy check out: How To Choose A Puppy By Pro Dog Trainer and Breeder Ed Hall