Bird Dogs & Training  |  04/18/2023

Old English: The Case for the Traditional


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What’s old deserves to be new again

By Chad Love

Above my desk hangs an old print. I have no idea as to its actual age, but the paper exhibits the dull, yellowed patina of many years now passed, and the scene depicted upon its surface is faded and washed out.

Neither the art itself nor the subject matter it depicts is new, crisp, vibrant or trendy. But it represents something dear to me, and something which I think more upland hunters should be holding dear to them, too — not only for its historical significance, but the fact that it represents what I believe are the two best canine tools for pure upland bird hunting ever produced.

And what are these paragons of pointing breeds of which I wax so loquaciously? What scene is depicted on my wall? It is a vintage scene of two dogs in tandem: the OG bird dog breeds that came before all others, and in my mind — and the minds of many others — still stand head and shoulders above the pack when it comes to being just flat-out, balls-to-the-wall bird-finding superstars: The English setter, and the pointer (no “English” please, just “pointer”).

Now, I am not here to disparage any other breed. What I am here to do is what all sporting dog owners do: First, decry with great indignation the sweeping generalizations that are made about my breed of choice. Second, immediately start making equally sweeping generalizations about every other dog breed out there. Unless of course you’re into dogs that grow beards, in which case let’s face the ugly truth: All the generalizations are true...

I kid! I kid! (Please send all hate mail to Chief Marketing Officer Bob St.Pierre). In truth, there are no wrong choices. Your choice of dog is yours alone, and there are a host of variables, needs and circumstances unique to each of us that go into that decision.

But there are better choices. And what I’m saying is that all other things being equal, you will not find a pointing breed that outperforms a setter or pointer in the singular task of finding and pointing birds. And while you may find their equal as pets and household companions, you won’t find their better in that regard, either.

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While you may find their equal as pets and household companions, you won’t find their better in that regard, either.

The modern pointer and English setter are the ultimate bird-finding canine athletes. That’s what they’ve been bred to do for hundreds of years. Nothing else. No fur, no blood tracking, no detours to track and kill racoons, opossums, coyotes, rabbits or the occasional housecat. Having a “great prey drive” is meaningless if that prey drive includes not just birds, but literally any multi-cellular lifeform.

When you own a pointer or setter there are no worries of unprovoked ancillary bloodshed. In the field there is no distraction from the singularity of the task. Pointers and setters are superlative in the purpose for which they were bred, and they are pure poetry in motion either gliding across the prairie or floating through the trees. All they do is eat up ground, find birds, and look damn good doing it.

But being a great bird dog is not enough: They must be good companions too. And this is where setters — but especially pointers — have been the victim of some of the most ridiculous BS spouted by social media “experts” who may have seen a pointer, once, in their lives and decided to repeat the same tired garbage they heard from the last no-nothing in the vast echo chamber of smug ignorance.

The fact is, pointers and setters are as personable, goofy, outgoing and loving as any other dog breed, and more so than many of the breeds that are currently trending with the Instagram Cool Kids crowd. I’ve got two sleeping pointers at my feet as I type this to prove it.

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The fact is, pointers and setters are as personable, goofy, outgoing and loving as any other dog breed.

I’ve also heard the arguments about setters and pointers, but especially pointers — and especially dogs with field trial lineage, as many pointers and setters do — as being “too much dog” for the average person.

I simply don’t know what the hell that’s supposed to mean. You mean they find birds too well? They like to hunt too much? It’s nonsense and gibberish spouted by people who have zero experience with the breeds. Personally, I’ll take “too much dog” over too little dog any day of the week.

Here’s another one you hear ad nauseum from the social media experts, especially about pointers: “Field trials have nothing to do with hunting, and those field trial dogs don’t have any personality and can’t find birds in the real world. They’re just bred to run.”

An entire feature story could be written about the inanity of that statement. I don’t have the word count to do it here, but suffice it to say if you hear that come from the mouth of someone you’re getting advice from, go find better advice. Quickly.

There are any number of excellent reasons why for decades — centuries, even — when you said “bird dog” in America what you meant was a setter or a pointer. In recent years, however, setters, and especially pointers, have been supplanted in popularity by other breeds. There are a variety of reasons — some legitimate, some spurious — for this trend, with the emphasis on “trend.”

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Personally, I’ll take “too much dog” over too little dog any day of the week.

You see, bird hunting is a world of trends. What we gravitate toward as individuals simply tends to reflect the larger societal patterns of groupthink. The viral herd thunders ever-forward toward the next Big Thing: The hottest new vest, the coolest new gun, the hip new location or bird to hunt, but especially the super-cool, trendy dog breed to own.

And in recent years there’s no denying that pointers and setters have taken a back seat on the trendiness bus. But — and this is where you can all get your tomatoes ready to throw at me — after hunting over, watching in the field, or just being around many of these wunderkind breeds, I am utterly gobsmacked as to why.

The fact is — and I’ll argue this all day long — is that you are far more likely to get a great-performing bird dog out of a setter or a pointer than you are from some obscure breed that was originally used to hunt, I don’t know, Icelandic hoary hens, or was originally bred to sniff out truffles, or fight Roman gladiators, or throttle European badgers, or serve as the King of Prussia’s personal canine bodyguards, but is now being touted as the be-all, end-all by people who are trying desperately to adapt these dogs to the American uplands.

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There are any number of excellent reasons why for decades — centuries, even — when you said “bird dog” in America what you meant was a setter or a pointer.

If you want a different breed of dog, something unique, hey, I totally get it. We all want to be different and cool. So roll the dice and go get yourself a crinkle-coated Spaghettio Barfolio or a Deutschlandic Wire-Bearded Schnutzen Hound or a Hungarian Heiniewhiner and see how that works out for you.

Or if you — like many folks — have limited space and time and absolutely need a dual-purpose dog that will hunt both waterfowl and upland birds, (although not, I would argue, nearly as well as a breed specifically bred for those disparate tasks) then by all means look elsewhere. Pointers and setters aren’t your dogs.

But — and I cannot state this more unequivocally — IF you are looking for a pointing dog — and only a pointing dog — to hunt upland birds in America, and IF you want the best chance of getting a dog that will find you those birds regardless of where or what or how you hunt, and IF you want a dog that will also make a fantastic family companion, dispense with the “It” Dog of the Moment and instead go find yourself a pointer or an English setter.

You won’t be the coolest kid on Instagram, and you sure won’t be winning any “ugliest dog” or “worst style” contests, but I bet you can live with that...


Chad Love is editor at Quail Forever. When it comes to bird dogs in the field and at his feet, he lives what he preaches.

 

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