I've had labs most of my life and always found them easy to train, my GWP is now 17 months old and is just starting to calm down, his nose is incredible but that leads him to chase. I will continue to train him and see what happens. Look up Tollerholme working gundogs on fb he came from them.Used to have labs then GSP and now have GWP. All worked well and had their strengths. Labs easier to train in my opinion but wirey has been the most challenging but rewarding. My GSP was the most initiative and possibly multi purpose. Just my tuppence worth.
This made me lol….My border has a superb nose will track anything but…. He can’t really be trusted off a lead not to go to ground or go self employed for small critters. I think just about any working dog can follow a fresh track but if it’s any longer than that you need a proper dog for the job.
This made me lol….![]()
That's all you need. Get the brakes fitted, really good recall, some idea of working using dummies and the rest it will learn when you are out and about. After their first lick of blood from a carcass and they know what they are looking for.Have a lab pup with a view to him being my deer dog. Anyone got any links to decent books etc as never trained a dog to do this! Plenty for picking up and beating.
About Deer dogs.
Like @levigsp said, it depends on country what we think of, when saying "good deer dog".
Here in Denmark, we use a lot of German pointers, but also see labs and spaniels, the ones trained as deer dogs do not get to go on birds.
A deer dog here is usually called after the shot, so it does not accompany the stalker, thats a big difference to UK.
Here the perfect deer dog, is the one who will find any wounded ainimal and keep it on the spot to the shooter can come and end the matter.
The perfect way to keep the wounded animal on the spot is to kill it when small, like a roe or fox, and without touching it when the animal is to big like a fallow buck.
Bavaian and Hanover hounds are considerd top, but they are only for very experienced and dedicated dog handleres.
They are really stubberen and get easily offended, once you offend them, they will not work for you anymore.
Link to movie where a deer dog holds a wounded fallow buck on the spot to the shooter finish it off.
That shooter in the movie is a registered Deer tracker, and can move over any land, without permission from land owner, but has to inform after the tracking and, surrender the animal to the landowner.
Here in Denmark anyone can call a registered deer tracker free of charge 24 hours a day, and most calls are for animals wounded in traffic.
When a private hunter calls for help to animal he/she wounded whit shots, the hunter only have to pay for petrol to the deer tracker.
Those trackers and the dogs do it for free out of interest. Our local deer tracker has tracked and found 4000+ wounded animals over 25 years, he now use a Bavarian and they are a great team.
GWP x Lab I think is the Pennine Pointer. The cross originated with the Pennine grouse moor keepers of Northumberland and Durham over thirty years ago. Still a way off being recognised by the kennel club lolGWP x Lab otherwise known as Perthshire pointer. Best dog I've had - very quiet stalking, follows up well, sits under a high seat. Also points deer and game and retrieves gamebirds. Only trouble is getting hold of a good one. My lab is also good deer dog though as he is a greedy bugger. He see's a shot deer as a meal ticket so wants to get there as quick as possible!
About Deer dogs.
Like @levigsp said, it depends on country what we think of, when saying "good deer dog".
Here in Denmark, we use a lot of German pointers, but also see labs and spaniels, the ones trained as deer dogs do not get to go on birds.
A deer dog here is usually called after the shot, so it does not accompany the stalker, thats a big difference to UK.
Here the perfect deer dog, is the one who will find any wounded ainimal and keep it on the spot to the shooter can come and end the matter.
The perfect way to keep the wounded animal on the spot is to kill it when small, like a roe or fox, and without touching it when the animal is to big like a fallow buck.
Bavaian and Hanover hounds are considerd top, but they are only for very experienced and dedicated dog handleres.
They are really stubberen and get easily offended, once you offend them, they will not work for you anymore.
Link to movie where a deer dog holds a wounded fallow buck on the spot to the shooter finish it off.
That shooter in the movie is a registered Deer tracker, and can move over any land, without permission from land owner, but has to inform after the tracking and, surrender the animal to the landowner.
Here in Denmark anyone can call a registered deer tracker free of charge 24 hours a day, and most calls are for animals wounded in traffic.
When a private hunter calls for help to animal he/she wounded whit shots, the hunter only have to pay for petrol to the deer tracker.
Those trackers and the dogs do it for free out of interest. Our local deer tracker has tracked and found 4000+ wounded animals over 25 years, he now use a Bavarian and they are a great team.
Fantastic work by the tracking team and just shows what a good cold scent dog can do.Sunday night my neighbor shot a red deer that didn't fall in the shot. It rained all night between Sunday and Monday.
Monday morning at 09:00, our local deer dog team came and started the search.
The Hanoverian bloodhound took 1.5 hours to follow the trail 1500 meters over a small river trough wetlands/swamps to where the dead stag lay in some tight bushes.
The deer was on another man's land, but the landowner gave permission for the hunter to take his deer.
14 point stag 160kg, so medium size danish stag.
This time of year the meat is not the best so a lot of sausages will come out of such a one.
Great respect from my side for the fantastic dog work from our local tracking team.
Thats what we call a good deer dog here, where dogs do not traditional accompany the stalker during hunting.
However I dont know if a dog like that is of any use for UK traditions where the dog accompany the stalker during stalking, as those dogs are specificly breed to come after the shot.
Mine would point as well.My border has a superb nose will track anything but…. He can’t really be trusted off a lead not to go to ground or go self employed for small critters. I think just about any working dog can follow a fresh track but if it’s any longer than that you need a proper dog for the job.
He will do that especially when there above him. Struggles in any cover over a foot high for obvious reasons but his nose is genuinely fantasticMine would point as well.
4!!!!GWP you'll never look back....after the first 2 years!!!