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Calm dogs

Iglow

Iglow

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Does anybody have a calm natured retriever of any breed? By calm I mean from puppy stage on. I absolutely despise nutty hyper dogs of any breed be it duck dogs, bird dogs, squirrel dogs or pets. I won't keep one like that and have had 2 failures in the last view years trying to get a serviceable duck dog.
 
I have a puppy from Sporting Life Kennels down in Oxford MS. Marty breeds his dogs to be calm. Cowboy has been the best puppy we have ever had. No accidents in the house and I brought him home at 8 weeks. Does he get excited when I come home or when I let him out of his kennel in the morning yes but it is only for a few minutes then he is on his bed with a chew toy.



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I have a miniature black lab/golden retriever that is fairly calm. Sure, she gets the zoomies now and then, but most of the time she lays on the couch and watches TV. But she is not a hunting dog, she's gun shy and don't like loud noises. And she's 9 now, but she's been that way all her life.
 
Ive got guys I duck hunt with that bring their dogs. More times than not their hyper dogs screw up working birds. Or they send them out to get a stone dead duck 3 minutes after shooting time when more birds are trying to come in. Then go out there with them trying to manage the dog for the next 10 minutes. That is very aggravating to me.
 
"Hyper" dogs are not the problem, it's lack of training/control is the problem. I see a lot of people that are happy that the dog picks up a duck, and that's the bar for them. I have "hyper" dogs, but you won't see it when we hunt. A lot of training goes into channeling the dogs drive, too much to type out here. One quick thing I do at hunting time is we do obedience drills on the way to the blind. This sets the dog up to show you are in control.
 
I've got a chocolate lab and the only hyper she has is a food bowl and when you pull a gun out of the safe. Other than that she is just as chill or focused as you could ask for in a situation
 
TnKen said:
"Hyper" dogs are not the problem, it's lack of training/control is the problem. I see a lot of people that are happy that the dog picks up a duck, and that's the bar for them. I have "hyper" dogs, but you won't see it when we hunt. A lot of training goes into channeling the dogs drive, too much to type out here. One quick thing I do at hunting time is we do obedience drills on the way to the blind. This sets the dog up to show you are in control.
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Yep! Came to say just this. A bored dog that isn't working is a restless dog.
 
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Iglow said:
Does anybody have a calm natured retriever of any breed? By calm I mean from puppy stage on. I absolutely despise nutty hyper dogs of any breed be it duck dogs, bird dogs, squirrel dogs or pets. I won't keep one like that and have had 2 failures in the last view years trying to get a serviceable duck dog.
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My Boykin was picked from his litter because he was the quietest one of the group. I'm sure any working dog will have outliers, whether they're way too wound up or sluggish as pudding. But this dog is by far the greatest pup I've ever had. I know people will say Boykins are wild, but this one is absolutely not.

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I also hunted with his sire the year before we got him. That dog sat on the mat quietly and peacefully the entire morning we hunted. That's what made me want to get one from their litter the following spring. I'll never not have a Boykin because of this line.

Beware. Boykin people are weird. If Orvis could put their brand on any animal, it would be a Boykin. I'm working on breaking that mold. And the dude I got Bosco from is the same way. He warned me then about the weird little subculture of Boykin people
 
My dog has a lot of drive. I take him on a short walk the morning of to get some of that piss and vinegar out of him. He is steady as long as he can see the birds work and fall from his box fine.
 
TAFKAP said:
I also hunted with his sire the year before we got him. That dog sat on the mat quietly and peacefully the entire morning we hunted. That's what made me want to get one from their litter the following spring. I'll never not have a Boykin because of this line.

Beware. Boykin people are weird. If Orvis could put their brand on any animal, it would be a Boykin. I'm working on breaking that mold. And the dude I got Bosco from is the same way. He warned me then about the weird little subculture of Boykin people
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Truth! I might slightly resemble this comment
 
TnKen said:
"Hyper" dogs are not the problem, it's lack of training/control is the problem. I see a lot of people that are happy that the dog picks up a duck, and that's the bar for them. I have "hyper" dogs, but you won't see it when we hunt. A lot of training goes into channeling the dogs drive, too much to type out here. One quick thing I do at hunting time is we do obedience drills on the way to the blind. This sets the dog up to show you are in control.
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Agree agree agree. Been given some very good dogs over the years that couldn't be controlled by their previous owners. It's not a part time job.
 
TAFKAP said:
My Boykin was picked from his litter because he was the quietest one of the group. I'm sure any working dog will have outliers, whether they're way too wound up or sluggish as pudding. But this dog is by far the greatest pup I've ever had. I know people will say Boykins are wild, but this one is absolutely not.

369300325_10100300007864195_7416078681361713538_n.jpg
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I want a Boykin.
 
Iglow said:
Does anybody have a calm natured retriever of any breed? By calm I mean from puppy stage on. I absolutely despise nutty hyper dogs of any breed be it duck dogs, bird dogs, squirrel dogs or pets. I won't keep one like that and have had 2 failures in the last view years trying to get a serviceable duck dog.
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I think you can find what you're looking for in 'most' retrieving breeds, but it'll come down to the lines and carefully selecting the breeder.. In general, I bet you're more likely to find a lab breeder who keeps the retrieve and biddible'ness in their lines with overall calmness vs another breed though..

I would still look for working line/field bred vs show line though if you want a hunting dog, just do your homework. Good luck!
 
I have 2 chocolate labs that have never been what i would consider hyper/nutty because they are trained. One is old now and the other 3. But both have drive and the aim to please you need to learn how to use that and train that. I mean I puppy is a puppy. What you are asking for is not out there without work and then continued work after that. I would want a lethargic dog for a working dog that just me. Learn how to train them or get someone do to it for you. It's honestly not hard just takes time.

My old dog came from a breeder on the alabama side of south Pittsburg. I can't remember the name of them its been 9.5 years ago. And my other lab was 50 dollars off of Facebook. My 50 dollar lab is a better working dog by a lot. But both a good imo.

The 2 dogs I've ever been around one was a free chocolate lab. And the other he had thousands in a black lab. But both were unreal hunters/retrievers.
 
There is nothing better than a good dog on a duck hunt. There is absolutely NOTHING worse than a bad dog. Everybody that owns a retriever of any kind wants to bring the dog on duck hunts knowing it isn't trained. I don't think it matters how "hyper" a dog is, if it is trained properly, but I certainly see your point.
 
As mentioned...it not a dog issue. It's a handler/training issue.
I want my dog to have 2 gears. Ho-hum when not hunting or training and balls to the wall when we are hunting or training. You can take it out of them but can't put it in them. Give me a mildly hyper dog with some sense and I'm happy.
 
TAFKAP said:
I also hunted with his sire the year before we got him. That dog sat on the mat quietly and peacefully the entire morning we hunted. That's what made me want to get one from their litter the following spring. I'll never not have a Boykin because of this line.

Beware. Boykin people are weird. If Orvis could put their brand on any animal, it would be a Boykin. I'm working on breaking that mold. And the dude I got Bosco from is the same way. He warned me then about the weird little subculture of Boykin people
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See a LOT of them here on the beach.

Miss my GRIFF ( Wirehaired Pointing Griffon) everyday. A laid back dog until you wanted her to work. Super dog indoors and easy to train. She never required an e-collar . A stern voice and she about fell apart trying to get your approval again. BTW a better nose than my GSP and she absolutely loved the water.
 
TAFKAP said:
I also hunted with his sire the year before we got him. That dog sat on the mat quietly and peacefully the entire morning we hunted. That's what made me want to get one from their litter the following spring. I'll never not have a Boykin because of this line.

Beware. Boykin people are weird. If Orvis could put their brand on any animal, it would be a Boykin. I'm working on breaking that mold. And the dude I got Bosco from is the same way. He warned me then about the weird little subculture of Boykin people
Click to expand...
I've got two Boykins. One is the best there ever was and 99.9% sure best I'll ever have. She's 10-1/2. Other one is her daughter and proof that God had a sense of humor by letting me get the only "dud" out of three litters. You are somewhat correct about the orvis models. But give it another 5-7 years and the English cocker will be the new Boykin.
 

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