Bird dog

A bird dog is a type of gun dog or hunting dog used to hunt or retrieve birds or other small game animals. by tracking their scent in the air. Bird dog breeds are receptive to being trained to retrieve hunted birds.

In the Southern United States the term bird dog refers to dog breeds such as the pointer, English setter, Red setter, German shorthair pointer, Nova Scotia Duck-Tolling Retriever, Brittany, and other pointing breeds.

In 1953, William F. Brown, editor of The American Field, compiled the necessary rules and regulations governing elections of the field trial dogs and their owners and trainers to a proposed Field Trial Hall of Fame.

Pre-season training is not as hard as it may seem. As an owner of a bird dog, Tony J. Peterson would recommend more than just walking or running the dog, but also taking the bird dog through water because an owner's pace of walking or running is generally slower than the pace of a dog. Doing this for a week or two is not enough conditioning; in fact he also would advise at least a month prior to season for exercise and conditioning. Just as humans cannot win a race without practice and exercise, dogs also cannot retrieve and stay on task without proper training and conditioning.

Some dog breeds have a more natural feel for the sport and are not hard to find. The most common bird dog is known as the flusher, use their senses such as eyes and nose to hunt down the upland birds. They’re also known to be great water animals. Another breed that is popular is the Brittany Pointer. This breed has been known to stay close to the hunter yet have great speed for getting on wild game fast and efficiently. The pointer is known to be a strong breed with their thick coat. Another great bird dog is the Retriever; this dog is an all-around good bird dog, this dog will spring up birds from groves and hedges so that the hunter can shoot and the dog will retrieve. This is an option if the hunter wants to use their dog for more than just hunting. As many pointers are very good hunters, the German wirehaired pointer is a specifically nice dog to have because this breed will hunt anything. They do all of the characteristics of the retriever and flusher as well as many more. Then there is always the Golden Retriever whose sole desire is to satisfy its owner and retrieve until there is nothing left to fetch. Pointers, flushers and retrievers are the three most common bird dogs to have.

...
Wikipedia