Looking for brittany....questions about training?

[Mybeagles]

Our family is looking to purchase a L/W, clear, female brittany pup. We live in the Ft Knox, KY area.....anyone with breeder reccomendations please PM me.

Training questions:

I have owned and trained beagles for 30 years that we use for hunting and field trialing. My 4 kids (8-14) are having fun with that, but want a dog with more trainability.....beagles just dont do tricks!

I am currently stationed in Afghanistan, and will be coming home for mid-tour leave in March. My wife agreed it would be nice for the kids if we purchased the brittany pup we have been talking about. The kids are very good with dogs, but have never had a bird dog. They want to teach one to sit, stay, roll over, heel, fetch, etc.

My question is, I know with beagles there is a real learning curve from 6-12 months that if you dont get them running rabbits the window of opportunity closes. How is it with brittany's? When does it become critical to get the basic hunting commands, when do they need to be put on birds, etc? We have a grassy field behind our house that has been home to a couple quail nests. What would you encourage the kids to do with her or not do with her?

Im certain it will get socialized, excercised, and exposed to every outdoor encounter imaginable. I won't finish my deployment until December so if we get a puppy in March it will be 10+ months old when I get back.

Any thought or input appreciated......

Mybeagles

[Dakotazeb]

First, thank you for your service to our country and best wishes on your safe return.

I hve two Brittanys and could recommend a couple of good breeders for you. However, I really think it would be best if you wait until December when you are back to get a pup. Those first 10 months are very formidable months in a dogs life and if you are going to be the main person in your dogs life I think both you and the dog would be better off if you wait.

[kninebirddog]

I like to guide my pup into being a bird dog from the start.
and as cute as teaching tricks is ..I would seriously wait on that until after the bird work training is done and I agree I would wait till you are back before getting a pup. I have a dog in right now where the owner brought an 18 month old dog who has had nothing but family stuff done with it and this dog has little desire for birds and just wants to sit down but loves to chase lizards we have only had this dog for a few days but I am hoping as he gets out more he hopefully will come around.

If you want to get something for the kids to play teach pet tricks to..You might consider looking into Brittany rescue there is two NBRAN and American Brittany Rescue both are filled with Brittanys who have been evaluated and need a good home.
then when you make it home SAFELY Then get yourself that awesome little bird dog and search for that breeder who is doing quality breeding

Good Luck and Ditto with Thank you for your service

[Mybeagles]

It sounds like they are very similar to beagles then.......Often guys will ask me to help them get their beagle started when its 12-18 months old and its more work than its worth. For beagles, from 4-12 months they seem to gain their focus and priority in life.

My kids loose interest in my beagles after 6 months old because all they do is hit the brush running, without a care in the world to what the kids are doing.

Even though I can't stand to feed a dog that doesn't do what it was bred for......(brittany, point birds), I was considering letting them have a dog they just play with everyday. They don't want it to take off into the field looking for a bird, they want it to do what they are doing. In that respect, maybe Im answering my own question........

I wanted to kill 2 birds with 1 stone and if I want to do that I better wait......if not, I guess it doesn't matter.

Thanks for the feed back!
Mybeagles

[kninebirddog]

Kinda why I suggested Brittany Rescue ...There are quite a few how land there who would love to be that pet and do not have super high drive of the hunt and could do super doing pet tricks and agility and cute stuff like that.
If you get a well bred britt Yes you could very well end up in the same boat with the kids loosing interest in the dog because it rather hunt

Good luck

[abrigg]

Not sure if you got the Britt pup yet or not, but if you are still interested and had decided to wait, I am having a litter very soon that cannot be registered. They are pure blooded French but the female is a rescue and I do not have access to any of the info to get her registered. I have had great experience with taking my dogs out at just about any age, they are very trainable and love to hunt. I find the females are a little more obstinate than the males, but imagine that.... We had not planned on breeding her at all, but I came down with double pneumonia at the time she came into heat and things got a bit out of control. Will probably give the litter away, but they will be nice pups.