The best time to buy a pup is right after the first of the year. You can train pup on the basic obedience commands indoors before taking pup to the field and pond for hunt training. A dog that will come to you immediately on call, and loves you, is much easier to teach in the great outdoors. Remember, being outside presents a whole new world to pup. You and pup’s first outdoor experience should be a happy one. Take him on short a short walk. Play with him. Maybe do a few short retrieves. Make the outside a happy place for pup.

First, select a breed that will fit with your family’s lifestyle. If your choice of dog is going to be in the house, don’t buy a long-haired dog. They shed, and Mama is not going to be happy—and our first duty in life is to keep her happy. Some breeds of dogs are mean. You do not want a mean family dog.

The game you intend to hunt is another consideration. Pheasant and waterfowl are the main attraction in the Midwest. Brits, springers and German shorthair pointers are terrific on pheasants. I always thought a frigid Iowa dawn in a duck blind and icy water retrieves was too much for the thin-skinned dogs.

I settled on labs because they are great with kids and excellent hunters. Brush them regularly and they won’t shed much in the house. My lab hunts about 25 to 30 yards ahead of me and does a decent job of quartering. She’s not as efficient as a good springer spaniel, but adequate. Waterfowl hunting is a whole different story.

I worked my yellow lab Kate all summer and fall on both water and land retrieves. She did super! The first time we went duck hunting was a shocker. Some mallards came in and I knocked two down. I yelled “Kate!” and pointed towards the dead birds. Kate put one toe in the cold water, looked at me and went back in the blind. I considered selling her, but my family, who was now in love with Kate, vetoed the idea. I now make my water retrieves with a heavy casting outfit and a 1/2-ounce Jitterbug lure!

The best way to get a good bird dog is to have a bird hunter/hunt trial competitor give you an already trained dog. That happens about as often as the Chicago Cubs win the World Series. So, let’s get into the real world. Here is what not to do.

Don’t buy a dog from a stranger. Never! If a dog salesman tells you things about his line of dogs that is too good to be true, it likely is. Never buy a mail-order pup unless the kennel has a sterling reputation. If a breeder has a litter for sale and tells you he will send you the registration papers as soon as he gets them—thank him and leave with your money in your pocket.

If you know for a fact that the pup’s parents are good hunters, that might be a place to buy. (You can buy an unregistered dog for about half the price of a registered one.) Telephone the litter owner and make an appointment to see the pups. You want a pup around eight weeks old. When you get to his place, talk to the breeder, try to get a “feel” of what kind of person he or she is and then ask to see the pups.

When you see the litter, watch each pup. Don’t consider one that’s too aggressive or too shy. Watch their gait; you don’t want a cripple. Look for a pup with a shiny coat. Pick up one you like. Are the ear flaps healthy? Eyes clear?

Take your favorite pup away from the litter and cradle him in your arms. If he wiggles a little and settles down, you can figure he’s docile enough to train. Set the pup down and drop something that makes a loud noise, like a tin pan on concrete. Watch the pup. If he runs away, forget him. If he just looks around, that is a good sign. With the owner’s permission, feed pup a little snack. A healthy pup will gulp down food. Look the pup in the eyes. They should be healthy and bright. Sometimes, it’s almost uncanny, like a mental communication. You will feel the pup knows he is yours and you know he will be very soon. If you make the deal, demand a 72-hour return guarantee of all money back. Take the pup to your local vet and have him examined.

Another way to buy a dog is if you have a friend that is competing in UKC/NAHRA hunt tests. Your friend will know professional trainers. Professional trainers often have dogs that are reasonably skilled and have passed several levels of achievement on the way to Master Hunter. For some reason or another, some don’t have the moxie to make Master Hunter. The trainer will gladly sell such a dog and the animal would make a great companion for the field/waterfowl hunter. That is as super way to get a well-trained dog. It might be costly!

Nowadays, a decent bird dog is going to cost a nice chunk of money. You must be careful not to overspend. A prospective buyer is looking at several thousand dollars to get what he wants in a dog. Another way of looking at it is, if you end up with an untrainable dog, you have lost a summer’s work of training and a dogless fall. Remember, you can replenish money, but time lost is gone forever.

For more insight and tips on how to make the most of the time you spend hunting, check out the articles in every issue of MidWest Outdoors, available by subscribing on our website.