I was asked recently about my opinion on a dog’s eye colour. The inquirer felt if a Labrador had light-coloured eyes, it was more prone to be skittish and wild. It was something I had never even considered. I have always preferred a Labrador with darker pigment around their eyes…
Gundog breeds
Is the Nova Scotia duck-tolling retriever a good gundog?
They’re intelligent, they hunt well and they make superb retrievers. So why aren’t tollers more in demand as working gundogs
13 reasons why cocker spaniels and springer spaniels are different
Both springer and cocker spaniels are capable of doing a useful day’s work out in the field. Both are biddable. However, they do have different characteristics. Differences between cocker and springer spaniels Springers have a size advantage over cocker spaniels Cocker spaniels have a better engine and more staying power…
The Irish water spaniel
The joker in the spaniel pack. No, not my words, but those of an Irish water spaniel owner and enthusiast, talking about the foibles and idiosyncrasies of his favourite breed. The Irish water spaniel, he assured me, could lay claim to being the only HPR native to these islands. He…
How did traditional gundogs fare in Kennel Club registrations in 2018?
Has the dog-buying British public gone barking mad? Last year, as was widely predicted, the French bulldog became Britain’s most popular pedigree breed, ousting the Labrador from the top spot it has held for many years. According to the Kennel Club 36,785 French bulldogs were registered in 2018, compared with…
Would a silver Labrador be right for you?
What exactly is the right colour? The Kennel Club’s breed standard states that “any shade of gold or cream” is acceptable for golden retrievers, while the American KC requires “rich, lustrous gold of various shades”. Colour is a contentious issue in many breeds. However, when it comes to controversial coat…
What makes the perfect Labrador?
If you wanted to start an argument at a game fair, you couldn’t go far wrong with initiating a discussion about what the perfect Labrador should look like. Even the most casual countryside observer will be aware that there is huge variety in the breed. As it is the most…
The Hungarian wirehaired vizsla – charming and hardworking
Hungarian wirehaired vizsla: The rise in popularity of the Hungarian wirehaired vizsla (HWV) is no accident.
Will the Welsh springer spaniel survive?
A chance encounter with a Welsh springer spaniel (WSS) on a shoot earlier this month reminded me what a handsome breed this is and what a shame it is that we do not see more out working. Welsh springer spaniel – a curious breed It is the most numerous of…
All-round gundogs – do they exist?
Most of my friends have more than one dog, they may have a spaniel or two for beating, a retriever for shooting at a peg or picking-up and a few of them even have a “terrorist” (terrier) to keep the rodent population in check. But, just imagine that you could…
Secrets of the Hungarian wirehaired vizsla success
The Hungarian wirehaired vizsla (HWV) is a relatively new breed, created a century ago in Hungary by crossing smooth-haired vizslas with other pointer breeds — among them the German wirehaired pointer and the pudelpointer — to produce the dog we know today. Tough, all-purpose hunting dog The breed’s development was…
A day’s shooting with Clumber spaniels for the first time
I love shooting over dogs, so when my friend Nathan Hawkins posted an open invitation to shoot over a breed I had never heard of — the Clumber spaniel — I jumped at the chance. Charming Clumber spaniels This is a breed that has been apparently superseded by springers and…
Which is the best of the working spaniel breeds?
Working spaniel: I want to buy a working spaniel and don't know which to choose.
We took a cavalier King Charles spaniel to a game fair. What happened next?
Some years ago we had a friend’s cavalier staying with us in July, so she accompanied us, with our springers, to the Game Fair. The fact that the fair was at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire and she was a Blenheim cavalier seemed appropriate (red and white cavaliers are known as…
Ratting with a Sealyham Terrier
The phone rang, “Hello Nick, it’s Harry Parsons, what you doing next Tuesday?” A quick check of the diary and it looked all clear. “Fancy coming out for a day’s ratting?” As much as I hate rats, especially their scaly tails, I do enjoy a day’s ratting with the Working…
Should I choose a spaniel or a Labrador?
I go rabbit and pigeon shooting, and now intend to get a gundog. I am not sure which breed to go for. A friend says Labradors are born half-trained and spaniels die half-trained! I ideally want a dog to flush game and to retrieve it. Any advice, please?
Remembering an extraordinary Clumber spaniel
Losing a dog always hurts. When I wrote about the death of my springer, Fleur, last year at the age of 15, it clearly struck a chord with readers, as several wrote to me. One of them was Alan Taylor, whom I’d met 10 years ago. Alan is one of…
The German shorthaired pointer
The very first time I saw a German shorthaired pointer (GSP) working was about 25 years ago. I had been invited to photograph an HPR (hunt, point, retrieve) spring pointing test on the Waddesdon Manor Estate in Buckinghamshire, and the first dog to run was a white and liver-ticked dog called Swifthouse Basil. I was truly impressed by…
The lurcher – a designer cross-breed dog
A gamekeeper once said to me that a lurcher was “any calibre of gun you require”. The lean, light “silent assassin” is a most versatile field dog and probably the oldest known designer cross-breed. There are variations to suit each type of land and each intended task, but all of…