Gundog Breeds

Breed Specialists and Accredited Breeders- Add Your Kennel Details for Just £5 pa

Gundogs can be readily divided into four principal sub-groups - the Setters, Retrievers, Spaniels, and Hunt Point Retrievers; in addition there are the Duck dogs and the English Pointer. They are all intelligent working dogs and require stimulus and ample exercise.

 Dogs who are bred for the field rather than the showbench will demonstrate different characteristics as well as physical appearance. For example, the working Cocker Spaniel is of more muscular build and more independent of spirit than the showdog. Unless you have the time to fulfill a working dog's requirements in terms of exercise and mental stimulus a show-type dog is more appropriate as a housepet.

Retrievers & Pointer

Best-known amongst the Retrievers must be the Golden and the Labrador; the Golden is an extremely popular family pet, as is the Labrador, who is either black, yellow or chocolate in colour; the latter has a longer puppyhood than most and needs to expend his youthful energy constructively. The Flat Coated Retriever, either black or chocolate in colour, retains his puppy-like approach to life longer that most and does require company and purpose in his days. The black or liver Curly Coated Retriever is a strong active outdoor dog.

The English Pointer has a unique role in locating game.

Duck Dogs

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever, in shades of brown, is an active strong dog used for duck retrieval on the water; the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, red or red with white, and the red and white Kooikerhondje are both energetic dogs who decoy ducks on the water.

Hunt Point Retrievers

These dogs originated in Europe as multi-purpose gundogs and started appearing in the UK in the middle of the last century. Perhaps the most popular is the German Shorthaired Pointer, either liver or black with or without white; a more recent introduction is the Wire-Haired variety. The Hungarian Viszla also appears in smooth and Wire-Haired varieties, in the single rich chestnut colour. The Weimaraner is a grey dog with unusual amber or blue-grey eyes. The Bracco Italiano, whose coat is in reddish shades, with or without roaning and the Italian Spinone, white with reddish patches or roan, are two HPR breeds with a strong appearance of hounds. The tall, heavily feathered black and white Large Munsterlander is another successful introduction. 

Spaniels

The Spaniels are an extremely diverse group, ranging from the American Cocker, purely a show dog, who appears in a wide range of colours, to the Field who is a real country dog bred and built for a day's work; their colouring is black, liver or roan. The well-known Cocker is very much a family dog and delights in company; the colouring is solids, parti-colours and roans. The Clumber, white with orange or lemon markings, is the heaviest of the spaniels at up to 36kg, and the liver Sussex is another heavily built dog; both are kind natured and make good family pets.

The two Springers, the English and Welsh are quite distinct; the English, liver or black, and white is of heavier build and coat than the red and white Welsh. The Irish Water Spaniel with his curly liver coat is a real working dog. 

Setters

The setters have their origins in England, Scotland and Ireland: the English has a base colour of white, flecked with coloured spots; the Irish is a deep red, the Irish Red & White principally white with solid red patches, and the Gordon is a rich black and tan. They are all active, energetic breeds, particularly as youngsters and need plenty of time and patience before they develop into the elegant and biddable adults that they will become.