Upland Hunting Dogs
Point and hold!
Pointing dogs are best for upland bird hunting. Bred and trained to find birds in the bush like pheasant, grouse, woodcock, quail, chukar, and really any upland bird of choice, pointing breeds will get on a game bird’s scent, keep it within shooting range, point and hold while the hunter gets a shot, and retrieve the kill.
Popular Pointer Hunting Dog Breeds
German Shorthaired Pointer
GSPs are synonymous with bird hunting. Not only do these high-energy breeds excel at pointing and flushing, but they are also excellent retrievers on land and in water! These gun dogs are sleek and agile with webbed feet to make them great swimmers as well. German Shorthairs have beautiful coats with black and white ticking, brown and red ticking, and solid colors which blend well with their environments as they move amongst the brush sniffing for birds.
Other great pointer breeds include German Wirehaired Pointers, English Pointers, and Pudelpointers.
Setters
There are a few different setter dog breeds that make great hunting partners. English Setters have a long and decorated history with bird hunting. The English Setter posing with British royalty with shotguns in front of their estate is a stereotypical 20th-century image. Other setters that bird hunters love are the Gordon Setter, Irish Setter (Red and White), and the Llewellin Setter.
While some setter breeds can be frustrating for new dog owners or new hunters, with the right dog training setters excel in versatility as a hunting dog breed.
American Brittany Spaniel
The Brittany Spaniel is a smaller bird dog but is eager to please their handler and is a hard worker! Also incredibly sweet at home as family dogs, Brittanys are great all-around, versatile field dogs.
Other spaniels that make the list of best pointer dogs include the
Picardy Spaniel
Springer Spaniels
Cocker Spaniels
Boykin Spaniels
American Water Spaniel
French Spaniel (Interestingly enough, the American Kennel Club (AKC) does not recognize the French Spaniel as its own breed but international kennel clubs do!)
Vizsla
These velcro dogs are great at the side of any bird hunter. Originally bred in Hungary as bird flushing dogs, they are just as good at pointing and holding for the shot as retrieving. Plus, their brown coloring makes them stealthy in the dry grasses where pheasant and grouse like to hide.
Weimaraner
Weimaraners may be goofballs at the dog park but they have incredible pointing instincts and are great working dogs. A larger pointing breed, the Weimaraner can chase the bird of choice but also excels at chasing small game like rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, waterfowl, foxes, and even hogs and deer.
Wirehaired Griffon
Wirehaired Griffons are also quite versatile hunting dogs. Their tracking and pointing skills land them on the list of the best pointing breeds but they are known to help hunters with small game pursuit as well. As loyal canines, Wirehaired Griffons are great at home and in the field and love retrieving in water as much as on land.