Harry, are you getting a male or a female? Do you have a preference?
Give me my druthers and it would be a female. Less worries of them running off and screwing the neighbors cat. You have that heat problem, but I'm not a breeder. So get them fixed and you also eliminate some health issues down the line.
I'll speak up for the opposing camp here. I've owned 3 males and 1 bitch, spent several years in two ESS field trial clubs, which gave me a LOT of exposure to different dogs/handlers. Not to mention hunting with a couple of gundog partners who also had Springers. In the end I'd have to say that I prefer hunting over males. They tend to be bigger and heavier in the shoulders, which helps them bust through heavy cover (which is a problem in many of my favorite coverts) and they tend to hunt more aggressively in general. I've noticed no real difference in tractability between males and females.
As far as hot Springers, as mentioned one of mine was. However, out of the field and in the house, after the first year he was pretty laid back. Put him in the field and hooked up his hot wire.
Thing I've noticed in the 5 Springers/Cockers I've had is the hot ones have the hottest nose. The cooler they get, the softer they are on the flush. A Great one wants to catch the Bird before it gets airborne.
Agreed. Hot dogs from a hot bloodline can be trained to be steady, to not run fencelines, etc, but it's impossible to get a slow dog run hotter.
One other kennel you might want to look at is Lighthouse Kennels in Wisconsin. Jason is a very good trainer, field-trailer and hunter. His dogs produce wonderful pups; I've had one and would love to have another.
