Home Forums Birds & Dogs Hunting Dogs Pointing Labs: what ever happened to them?

About 10 years ago (maybe more), various American gun dog forums were all a buzz about Pointing Labs for hunting birds close in..

The detractors ridiculed the idea, while their supporters hailed them as the best thing on 4 legs.. I remember their as a Pointing Lab association, some organised field trials, even specialist breeders offering pups at fantastic prices..

I'vde not seen much mention of them lately? Did the ideas just die the death or are people still using/promoting them?

That made as much sense as putting ears on GSP, like their gonna come when you call them.

I hunted over a few "pointing" Labs, they no more pointed than my "regular" Lab.

Still a lot of proponents of pointing labs around�..
success stories�not so much.

Hmm, I've got a dog that works very close, points like my index finger, retrieves like a lab, and swims like a fish. Her name is Lucy and she is a weimaraner. Labs aren't bred to point. Hell, they weren't even originally bred to upland hunt!

Of course, neither was the weimaraner.

Oh, I think they are still quite popular with certain folks.

Look at the back of the Pheasants Forever mag, PL's are about the only big splashy ads in there. I've hunted behind a few which were supposed to be PLs and only one actually pointed anything.

I think the bloom is off the rose.
NB

You guys are funny.

I have one. Great dogs. Points, listens, retrieves and I have NEVER lost him.

I have had Setters and will have one again, but with a growing family, limited time, and having to jump on an opportunity to hunt upland and water at any given moment my pointing lab was just the ticket. And it was too much for me to go to a flusher.

Mine is from Black Forest and I would say that the PL kennels are doing well. The PL version has probably just leveled off from the intial hype, that all.

I also have a PL, who is still a pup, but has begun to point birds. She will flush runners, but is beginning to point pheasants, chukar, etc. in cover that are sitting.

What is more important, to me, than her developing ability to point, is her craziness about game birds, and being able to find them. There is simply no quit in this dog, and she is a little over a year old. With age, she will do nothing but improve, and I am giving her every opportunity possible to hunt birds.

My last Lab was a PL from Black Forest, when Dellery Guillory still owned it. She was a pup from the great Gumbo, and a better hunting dog would be very hard to find.

There is no 'pointing gene' in these dogs- they are simply descendants of dogs who have shown a strong tendency to point, and continue to be bred to further that tendency. Not all 'pointing labs' point, and some regular labs develop that tendency on their own.

There is something very satisfying to see your dog lock up on point, let you walk up, and flush the bird at shoelace range!

Two of the last three Labs I've owned would usually hunt close enough and point well enough to give the hunter time to get in position to shoot. They weren't always classic, "steady to wing and shot points" and if the bird or covey was antsy they would sometimes flush them but you almost always knew there was something there beforehand and were close enough for a skeet or IC choke shot.

I bought these Labs as pups from good hunting bloodlines but they weren't sold as Pointing Labs. They were also good waterfowl dogs. I got them started on "pointing" their first year with a 50 foot lead, mild use of an E-Collar, planted pigeons, dog biscuit rewards and someone else to shoot. Initially they would slow down, showing interest when they were close to birds and gradually they started to point.

IMO a lot of dogs can handle more than one style of hunting. A guy I used to hunt with years ago had a GSP that was the best all purpose dog, including waterfowl as you could want and when he pointed he was always "steady to wing and shot".

My dogs aren't going to win any field trials but they can find game, hold it and bring it back more consistently then most hunters, me included, can shoot.

My dog is from Black Forest Grits and just turned 10.

I am trying to decide if I should get another pup right now. Like I said I want to get back to Setters, but the lab breed is hard to give up when the family is concerned. I may do one more PL.

I used to think I'd try another breed but always ended up with Labs. and never regretted it. Got to go with what I think I know.

Got my pup from a breeder here in CO- sire is a dog named Otter, who was a 4X Grand Master Champion PL. PM if you are interested in more detail.

Boy an I glad you added that!

I've actually decided on a pup from Hunters Point, IA. Some of the same lines as my older dog. Should be here is a month.

I recently read an article that included genetic information which lead to the conclusion that pointing labs and all of the odd color variations were the result of breeding non labs to labs beyond the point of breed development. The Kellogg kennel in SD was traced back to the origin of the pointing trend having bred pointing breeds into labs and registering them as labs. Buy a pointer if you want a pointer, labs are flusher/retrievers. It's very shortsighted to breed away from the breed standard. These standards exist to maintain the integrity of the breed. Look at golden retrievers, irish setters, and many others that have been bred into obscurity by those that didn't care at all for maintaining the innate abilities of the breed. It's no different than breeding hounds into a lab line and making them lion dogs.

interesting, do you have a link to the article?

Everyone I know who hunts pheasants around here with Labs either has or wants a "pointing" Lab. They are a great, useful all-around upland dog, whether they point solid or just delay their flush.

When it comes to putting meat in the bag, a well-trained PL is hard to beat.

Lab Genetics Article

Centers around the "silver labs", but touches on the concept of the pointing lab as it relates to the breeding of Weims into Lab lines by Kellogg.

The big deal in my area is labradoodles. Lots of people trying to sell pups for lotsa money. I don't get it.