CHOOSING THE RIGHT BREEDING IN A HUNTING DOG

When you have decided on a breed of hunting dog that fits your hunting needs, the next step would be to choose a quality breeder with the bloodlines that will work for you.

If you think of bloodlines in a dogs pedigree, you should think of it as a dogs history of health and performance. Not every dog from any chosen breed will perform to a specific level of performance. Are you interested in a sports car, a family car, or a four wheel drive truck? A pedigree will help you decide.

Quality breeders want to sell good puppies, they will take the proper steps to produce healthy and performance minded pups but sometimes the breeder may suggest to you that a particular bloodline would be more suitable for you. knowing how to read a pedigree will help you make an educated decision.

The following information is a brief guideline for some of the more common titles and abbreviations that you may see on a pedigree.

OFA stands for the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals. This organization will evaluate an x-ray that your vet has taken of your dogs hips for example to see if they show any genetic defects such as hip dysphasia . The rating that you would receive ( Excellent -good - fair- poor ) would determine if your dog has dysphasic hips ( improper ball and socket joints) and to what level of severity. This rating is very important to look for on a pedigree if you are purchasing a dog from field trial, hunt test, or a show stock breeding, planning on breeding your dog or if you plan on spending big money with a trainer for any extended period of time. You want to make sure the dogs hips are healthy. If your dog has been found with a slight to a severe case of hip dysphasia for example. And it was determined to be genetic and not from an accident or injury. Then you should not allow this defect be carried down to the next generation through breeding. If your dog is dysphasic your choice for higher level of training would not be a good investment due to the detereation of the hip joint and possible greater injury or complete lameness further on . You may research further information on their website at OFA.com. Or contact your vet for further information.

CERF is the organization ( Canine Eye Registry Foundation) that certifies a dogs eyes to be free and clear of any genetic defects as well. A CERF guarantee is generally done every year thus the current eye ratings will expire.

The list of titles that a Sire ( father) or Dam ( mother) and any of their parents or grandparents and so on would be listed on a pedigree as well. Field trial Titles would be in front of the dogs name and hunt test titles would be behind the dogs name. For example:

NFC National Field trial Ebonstar Lean Mac
FC Field Champion
AFC Amateur Field Champion


These titles would be examples from field trial dogs. These dogs are extremely intelligent and athletic and possess the ability to learn, train, and compete at the extreme level of the sport. These dogs usually move on to becoming a breeding prospect to produce puppies that share these traits. These dogs usually have a much stronger prey drive, great eyesight, strong retrieving desires, and the mental capacity to handle complex and stressful training situations. These dogs really are the pros of the dog world. Similar to a fighter pilot under heavy stress.

AKC Hunt test titles would be listed as:

GMHR Grand Master Hunting Retriever
MH Master Hunter
SH Senior Hunter
JH Junior Hunter


A Grand Master and Master Hunter title is really something to be proud of. Very few dogs achieve this level without professional help. Unlike the Field trial dogs the hunt test is designed a little differently and tries to simulate a real world hunting scenario but not as extreme as what the field trial dogs need to go through Senior level and yet the lower level junior dogs still have a test requirement that will make these dogs a few levels better than the part time hunting dog/house pet.

Like the field trial dogs, hunt test dogs are smart, good looking, and trainable but usually have a temperament that works better for people that don’t want a field trial dog around the house.

These are just examples and are not the complete list of what a dog may be able to obtain. there are titles for obedience and for show stock dogs ( conformation) as well, and some dogs may obtain titles in all these areas.

The titles would be similar for all breeds, but the tests are completely different for the different classes of dogs. Retrievers have a separate test and set of requirements than the pointers. The tests are designed for the style and ability of each breed separately due to the fact that each breed does its job in a vastly different way.

Family companion hunting dogs are generally bred to be a little more laid back at home. They may have some hunting desire and like to retrieve but they generally don’t go crazy if they are not hunting a lot. This style of breeding works for some people who want a hunting breed as a pet, but hunt occasionally thus the higher performance and big drive is not necessary.

Roger Hess