Field Golden Retrievers
Then there are field golden retrievers which are bred for behavior and temperament standards. Field golden retrievers are bred to be functional working dogs capable of retrieving prey that has been downed while hunting. Field golden retrievers are not actually purebred golden retrievers and are bred from various lines of yellow retrievers, Irish setter, bloodhound, and water spaniels.
Field golden retrievers are excellent at most physical activities, including enjoying fishing, hunting, and swimming. This is the main reason for the “retriever” nomenclature, and these dogs have a bred prey drive that pushes them to fetch or retrieve things that resemble prey. This desire for retrieval is one of the defining qualities that makes them invaluable as a companion in the field.
What Are Common Traits Of Field Golden Retrievers?
Golden retrievers are an incredibly popular breed of dog, and there are plenty of reasons that keep them at the top of the list year after year. They have a very friendly and approachable attitude, and are highly tolerant, making them a wonderful choice for homes with children. They are very intelligent and capable problem-solvers, so they are always looking for fun activities that challenge them.
Since field golden retrievers are an active breed and are considered sporting dogs, they will need to be kept active to keep them out of trouble. At least an hour of intense exercise is needed daily to help them develop and behave optimally. This often isn’t difficult since they will fetch just about anything that is thrown for them. Being highly food and affection motivated, they take to many training methods relatively easily.
Field golden retrievers must be kept active and occupied intellectually and physically. They will often develop a tendency to chew, and they are also predisposed to gaining a large amount of weight. As a breed, field golden retrievers are very loyal and they make a reasonably sound choice for first-time pet owners as well.
Field golden retrievers also have the upside of having shorter coats than conventional show retrievers, so this means they will shed less and what hair they do shed will be less voluminous than their conformational counterparts. The benefits of this will also extend to the regularity and intensity of the grooming that is required. It won’t eliminate the shedding altogether, but it will make it far easier to deal with.
How Much Training Is Needed For Field Golden Retrievers?
Training a field golden retriever is not a task or project with a timeframe or completion date. Owning an exceptional field golden retriever involves serious commitment and time, and their training and skill practice will be an ongoing education for them. There are a number of steps to ensuring your golden becomes a great sporting dog.
Start Early
This is mostly self-explanatory, you will need to get out early and often with your field golden as a puppy. Many experts recommend exposing them to barn pigeons or similar birds initially to build their curiosity and drive. Be sure to introduce them to fowl that will be hunted as well, so that when you are out in the field and are about to down a mallard or a large rooster pheasant your golden won’t be uninterested or confused.
Get Social
By joining a local or regional retriever club you will gain access to a wealth of knowledge about how other hunters, many of them relatively successful, train and exercise their retrievers. In many cases, members of clubs like these will often be training their dog or dogs for hunt tests and field tests, and more.
There are also training groups that are able to be joined for the explicit objective of field training education. These groups can frequently found on a variety of social media or networking sites and they are full of other people with the specific goal of training for hunt or field tests. The key here is to find people that have not only trained for the activities that you want your dog to participate in, but to find those that have trained and competed successfully.
Use Local Resources
Many areas have hunting preserves that offer the chance to take your dog into the field to train for various fowl and gun skills. Many people do not have the ability to keep the birds needed for training, particularly in suburban areas, and many also have restrictions about firing their guns in the same environment. These “game farms” will usually charge an annual due for use of the hunting grounds and limited harvesting of the birds stocked there.
Complete Obedience Training
This is simply essential for anyone with a field golden retriever pup who will eventually want to take them to the field or to compete in events. Having the dog complete initial and intermediate obedience training will give them a significant advantage when beginning field training. The beginner levels of obedience training can be found in abundance, even many pet stores have regular classes.
What Are Field Trials?
Field trials are organized events where a field golden retriever and its owner can put the dog’s hunting assistance skills to a series of standardized tests. The dogs all compete in the same events and are all scored objectively.
These events include an event to judge the dog’s ability to hunt and track, remaining steady, marking downed prey or fowl, blind retrieving, and delivering a retrieval to the hand. There is also scoring applied to marking falls, memory skills, intelligence, perseverance, courage, style, and even attention.
Dogs who excel at these tests can be eligible to compete in other regional and national level events. By completing and winning various events, sometimes called stakes, the dog can then be eligible to win the title of Champion or Field Trial Champion. In field trials, there is only one winning dog.
There are also events called Hunt Tests, however, hunt tests are not considered a competitive event, even though the dogs are scored on their performance. In a hunt test each dog is judged and scored as an individual, not as a comparison to other competitors. This helps the owners of the dogs to better assess them for the purposes of skill development and fine-tuning their abilities.
Who Organizes These Events?
There are many organizations and entities that organize and produce these events, so the style, format, rules, and regulations will often vary from one event to another, location to location. No matter the pedigree, skill, or training level there will be events that your dog can begin to compete in.
For national-level field trials, the American Kennel Club and the American Field Sporting Dog Association will often be responsible for organizing the events. However, there are other groups like the National Bird Hunters Association, National Shoot To Retrieve Association, and countless other local and national amateur field trial groups that also hold events.
Is A Field Golden Retriever A Match For You?
Field golden retrievers are unique and awesome dogs that are bred for relatively specific purposes, and those purposes often include using their boundless energy, ambition, and intelligence for either hunting or field trials. They are made for it, and they excel at it.
If you have an active lifestyle and are looking for a companion dog to share in your adventures and tackle any location by your side, you will probably be a great match for a field golden retriever. They will be an incredibly loyal sidekick whether you’re hitting the river for a swim or some fishing, hunting pheasant, quail, duck, or other fowl, or being active in trials and competitions.
If you prefer a more laid-back lifestyle, however, a field golden retriever will likely not be an ideal match. When you prefer to press play and binge a new series, they will want to go play fetch and challenge themselves in the great outdoors. You will find that when you try to chill, they want to hop up in your lap and get you to come to engage with them. If this is your lifestyle, or if you will have difficulty keeping them active enough in your yard, adding a field golden retriever to your family is probably not the best idea.
