mcallum3
Senior Member
I have started to put some thought into getting my 4 year old son his first dog. Then realized that I better do some research and not just jump into something. I had originally thought about a Lab due to the fact that I like to be in a duck blind and also after watching a club member's lab work the pond last year. I almost enjoyed that more than shooting at the ducks. Then started to think about dove season right around the corner and remembered a dog out in the field doing some of the retrieving last year and, once again, really enjoyed seeing that as well. It won't be long until my son will be my hunting buddy on these duck and dove outings and then "his" dog will be able to accompany us. Like I said, I originally started thinking about a Lab, but the more I read about the Boykins the more I am impressed with them. I especially like their smaller size over the Labs, and Hairy Dawgs "Reese" sure is a pretty little thing. So I now have a few questions that hopefully someone can help with.
1) How are boykins at waterfowl retrieving and if "good", do they have problems with something large like a goose?
2) Can they be a hunting dog as well as a loyal companion? If I could only have one it would be the companion, but I would like both.
3) What kind of life expectancy do they have?
4) Most importantly, are they kid-friendly, as this will be for my four year old son.
1) How are boykins at waterfowl retrieving and if "good", do they have problems with something large like a goose?
2) Can they be a hunting dog as well as a loyal companion? If I could only have one it would be the companion, but I would like both.
3) What kind of life expectancy do they have?
4) Most importantly, are they kid-friendly, as this will be for my four year old son.