OTHER GAME
Though not a primary quarry of springers, snowshoe hares, cottontails or waterfowl can extend the hunting seasons and add to the fun. A springer will never match the tracking ability of a beagle on a bunny or the powerful swimming of a big Lab on a 50- yard retrieve through icy waters, but they turn in respectable performances no matter what the game.

HOW TO BUY A SPRINGER
Springer spaniels are attractive dogs that always appear in various black and white or liver (brown) and white color patterns. Typical males weigh about 50 pounds and females are nearer to 40 pounds.

Springers are considered to be members of the sporting group, according to the American Kennel Club, but in truth there are two distinct types of springers: show springers and field springers. As is the case with several other popular sporting breeds, show dogs have been bred to emphasize standard cosmetic characteristics with little regard for developing natural hunting traits.

THE GAME FARM DOG
Serious hunters have been breeding and training quality dogs for generations, often in rural settings and with wild birds. But with dwindling hunting opportunities and greater demands on time, some dog people began forming "game farm" organizations so they could work their dogs year 'round and preserve the hunting instincts in their sporting dogs.

Members of these groups organize field trials during which they test fully trained dogs for superior performance in live hunting situations. The idea is to identify the most outstanding achievers. These outstanding dogs with their inherited talent and trainability are the ones selectively bred to maintain and advance the hunting characteristics.

Field-bred or hunting spaniels are still beautiful animals, but they look different than show dogs. The most obvious differences are shorter, less flowing hair and longer tails. Show spaniels can hunt and sometimes hunt well, but field trial or hunting springers are made for the job. Hunters should always buy field-bred springers.

Reputable field trial dog breeder referrals are available from the English Springer Spaniel Field Trial Association at www.essfta.org.

SPRINGER TRAINING
Hunting with a springer is like dancing, but in this case the dog leads. When working upland coverts, the hunter sets the general direction of the hunt and the springer will comply, but when game scent is located, the dog takes control. The process becomes a choreographed dance with the dog crisscrossing fresh scent, searching for the bird with increasing speed and enthusiasm until the bird is cornered. Meanwhile, the hunter jockeys for position.

Having no other way to escape the opened mouth of the pouncing dog, the bird flushes to escape as the spaniel "springs" into the air, teeth only inches behind its tail. The hunter, being adequately warned of the bird's presence, stays within range and in position for the shot.

The goal is for our dog to energetically cover the area in front of us, sniffing the air or ground, filtering out the extraneous scents and find birds that try to hide or fly away.

When a shooter just edges a bird with a pattern of pellets, the dog is expected to track and retrieve the running cripple, even when the dog did not see the fall (blind retrieve), and then return the bird to hand unharmed.

Is that asking a lot of an animal whose natural instinct is to seek, capture and eat? It is, but hunters all over the country train sporting dogs of all breeds to those standards and more every day.

TRAINING TIME
How a springer will be trained depends on how much time the owner has and what his expectations are. It is not hard to train springers to hunt close, respond to the whistle and voice commands, or retrieve game gently to hand. In fact, most owners hunt springers during their first year of life with more than adequate success.