[fabsroman]

I have a yellow lab, and will say that I will probably never buy a different breed after having this one. In fact, he is so good at home and in the field, that I think this is my once in a lifetime dog.

I have had him for 2 1/2 years and prior to getting him, I had experience with an English Setter, English Springer Spaniel, and 2 Golden Retrievers. The yellow lab beats them all hands down.

I have used my lab, Nitro, for hunting waterfowl and pen raised quail. He has done rather well with both. Sometimes, when he gets a scent, he will freeze for a second and raise that front paw like a pointer; however, he doesn't stay in that pose for very long. I have heard that with the right amount of training, you can get any dog to act like a pointer, same goes for retrieving, but some breeds are just better at certain things than others.

Now, as far as shedding goes, Nitro sheds a ton. Granted, it is a lot easier to get out of fabric than the Golden Retriever's hair, but he still sheds plenty. My vet said that every dog, not every breed, is different about shedding. Essentially, I could have a yellow lab that doesn't shed at all, and then I could have a yellow lab like Nitro that sheds constantly.

If you don't want a huge dog, you had better pay a lot of attention to the size of the parents. Me, I wanted a big dog because I hunt a lot of geese and the small ones just cannot handle them as easily. So, Nitro is 101 lbs. according to the vet last month. Of course, he is 101 lbs. of hunting machine when we are in the field and 101 lbs. of love when we are in the house. It is 2:30 in the morning and he followed me up to the 4th floor to work on another computer, and now he followed me down to the basement.

At the end of the day, I think a lab will suit your hunting needs and house needs better than any dog (i.e., I hunt doves, quail, and waterfowl and plan on having kids in the near future). Just look for a lab that fits your size requirements.

Here is a pic of my lab.