Fowlers need an Echo

Labradors may be by far the most popular wildfowling dogs but the powerful Chesapeake Bay retriever is tailor-made for the job.

- David Tomlinson

LOOKING DOWN AT me as I write is a splendid drake pintail, a memento of a wildfowling excursion in February 1989 with fellow Shooting Times contributor Mike Swan. Mike shot the pintail and presented it to me afterwards. It had been retrieved perfectly by his golden retriever. Mike has always had golden retrievers, so it was completely unmarked and instead of eating it I decided to have it mounted.

That particular expedition was memorable because I nearly lost my chest waders in the Medway mud. The conditions were challenging, but at least I had been sensible enough not to take my springer. Though a good swimmer, she wouldn’t have been a match for the mud and the tides.

The last thing you want on a wildfowling trip is a dog that you are worried about. A good fowling dog has to be not only a powerful swimmer, but one that has strong survival instincts and an ability to look after itself. I have been wildfowling in Scotland, England and Wales, but I’ve never been a true wildfowler, possibly because I have never owned a suitable dog for the job. Over the years I have met several English springers that were accomplished performers on the foreshore, but they were in a minority.

By far the most popular foreshore dog is the Labrador, and deservedly so. If you look into the Labrador’s history, you will discover that the dogs we know nowadays are all descended from North American animals that were used for both wildfowling and fishing.