A Bird Dog of My Own

It is the eve of my dog's first birthday.  It's hard to believe how much has taken place over his young life thus far. This time a year ago, owning a bird dog was nothing more than a nice thought stashed away in the back corner of my mind—something I'd like to have some day. But with three young boys, us being renters of a not-so-large house, and no dog training experience, it remained stuck in that back corner of my mind.   Fast forward to now, as my almost-one-year-old dog that we've had for nearly 10 months, lies at my feet, chewing on a treat.  Just yesterday, he spent the day in a field finding planted chukars and retrieving the ones I was able to shoot. We are continuing to prepare for his first hunting season, which is rapidly approaching. He is gun conditioned, has a solid foundation of obedience, and exhibits tremendous prey drive. He's everything I have wanted in my first bird dog and more.   As an "adult onset hunter," I had taught myself how to...