boykin

[killzone]

Boykins can retrieve anything you shoot. They're perfect for hunting a swamp and they don't take up a ton of room in the boat. Of course they can't run akc field trials because they aren't bred to do that. If you get a good one though they would be able to pass any test you put them through with good training. It all depends on what you want in a dog

[surfcock]

Boykins can retrieve anything you shoot. They're perfect for hunting a swamp and they don't take up a ton of room in the boat. Of course they can't run akc field trials because they aren't bred to do that. If you get a good one though they would be able to pass any test you put them through with good training. It all depends on what you want in a dog

This right here. A small lab is comparable, but Boykins are like owning a small slice of SC history. I'll take the swamp poodle.

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[E. Taylor]

In the dove fields, I want a Boykin. A little Boykin female was the best dove dog I have ever had. Hate to even guess at the number of doves that little dog picked up. Also great family pet.

But when it comes to rivers, big water, or thick swamps, I prefer the lab. Just easier on a bigger dog to handle the tuff conditions. Not to say a Boykin can't handle those conditions. I just did not like putting my little dog through that. She was too valuable in the dove field.

[buckfarmer]

Go watch a Master test, or even an HRC Finished test with labs and boykins running them. Testimonials in here are nice, but once you see them run side by side, your decision will become much easier.

[willyworm]

Perhaps the lad has no interest in running his animal in any test. For you hunt test/field trial guys, those things are your gauge. Not everyone measures with the same yardstick.

[Griffin]

Boykin’s can retrieve anything you shoot. They're perfect for hunting a swamp and they don't take up a ton of room in the boat. Of course they can't run akc field trials because they aren't bred to do that. If you get a good one though they would be able to pass any test you put them through with good training. It all depends on what you want in a dog

No they can't. Maybe one or twice but how about OOS when it's normal to kill 40ish ducks and another 20 to 30 giant canadas? Swans go without saying. Perfect for a swamp? what does that even mean? open water, labs are faster swimmers. Flooded timber, labs have longer legs and are far more powerful. Flooded fields labs can walk and not swim. What "swamp" are you talking about? Ton of room in a boat? This is a lame attempt at talking up a Boykin. I hate a Boykin, not because they are not cool dogs but because their owners constantly feel the need to try to justify why the own one and how they are better then a lab. If you own because you think they are cool, you want to be different, or just because you think they are cool then great. But lets stop pretending that they are in anyway on the same level as a lab.

like owning a small slice of SC history. I'll take the swamp poodle.

Really? Why exactly is that? I'd bet the family farm there have been 10X the number of labs and goldens throughout SC history as there have been Boykin

[reezen44]

You wont regret it. My boykin is the best dog I've ever had.

[JBK]

I think if you are a weekend warrior and your primary duck is a wood duck. If you hunt doves 2 to 10 times a year. If you go out of state once a year for 4 days with one or 2 buddies then a Boykin might be a fit. My personal vote is a lab, because there is truly nothing that the breed can't do. The Labrador is the bench mark in the retrieving world.

[willyworm]

Do your own research. All you're gonna get here is confusion.

[buckfarmer]

Perhaps the lad has no interest in running his animal in any test. For you hunt test/field trial guys, those things are your gauge. Not everyone measures with the same yardstick.

Seeing how well a dog gets from point A to point B under difficult conditions is always relevant to hunting. What other "yardstick" do you use for hunting? That's the same as a poor person looking at a successful person and saying "not everyone measures wealth with money". Of course they do...what else would you measure it with?!?!?

The point wasn't even to use the hunt test as a gauge, but it would allow him to witness facts instead of relying on uneducated opinions here. The simple truth is that a hunt test reveals many problems with Boykins. Yes, they retrieve, but you don't notice how slooooow they are until you see them do the same retrieve a lab did under the same conditions, but take 8 minutes longer to do it. A hunt test would also reveal that Boykins' work is typically much sloppier than a labs'.

To the OP: please disregard any of the "great in the dove field" arguments. 20-40 yd retrieves in a clean sunflower field isn't any great feat.

[boondoggle]

[willyworm]

What other "yardstick" do you use for hunting? That's the same as a poor person looking at a successful person and saying "not everyone measures wealth with money".

20-40 yd retrieves in a clean sunflower field isn't any great feat.

You just made my point. Your last line is many people's yardstick. I never said that retrieve is a great feat, but it serves as lots of people's yardstick. Lots of folks just want a family pet that can perform simple retrieves here and there.

Same as your other point. Contrary to what you may think, not everyone measures wealth in dollar figures. Some people are perfectly content with a modest living with strong family, a solid relationship with the Lord and could care less about having tons of money and "things".

It's not my yardstick, but I'm realistic enough to recognize not everyone thinks like me. It all lies in the eye of the beholder.

[buckfarmer]

You just made my point. Your last line is many people's yardstick. I never said that retrieve is a great feat, but it serves as lots of people's yardstick. Lots of folks just want a family pet that can perform simple retrieves here and there.

Same as your other point. Contrary to what you may think, not everyone measures wealth in dollar figures. Some people are perfectly content with a modest living with strong family, a solid relationship with the Lord and could care less about having tons of money and "things".

It's not my yardstick, but I'm realistic enough to recognize not everyone thinks like me. It all lies in the eye of the beholder.

Of course, and if all the OP wants out of a dog is simple 20-40 yard single marks in a clean field, then a Boykin is ok. What I'm getting at is the benefits of a Boykin for duck hunting are singular: they shed less. Beyond that, labs hold distinct advantages in every conceivable category.

[Sportin' Woodies]

A Boykin can hide inside a layout blind with a hunter and picked up with a single hand into a boat.

[CTIMBER]

That's the same as a poor person looking at a successful person and saying "not everyone measures wealth with money". Of course they do...what else would you measure it with?!?!?

Happiness 👍

[buckfarmer]

Happiness 👍

Touché

Thumbs up

[Furman]

My wife and I are getting a Boykin in several weeks. The purpose of this dog is not as a pure duck hunting dog. Many of the times I duck hunt I don't necessarily need a dog or would prefer not to have one. However I would still love to duck hunt this Boykin when possible, and I will definitely have him in the dove field.
I also fish a lot out of my jon boat and kayak which I think a small Boykin will be ideal for tagging along.
The wife wanted a dog that could curl up on the couch and didn't shed much
Overall I think it will be a good fit. I agree a small lab would also fit the bill but we went with the Boykin

Just my .02

[LabLuvR]

Sporting Woodies brother has a small boykin that is an absolute terror on ducks and doves. The drive that little dog has is incredible! If all boykins are like her, then I'm sold!

[quackdaddy]

Sporting Woodies brother has a small boykin that is an absolute terror on ducks and doves. The drive that little dog has is incredible! If all boykins are like her, then I'm sold!

How can that be? The resident dog whisperer said boykins are dumb and spastic... go figure. Guess I got lucky with mine; smart, driven, and steady. Any shortcomings he has are my fault.
Ask yourself what you really want in a dog and do your research.

[wcrites307]

Griffin You don't know shit about dogs.





its not always the size of the dog that hunts. Its the size of the hunt in the dog.