Weimaraner, Vizsla, Chesapeake.

My plans for the dog: First off I want a dog that is a good family dog and sociable. I am not always home, so the dog will spend time with my wife as well as at my aunts house periodically when we are both out of town. I am just getting started with duck/goose hunting and I want to have a dog that is good for that. I am also interested in getting into upland hunting since there is a newer gun club only ten minutes from my house. I work a good schedule so I am willing to spend a lot of time training the dog. We also spend a lot of time boating in the summer at our cabin so the dog must like water. I would also like to train the dog to shed hunt and track blood for wounded deer if possible.

Pros/Cons for the dogs?

Chessies: Pros- Good waterfowl dog, can withstand cold temps, loves water, loyal, protective Cons- stubborn, more maintenance, been reading that they have a distinct smell. Sometimes a one owner dog.

Weimaraners/Vizslas: Pros- low maintenance, good upland dog, very little dog smell, very sociable,very trainable Cons- cant be in as cold of temps as Chessies,

I think birdyboy's last statement "You just have to put in the work" pretty much sums up the reality of what you need to do to have a good dog of any breed. Without putting in the work finding that litter/pup you stand a good chance of being disappointed in the long run. Without putting in the socialization time you have a dog that doesn't play well with kids or your buddy's dog. Without the training time you have a dog no one else wants to hunt with or have around the house. Any of those 3 breeds can be great dogs. Tough decision. Enjoy the process!

  One thing to keep in mind. For most of us the dog is a family pet about 99% of the time, & then the bit of actually hunting. While I do agree the socialization of the dog is very important, livability with the family is a key trait. That's how it goes for us anyway, one has to go to work usually to keep the $$ flowing.

  Any of the mentioned breeds would work.

 We had a Chesapeake, Great Dog, Great Hunter and Great Watch Dog, 

 I have to agree with a lot of the comments here.   I love my weimaraner but you do need to cast a wider net if you want to find good hunting stock.  That photographer guy who dressed them up in hats and silly clothes for his coffee table book did not help the breed.  They are a high maintenance animal.  They don;t seek your attention, they demand it and they can be a big pain in the neck if they don't get enough attention.

That said, I have been nothing but pleased and impressed with my dog since the day I brought her home.  You just have to put in the work.

Very good clarification/follow up comment Gill Bill......

If Tazman is stuck on gettin a Weim he'll have a tougher wider search for a pup from proven lines and more training time (probably) because of the Weims usual personilty traits but he could do it....

Also check NAVHDA's website for weims and their test scores following the same principle G.B. laid out.....

I ended up going with a GSP after my last Weim because of this type of research mentioned above...Just a lot more quality breeders of GSP near to me with proven bloodlines producing dogs with trainablity and prey drive......

Let me clarify my statement on Weims, I have had the chance to watch many FC AFC NFC etc weims in competition and I've saw 1 that sticks out in my memory out of how ever many hundred that I've watched that made moves that really tripped my trigger. When these dogs that are being campaigned nationally to promote what the best of the breed's field capabilities are, the only thing that matters to me is there field work. IMO, Compared to Vizslas, GSP'S, Pointers, GWPs, Brittanies, red setters, etc.  most weims severely lack the drive and intesity of other upland pointing breeds. They are typically larger in body stature so they lack stamina to be all day dogs. Many have very alouf personalities as well which make them harder to break/train. Look at the vast majority of pro handlers out there and tell me how many have a competitve weim on there string, the number will be close to zero, besides Dianne Vader and Chuck Cooper who have some decent dogs. Go onto to AKC's web site and start searching Weim club FT's that are open breed and look how many placements weims actually get. You will start to see a very easy pattern developing. Obviously any dog you are intersted first and foremost should come from a reputable breeder. If you are looking for a hunting dog, look for the best hunting lines you can get. Looking down the pedigree, the more letters you see in front of the name the better. If you see nothing but names and no titles keep looking. What I want to see if I am looking for a pup is NFC, NAFC, FC, AFC, a number x CH. This is fool proof way to tell you are at least getting proven hunting stock. This does not mean you will end up with the next big thing. If the genetics are there to start, it gives you that much more potential to work woth.  By seeing these titles you know as a potential buyer you are getting proven hunting stock, not average Joe  who hunts Pheasants 5 weekends a year and wants to pass on there "bird hunting machines" good jeans. Also there is a distinct difference between show and field dogs. There are some that are Dual dogs, but vast majorities have been bred to go one way or the other. Just something to be aware of. Also if you start calling reputable breeders and they are all charging the same amount for a dog and have waiting lists to get pups you are probably on the right track. If you find a dog in the local paper or message board and it is a couple hundred bucks with the words obo after it, run as fast as you can. Obviously it is a back yard breeder who is looking to unload puppies because they can't get rid of them.  I have had people wait 2 years to get as pup out of a particular dog. Typically in the breed I am most familiar with, Vizslas, good breedings are spoken for before the pups are ever born.

I have a Weim and a Chessy.....along with a beagle.......kind of a gluten for punishment. LOL

If you find a good breeder you cannot go wrong with either of those two. Weims are not like Vizsla's when it comes to hunting, they do not beat the bush as hard and are more of a "when I pick up the scent I'm on it dog" They like their daily schedule and do not like it broke. Love attention.

The Chessy is very well behaved. Yes I have a collar for her but she will be two on the 9th and most people think she is at least 3-4 years old. She is smart and I have stayed on her training from the get go. She is very protective of the family, loves company and watches children (guarding) like there is not tomorrow......they seam to have a knack for the young ones.

Both would be a great family/hunting pet for any house hold IMO.

Chessies: Pros- Good waterfowl dog, can withstand cold temps, loves water, loyal, protective                  Cons- stubborn, more maintenance, been reading that they have a distinct smell. Sometimes a one owner dog.   

Those two words in bold should caution you. While I have been around a number of Chessies that are great dogs. The owners have taken great strideds and worked hard to make sure as pups their dogs were well socialized. Something you will need to spend a great deal of time with also.

If this is your first dog and you want to go with one of the Retriever breeds I would highly recomend a good Field Line of Goldens or Labradors. I would hate to see you spend a good deal of money getting a chessie pup and not have it end up being the dog you want it to be training wise and have it end up in the pound. You need to be honest with your abilities to train a Chessie Pup to be fair to it that you give it the best chance to succeed.

Another breed is the German Wired Haired Pointer that Might fit your needs as a upland and water dog. The ones I have hunted over have been good dogs with great personalities and seem eager to please. But I will admit I don't know a great deal about training Pointers other than they can be a little more high strung and need a lot of exercise or they get board.

Best of luck to you with what you decide!