Goldendoodle

it's my understanding that the best, surest way to get a dog that is a good hunting dog...is to buy from someone who breeds stock proven in the field.

I am not sure that ANY one with doodles has done that, their intent as a "breed" was as a companion, and service dog after all. In fact calmness, and lower energy than EITHER breeds included, more interest in the human than the bird/cat/other dog over there, (necessary in a service dog, animal drives of any kind are selected AGAINST) are touted as some of their attributes...which seems to run counter to good hunting stock?

There are actually curly coated dogs that hunt...Curly Coated Retriver, Amer/Irish Water Spaniels etc if that look is appealing. Heck even a Portuguese Water Dog was at least intended for water work of some kind...lol.

In short I think you would be best off if you are serious about a hunting companion...getting a dog from a PROVEN pair owned by someone who uses them...him or herself for your purpose.

If you like the hunting Poodles then contact the breeders who hunt them...just because their Poodles hunt, does not mean ALL will, it's all in the selection process and I can tell you that it makes a great deal of difference...that selection. I'd wager most all the doodles in your ads, etc have been bred as companions...from companions....for many gens. Even going back to their Golden/Poodle rootstock...likely dogs sold as pets, perhaps even because they were lacking drive...who knows?

I have heard of Doodles that hunt and hunt well but the GWP would be a far better bet. There is actually a working parent club (Verein Deutsch Drahthaar e. V. Group North America) for GWPs. I would strongly suggest a going to a breeder who follows that club's breeding policies, which ensure that breeders are breeding for working temperament, health and conformation.

 http://www.vdd-gna.org/testing_program.php

I have never known a Goldendoodle that hunted but I guess if you find the right set of parents you could have a dog that would hunt.  I have seen some standard Poodles that hunt and of course some Goldens.  You may already know this but just in case, if you are wanting a doodle because of the hypo-allergenic trait, beware.  Not all are hypo-allergenic.  They are getting so popular and most of the breeders I have talked to are woefully ignorant of anything but the fact that there is money in this designer breed. I'm sure there are some good breeders and you can find a good one but I would be prepared to look long and hard.  I thought for a while I wanted a Labradoodle but decided if I get another hunting dog it will be a black standard Poodle from dogs that I have seen hunt.  Or maybe a Portugese Water Dog or oh well the list goes on......

I would second the vote for a GWP or even a GSP, but then, I am a tad biased.

It may help you make a decision if you go and visit some adult goldendoodles and then visit some adult GWPs to see how your personalities match up.

I think there are other gun dog options that might meet what you need far better than a mix when there is unlikely to be any selection for hunting instincts.  I would suggest as previously stated by Gina, that working lines is where you want to go.  Hunting, herding and retrieving instincts can all disappear if breeding choices are not attending to those behaviors.  Granted you can teach a dog to do just about anything.  However it is far easier to shape instinct than instill drive in a line that does not have it.  If its the coat you like, consider  the spinoni.

 http://www.spinone.com/

Spanish Water Dogs are a curly coated all purpose breed which is still bred to go under the gun and for water retrieval success.  As a bonus, it's also a herding dog which is currently emerging as a new star in American herding venues.  In this video you can see the size, appearance, and personality of the dog quite well. 

Thanks for all the replies!  I have received alot more help in this thread than in the GWP thread I tried.

I live in a HUGE pheasant hunting area (grew up in the "Pheasant capital of the world";).  I have seen and hunted behind alot of different breeds.  I have considered GSP's, GWP's, brittany's, springers, English setters, labs, goldens, goldendoodles, "pointing" labs, English pointers, wirehaired pointing griffons, Chesapeakes, Viszlas (sp?), Weimaraners, and Nova Scotias.  Basically any breed I have ever hunted with I have been researching trying to decide what would best fit in our family.

The goldendoodles I am considering ARE from hunting stock.  Both the sires and dams are used in the field and some are even trialed.  I do not take choosing a hunting dog lightly as I have been around terrible hunting dogs who make the hunt more frustrating than enjoyable.  The additional breeds that have been mentioned I will look up.

The hair type is not an issue.  I do know that goldendoodles are not hypoallergenic.  We have a German shepherd and a lab right now so are used to shedding dogs.  We have also spoken with other hunters that live in the area and they have hunted with goldendoodles and do like them too.  I guess around here good quality hunting poodle x's are not all that hard to come by versus other parts of the country.

I don't know much about hunting but I've met a quite a few English Setters and they are such great dogs. 

I think most goldendoodles people have come into contact with are from puppymills or BYBs, so it's just not the greatest first impression.  I do believe that there can be good "designer breed" breeder's, but they are just few and far between.  ;) 

 If there are hunting goldendoodles in your are, then go for it if that's what you think you'd like best.  In my experience they're always cute, but they're never really the same.  I just mean that it's really difficult to know what to expect to get from a puppy.  You could get more golden traits, or more poodle traits, etc., and those may not necessarily be the traits you'd most prefer.  Doesn't seem like a "happy" mixture happens very often, but I'm not saying it is impossible.  If you're going for an older dog, this obviously wouldn't be a problem (not sure which you were looking for, but I was assuming puppy).  Just something to think about.  With the GWP you'd be able to have certain expectations for your puppy, but with a goldendoodle, it's hard to know what to expect!

 I've had more than my fair share of Goldendoodles in my classes, and IMO most of them would not make good hunting dogs.  I think that it's far better to get a dog that was bred specifically for hunting.   I vote for the Spinone Italiano - the ones I see are excellent companions as well as still having the characteristics that make a good hunter. 

 If you have a Doodle breeder who is selecting for hunting (and who actually hunts their dogs and produces a good number of hunting dogs) in your area, that changes things a bit. Most people breeding Doodles are just breeding for the pet market and are breeding Poodles and Goldens from pet lines. They don't test their dogs in any way (no performance tests, no temperament tests, no health tests), so it would be very hard to just pick any random Doodle and have it turn out to hunt. Plenty of people use mixes for hunting and other work but usually they are selectively bred for working traits.

When I was a kid, we knew of people who hunted birds (pheasants and ducks, if I recall correctly) with Standard Poodles. 

Poodles are intelligent dogs who can do almost anything asked of them.  i suspectt hey wouldn't be the perfect K9, but, other than that, I have known them to be alram dogs, therapy dogs, companions and, of course, circus dogs.

I would skip the 'mix' and go for the Standard Poodle!  They are incredibly smart, catch on quickly, and seem to totally enjoy hunting!