One thing you may also want to discuss with the breaders if you go with a field trial type dog (labs, retrievers, etc.) is if the parents have been tested for EIC (excercise induced collapse). It's become more common in field trial dogs and I found out the hard way my pooch has it. After 10-20 minutes of hard excercise such as upland bird hunting, running or even playing fetch she will collapse and almost appear paralyzed in her hind quarters. It typically starts in the rear limbs and the dog will begin to sway and have a loss of motor control and almost 'appear' drunk. If you don't stop them they will continue to work/play until they are literally dragging their back end and pulling themselves with their front legs. It's horrible to watch.....

From what I've noticed it seems to be brought on quicker in warmer weather and affected dogs possibly not being able to regulate their body temperature as effectively. Strangely, after they rest for 10-20 minutes they are back to normal. I've heard some dogs have died in extreme cases where their body temp overheats so it can be fatal and should be taken seriously. Good breaders should be testing for this with the parents since it is a recessive gene that can be passed on to the pups if both partents are carriers. You can also have your dog tested for about $150 bucks if you want to be certain.

I got my dog, Primer to be a bird dog but after she started going down I gave up on her hunting career and she still makes a great companion. You just need to be more cautious if you plan on doing lots of strenuous excercise with affected dogs.