unlikely that you will be able to develop the trust between you that is necessary for training and hunting. Example: sending your dog on a retrieve when there is nothing for him to retrieve. Never lie to your dog! Understanding why your dog reacts as he does, and why certain things happen, is the key to intelligent training and handling.
Too-eager-to-retrieve syndrome- Young pointing dogs should be reliably staunch on point before being allowed to retrieve birds, especially crippled or wounded birds. Save yourself a lot of headaches by placing retrieving last on your list of training priorities.
The leash-less hunter- I don't care how obedient your dog is to the Heel command. Never be without some type of leash when hunting or training or walking your dog. Each hunting season, more dogs get killed on rural roads than on streets and highways. It only takes one vehicle on a lonely dirt road in the middle of nowhere to kill or maim a treasured hunting dog. Don't risk it. Carry a leash and use it.
A. D. - "Alpha Dysfunction." Your dog is not a human being. In nature, there is a highly organized pecking order, with one individual in the litter reigning as the leader or "alpha." In the domestic world your dog expects you to become his alpha or leader; to establish limits of behavior and give structure to life.
Examples of "man as Alpha": You do not permit your dog to jump through gates or doors as soon as they are opened, or to jump in and out of a kennel until properly released. In addition to being a safety precaution, these restrictions help establish you as Alpha, and the acceptance of orders as a part of everyday life.
Along these same lines, every dog should be required to walk on a leash without pulling. He should obey the basic bird dog obedience commands (Whoa, Come (or Here), Kennel, to bend to voice and whistle, etc. He should stay in position on barrel or bench to allow legs, feet, and mouth to be handled and inspected, and to have toenails trimmed, etc.