First of all thanks to those who offered advice or suggestions with finding another lab. I appreciated the help. The gf and I left out Friday for Miami, OK and arrived at 2:30 am. I got about 3 hours of sleep and we continued on to the kennel. Derek of the retriever academy was exceptionaly nice and gracious. He allowed us to tour his training facility which was first class. I was even able to watch the sire of the litter work in the field. His owner was quite polite as was the dog. Lol. But he did impress the hell out of me with a 300 yrd retrieve crossing water 4 times there and 4 back. We then were given ample time to look at 3 puppies and put them through their paces. I was expecting playful tug of war and maybe running to a tossed toy. But instead I had to decide between 2 pups that were retrieving duck wings and LIVE pigeons at 7 1/2 weeks old!!! It was a tough choice but I know I made the right one. I couldn't be happier nor could the gf who is new to the waterfowl world and world of hunting. Thankfully the gf loved every minute of the trip and loved watching the dogs work and has even mentioned her interests in wanting to duck hunt or at least get some great action shots with her camera. Time will tell how the pup will turn out but looking at her pedigree as well as how fast she is picking up on her new surroundings and tasks I put in front of her I'm sure she will be just fine.
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