Training a pointing dog

Merle is my very first hunting dog. He's also the first dog I'm living with one on one with, and it can definitely be a struggle. His high energy is often hard to deal with when I want some down time. But he's only 6 months old, and showing some promise. He got on his first wild bird a couple days ago, and he didn't try to bite it! He stood over it with his tail straight out patiently waiting for something to happen!.....This picture was taken yesterday at the pond behind my house. He can only stand running in the side yard for so long before he wants to hit the water.