I have a 2 acre pond recently built which is only 7 feet deep at the deepest point with a large area of 2 to 3 foot depth. It will be used primarily to train my bird dogs which I run in versatile hunting tests which require a lot of water work.

It is close to full now. I have a deep water well with a 5hp pump. Electricity at the pond. Digging it deeper at this point in time is not an option.

The shallow areas need vegetation so the dogs can search for ducks. I would like to be able to control this vegetation which I know will be difficult in so shallow a pond. Looking for suggestions as to what kind of vegetation to plant. If I stay on top of cattails, can they be controlled? The pond bottom is mostly clay.

Without digging the pond deeper, can it work for bluegill and bass? Would aeration help?