A versatile gundog with many attributes.
Intelligence, a good nose, speed, stamina, tracking, pointing, retrieving
and enthusiasm for the job in hand are all traits possessed by the breed.
Also a companion and family dog which is affectionate and kind.
Description & History
The breed was developed in the seventeenth
century from the Spanish Pointer and the Hanoverian Schweisshund - a
dog with tracking ability and a good nose similar to the Bloodhound.
This union produced the German Pointer. The German Pointer was created
by sportsmen who wanted an all-purpose dog. It had to be capable of
carrying out a number of tasks in the field, tasks which would have
normally been carried out by dogs which specialised only in one aspect
of field work. The German Pointer was a broad, heavy dog cable of tracking
day and night, pointing and retrieving both fur and feathers. This successful
achievement continued until the nineteenth century, when breeders developed
the breed still further in order to enhance its scenting ability, speed
and appearance. The English Pointer, which was bred by crossing the
Spanish Pointer with the Foxhound, was used as the German Pointer thus
maintained its original characteristics while adding the skills and
elegance of the English Pointer.
In Germany the breed is called the Deutsch
Kurzhaar. Elsewhere it is universally known as the German Shorthaired
Pointer. The breed was the first of the five hunt, point and retrieve
breeds from continental Europe to come to the British Isles after the
Second World War. In 1951 the German Shorthaired Pointer Club was formed.
The club not only helped to establish the breed in the U.K. it also
aided breeding and training so that the breed was more in line with
the style of shooting in the British Isles.
Today in Germany, G.S.P.s are still required
to hunt, point and retrieve all varieties of game - partridge, pheasant,
duck, rabbits and deer. In the British Isles they mainly hunt, point
and retrieve game birds. German Shorthaired Pointers are active, like
all gundogs. It is essential, therefore, that if they are kept as family
pets and not for sport, they are given adequate exercise.