Mary Allen
The German Wirehaired Pointer is at its most comfortable when he can do his main job: hunting. Bred by hunters for hunters, he is an all-around high-performance gun dog. In addition to his work, he is a devoted and loyal companion to his owners. He convinces, above all, with his balanced nature, high readiness for learning, and great endurance.
All-Round Specialist for Hunting
The German Wirehaired Pointer was developed in Germany in the late 19th century by crossing various wirehaired hunting dogs. Hunting cynologist and dog expert Sigismund Freiherr von Seidlitz und Neukirch had the goal of creating a full-service dog that could be used as an all-rounder in fields, forests, and fields. To do this, he crossed the best animals of the German breeds Stiechelhaar, Poodlepointer, and Griffon Kortals with a German Shorthaired Pointer. The result: a versatile all-rounder with a high degree of self-confidence and willingness to work, whose wire-haired coat lies close to the body and protects it from thorns, nettles, twigs, or sharp-edged leaves.
Personality of the German Wirehaired Pointer
The German Wirehaired Pointer is a very confident dog with a lot of courage. He lives by hunting and is really fond of it. In his spare time, he shows himself to be an affectionate, child-loving and playful family dog - a prerequisite for this is an attitude appropriate to the species with careful training and regular use in hunting tasks.
First of all, the German Wirehaired Pointer is a persistent working dog. He loves to learn and understands quickly. It is also excellent as a guard dog: since it was previously supposed to protect the hunter from poachers, the German Wirehaired Pointer has certain masculinity and courageously comes to the aid of his owners in an emergency. To strangers, a hunting dog behaves with restraint, without showing aggressiveness.
Training & Maintenance of the German Wirehaired Pointer
The German Wirehaired Pointer, due to its inclinations and nature trails, is only suitable for hunters. Here the rough-coated dog shines in all areas. It is an ideal pointer dog and also serves well as a tracker and tracker dog. In addition, a fully functional dog is often used for searching and rummaging. Due to its size, the German Wirehaired Pointer is only unsuitable for building hunting. But he loves to go into the water and supports people in hunting waterfowl.
German Wirehaired Pointers are sociable dogs that are friendly towards other dogs. In addition, aggression is a foreign word for them, which also makes it easier to train dogs. The animals of this breed are easy to handle due to their quick perception and quick wits. However, you must have enough dog ownership experience to treat the German Wirehaired Pointer with love and consistency and set firm rules. Otherwise, it may happen that your nimble hunter will quickly get exceptions.
In addition to basic training, during which the dog learns basic commands such as “sit”, “down” or “stand”, you should give your German Wirehaired Pointer a thorough, approximately two-year course of hunting training. These courses begin at puppyhood and prepare your four-legged friend for work as a hunting dog. Hunting clubs and hunting dog clubs offer these extensive courses. Here, the future hunting assistant learns things like shooting, pointing, welding, and towing or searching, as well as getting to know the tasks in and around the water. At the end of the training, there is a hunting test in which the German Wirehaired Pointer must prove that he has mastered his craft.
German Wirehaired Pointer Care
Because of their short, wiry coat, German Wirehaired Pointers are very easy to care for with occasional brushing.
The dog breed is considered very hardy, can work for hours outside in any weather. Due to strict selection and thorough health checks of breeding animals, diseases such as hip dysplasia, osteochondrosis and osteopathy are on the decline today.
With proper maintenance and good care, German Wirehaired Pointers can live an average of twelve to fourteen years.
Because the Wirehaired Pointer is an agile, muscular dog, it requires a high-quality, protein-rich diet. Depending on the amount of work associated with hunting, her energy requirements increase even more. Especially when viewed, a four-legged friend walks for hours and overcomes several kilometers. It also uses a lot of energy when running in the water, as swimming is physically demanding.
German Wirehaired Pointer Features
German Wirehaired Pointers are professional hunting dogs and have been bred for this job. Therefore, they are not suitable as purely family dogs, like regular walks and play activities do not burden them physically and mentally. This type of under-challenging can lead to behavioral problems in the long run, as the dog absolutely needs meaningful tasks. For this reason, breeders usually only sell their dogs to hunters.
If individual dogs are not suitable for hunting, they will find a possible alternative to experienced, nature-loving dog owners. A prerequisite for a healthy, species-appropriate coexistence outside of hunting is an exercise with intense movement that requires the dog’s mental development, such as agility.