GENERAL APPEARANCE
Shoulder height: Short haired variety 58-66cm (23”-26”).
Wire haired variety 56-67cm (22-26½”).
Colour: Solid black, liver or white - or these colours with patches, ticking or completely roaned.
Coat: Short Haired - short, flat and coarse to touch. Wire Haired - Bushy eyebrows, beard and whiskers. Harsh outercoat of up to 2-4cm.
Gait: Ground covering and powerful.
These pointers present a picture of grace and nobility. The soft intelligent eyes and the moderate stop are set midway between the clean cut skull and the square lipped strong muzzle. The medium sized ears are set high and hang close to the cheeks with no fold. The arched neck flows smoothly into sloping shoulders. The lean forelegs with slightly sloping pasterns balance the muscular well angulated hindquarters. The chest is deep and the croup slopes to the tail which is carried out or slightly up in movement.
CHARACTERISTICS AND CARE
Being a dual purpose Pointer/Retriever, these members of the gundog group have a keen nose and perseverance when it comes to searching for and finding game. While being able to fit into kennel life, they prefer to live with a family who will give them plenty of affection and exercise. Their loyalty to their owners must never become over possessive and training must include acceptance of others to the family circle. The Shorthaired variety require little care while the Wirehaireds require periodical grooming.
HISTORY
Hunting with-dogs, has taken place for thousands of years. Different varieties of dogs were evolved for different work - some to point to‘ the game, others to retrieve from land and/or water. In Germany, hunters decided they wanted an all purpose dog which could track, point and retrieve. Thus Shorthaired Pointerscame about through crosses with German tracking dogs, the old Spanish Pointer, the English Foxhound and later the English Pointer. The German Wirehaired Pointer came from the Griffon, Deutsch-Drahthaar (meaning wirehair), Pudelpointer and Stichelhaar.