The Hunter: German Shorthaired Pointer (GSP) By Jeff Nenadic At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

In the beginning of nineteenth century, the GSP was bred and is considered to be a mixture of many breeds such as Italian Pointer, mixed Scandinavian breeds, variety of French hounds, German Bird Dog, the Foxhound, and some German breeds like Schweisshund (a tracking breed). This unique breed was bred for a sole purpose which was hunting.

They have very strong and muscular hind legs by which they are able to run, move and turn very quickly as and when required. Besides that they can fetch heavier games than other hunting dogs as their muzzle is broad and strong.
German Shorthaired Pointers can withstand cold weather even the extreme ones as their coat is waterproof as their undercoat is well protected by the stiff guard hairs. Their color varies but is generally of dark brown (liver), or black, or a combination of black and liver color along with some white. This combination of colors helps to camouflage the dog. They can not be seen easily during winter among the snow and dead trees or shrubs. Hence, they are perfect for hunting as it is not easy to spot them.

Their height varies from twenty-one inches to a maximum of twenty-five inches. Hence they are of medium height. Their weight varies from forty-five pounds to a maximum of seventy pounds. Generally, the female one is shorter and weigh less than the male.

Since, this breed has been bred to be hunters so their instinct is to hunt for something. They are fun loving, gentle, friendly and obedient. They are bold and possess high intelligence too. They bond well with the family and are loyal, and attached. With proper and early training, they can be wonderful household pets. Despite the fact that they are protective to young children; they need supervision when around kids due to their energetic and active nature. They need to be trained not to be in a hunting mood; to be more affectionate and less stubborn. They tend to be distracted easily as they have a very good sense of smell. Due to their hunting instinct, they require a lot of exercise and activities to be busy.

The German Shorthaired Pointers require proper training and lots of exercise or else they tend to be over active, unruly and willful too. If in case they do not get their desired exercise level, they are bound to try to get it on their own and can create destruction and havoc in doing so. Being a large and active breed, their diet is also large. However, if not active enough, they can become fat. The best indicator of their good health is that one ought to be able to feel the ribs (last two) beneath the coat plus a well defined waist. Their diet can consist of five cups of dog food (dry). It can also have one and half cans to two and half cans of good quality meat with equal parts of biscuit added.

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