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German Shorthair Pointer Breed Description & Info.

There are many questions one must ask when selecting the breed and dog that is appropriate: How large will it get? How much maintenance will it need? How will it deal with strangers (both human and animal)? What will it be like temperamentally? How difficult (and necessary!) will training be? These are among the many answers that you need in order to select the dog that is best suited for you. The German Shorthaired Pointer is not the dog for everybody. He is not a dog for the faint of heart or the weak of spirit! The GSP was bred with a few definite goals in mind: he should be a versatile, tireless hunting dog, capable of hunting feathered and furred game, pointing or treeing as necessary, retrieving to hand, over land or water, when the kill was made, tracking wounded game, and dispatching predators whenever encountered; he should be a loving and loyal family companion and hearthwarmer; and he should be a vigilant watchdog, guarding his home and owners. These goals have all been realized in the German Shorthaired Pointer. This fact brings up many points that need to be considered when choosing the GSP as your companion. The GSP retains a puppy level of energy throughout its life. This breed requires exercise to help keep this energy burned off to a manageable level. This breed is most suited for a family with an active lifestyle. Having areas with plenty of room for running is a good idea, whether it's the home property, the park, the woods, or wherever. And while the GSP is generally a great breed for kids, care must be exercised around small children - the exhuberance of the GSP can lead to unintentional injuries. The GSP is a hunter. This is not to say that a GSP will be unhappy in a non-hunting home - such is not the case. What it does mean is that the GSP needs something else to direct his energies toward. GSPs get bored very easily without something to keep them busy. They can be quite inventive when it comes to keeping themselves occupied; unfortunately, many things that they consider fun (like playing with all the neat toys in the kitchen garbage can, unspooling the toilet paper, and pre-digging the new flowerbed) we consider destructive. The GSP is very people-oriented, sometimes to the point of being clingy. This breed needs human interaction and activity with people in order to be truly happy. They do the best living as part of the family unit, as a house dog, rather than as a yard or kennel dog. The GSP is not good with cats by nature. They can be trained to leave cats alone, and they can even share home space with cats, but their base instinct tells them that cats are predators. The GSP and GSP owner will both benefit from obedience training. The GSP is very intelligent and independent- minded, and this can lead to many pitfalls if not planned for. Many a GSP can be counted on to ignore a command if he doesn't feel that obeying the command is the proper thing to do at that point in time! Obedience training shapes the GSP, teaching him both control and confidence in obeying commands.

The GSP also tends to train easily, as they are a biddable breed by nature. With all of that said, none of these items are insurmountable obstacles. The key to the greatest success lies in realizing that these things can exist, and being prepared to deal with them. The GSP is a very intelligent dog, and will learn a variety of tasks presented to him. They work well not only as hunting companions, but have done well in the show ring, in obedience and agility trials, as Search and Rescue dogs, as bomb and drug detection dogs, as sled dogs, and even as human patient therapy dogs. With proper care, the average GSP has a life expectancy of 12 to 16 years.

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