GSP History
Working Qualities
The hope that it might
be possible to preserve the unique working
qualities of the breed was the prime reason for
the formation of the G.S.P. Club in England by
the original members. The first German
Shorthairs to be introduced in any numbers into
England were brought back after the last war by
British Forces returning from Germany. When the
war ended in 1945, sportsmen with the British
Forces found that by far the most popular
shooting dog there was the German Shorthair. In
fact, apart from a few rough haired pointers
they were the only shooting dogs that were
available for purchase at all. Although the
majority of shooting men who purchased these
dogs had never had any experience of working a
dual-purpose dog, or for that matter ever even
seen one working, they very soon became
enchanted with them and realised for the first
time the great possibilities and advantages of a
pointer-retriever as a shooting dog. They became
so enthusiastic that when the time came to
return to England they cheerfully incurred the
considerable expense and trouble of shipping and
quarantine.
It was decided by
several owners to try and form a breed club, and
on July 26th, 1951, an inaugural meeting of some
seventeen owners was held in London. The club
has expanded and prospered with the years, until
ten years later and the breed is recognised in
England by both the authorities of the dog world
and by the public. In America, German Shorthairs
have been popular as a breed of gundog ever
since they were imported in numbers after the
First World War. They are particularly suited to
the kind of rough fresh "braque" blood into our
dogs - it could have a beneficial effect as some
are very good strains, from generations of dogs
bred entirely for working ability. This is not
to imply that there are not some excellent
working dogs in England at the present time, but
it is always possible to improve a breed by
selective breeding, as has been done so often in
the past, and as is clear from this brief
history of the German Shorthaired Pointer.
Reproduced from "The
Origins and History of the German Shorthaired
Pointer" by Michael Meredith Hardy.
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