Breed History of the German Shorthaired Pointer
Breed Controversy
At
the start of the eighteenth century there were still only small numbers
of pointers in Germany; for example, in the famous Sonerhausen kennels
there were only three pointers in 1714. One hundred years later each
forester in this district was obliged to keep two pointers for the use
of his employer. During this century great numbers of breeding
experiments were carried out by the Germans to improve this or that
quality in their dogs. We know very little of these experiments of
necessity, since they were essentially private and uncoordinated. But
there is no doubt that various crosses were tried with dogs that were
more indigenous to Germany. Luckily the results were not so permanently
unsettling as the introduction of foxhound blood was in the case of
pointers in England.
Thornhill, writing in the The Shooting Directory
in 1804 says, writing presumably about the heavy type of Spanish
Pointer, which seems to have kept its identity in England for longer
than the lighter type which already was merging into the so-called
English Pointer:
"With
respect to the Spanish Pointer, he is of foreign origin, as his name
seems to imply, but is now naturalised in this country, which has long
been famous for dogs of this description; the greatest attention being
paid to preserve the breed by many sportsmen in its utmost purity. This
dog is remarkable for the aptness and facility with which it receives
instruction; indeed it may be said to be self-taught. The English
Pointer on the contrary is very difficult to be broke in, the greatest
attention being necessary to complete his education. A cross between
these produces capital dogs, which are much esteemed for their
goodness."
William
Arkwright, to whose classic tome on the English Pointer I am indebted
for much of my material, passes the following comments on the
introduction of foxhound blood into the pointer breed, initially it is
thought by the celebrated Colonel Thornton:
"But
it was in the last years of the eighteenth century that the crying sin
against the pointer was committed, by matting him with the foxhound.
Had he been crossed once more with the tender-nosed, sagacious,
southern hound, the effect would not have been disastrous; but the
dashing, harum-scarum foxhound was an exemplarily mischievous
selection. I suppose that the idea of this cross originated from a
superstition, indulged in by many, that the foxhound was a sort of
'chosen' dog; and that it culminated in our own day in the efforts of
fanciers to engraft an untypical appearance on the pointer for show
ring purposes. In the beginning there was no concealment about the
matter; the cross was discussed with perfect frankness, though of
course the 'hound like' appearances were obliterated as soon as
possible. Latterly, however, the process was reversed, for great
reticence was displayed in acknowledging hound blood, though hound type
was openly advocated. It was very unfortunate that Colonel Thornton
should have succeeded so soon in breeding such an exceptional dog as
the celebrated Dash; this was an extraordinary worker and was sold for
a sensational price - enough to set half the breeders in England crazy
to try the same experiment in breeding."
Dash
was sold to Sir Richard Symons for one hundred and sixty pounds worth
of the best champagne and burgundy, a hogshead of claret, an elegant
gun, and another pointer, and the stipulation that if any accident
befell him which incapacitated him, he should be returned to the
Colonel for fifty pounds. In fact he did break a leg; the Colonel took
him back as a stud dog, but he proved useless and never produced a good
puppy. All the pundits who had predicted that this was the likely
result of such a cross were proved correct.
Arkwright
was very incensed at these crosses, and it is interesting to note that
even when his book was written in 1901, the controversy over gundogs
being spoilt by some breeders who were only breeding for looks rather
than working ability was well established:
"As
long, however, as pointers were kept for work alone, the hound cross
was comparatively harmless to the breed; for when a dog was a failure
at his business he was, of course, not bred from. But when the shows
set up an artificial standard of looks, when the Kennel Club did not
require a certificate of work from a prize-winner, when the gate was
opened to the Stud Book, pointers received a blow from which they may
never recover - they lost their prestige. For when many sportsmen found
that they could only get unruly hound-pointers, they discarded dogs
altogether, took to other methods of shooting, and now their desire for
even good ones is practically extinct.
Let
me repeat that to cross a pointing breed with a non-pointing breed is
to reduce the pointing instinct by one-half, and, therefore in breaking
the mongrels the pointing that should come naturally has to be taught
by severe and laborious lessons. The same applies even more so to
backing. The reason why the breed of pointers at the present day
surpasses the pied breeds is that they haven't been crossed. Be it far
from me to deprecate the foxhound, a perfect dog for his own work, and
I should consider an infusion of pointer blood into him just as
objectionable as the converse.
I
am convinced from my own experience that the foxhound cross has proved
disastrous to the sporting value of those families of pointers into
which it has been introduced, as might indeed be expected when one
considers the very different branches of sport in which the two breeds
are used. I myself have tried many of these dogs, 'with a dash of hound
in them,' and have found, when they work, that they take much more
breaking than pure pointers, being unruly, uncertain, jealous of
backing, hare-chasers, and chasers after foot scent in preference to
body scent. Of course there are brilliant exceptions, but they are
exceptions, and even from such there is no certainty in breeding."
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