JUst want to compare notes...Victor is more like a springbok then a dog in the traditional sense. Even when he lays down I think he looks more like a little deer. Haven't seen one at the dog park or on any forum. Lots of german shorthairs, but this is a different type of dog...my book called it the farrari (sp?) the race car of the pointers. I think I know why! somebody out there has to have one....Vic cant be the only "pet" that isn't in a bird dog kennel. His energy is unequaled to anything I have ever been exposed to. At a year he is finally calming down...but oh my was the last few months an experience.
English pointerS anybody got one?
- Thread starter smkie
- Start date
I don't have one, but i've heard of them. I've got a 3 month old Weimaraner. So i'm in pretty much the same boat you're in. I heard they are excellent bird dogs. I'd love to see a pic since i've never seen one except once on the net. Maybe they're not even close to the same type of dog, i dont' know much about them. Inform me if you will....
Victor is in my gallery...lots of pics. Pointers are not for the weak are they! If it wasn't for the dog park (we are going tomorrow) I don't know what we would have done his early months. He was a rescue dog from Save_our_strays. I found him on petsavers when he was 5 months old. At first I was horrified by how skinny he was, but he is coming along great. They are close to your breed, a bit smaller tho I think. I have seen some books that called them just the Pointer, but others that had his marking exactly were called English. I will check your gallery when I get back. Thanks for posting!
I had an English Pointer...but he died last year unfortunately 
. He was only 3 years old and went in for a simple leg X-Ray, and when given anesthesia, he went into a coma and never woke up. So, be warned...it does happen.
They are definately not the dog for everyone though, thats for sure! They are soooo active and energetic...Jackson needed to get about a 5 mile walk in the morning, a short stroll through town by lunch, and then a good 5-6 mile run in the evening! But, he had such a great personality...loved other dogs, cats, kids, anything!
I had never seen another English Pointer other than mine, and I don't think I have since! I rescued mine from a priest who was trying to get rid of him...he was underweight, timid, and had been kept outside his whole life when I got him at 5 months old.
. He was only 3 years old and went in for a simple leg X-Ray, and when given anesthesia, he went into a coma and never woke up. So, be warned...it does happen.They are definately not the dog for everyone though, thats for sure! They are soooo active and energetic...Jackson needed to get about a 5 mile walk in the morning, a short stroll through town by lunch, and then a good 5-6 mile run in the evening! But, he had such a great personality...loved other dogs, cats, kids, anything!
I had never seen another English Pointer other than mine, and I don't think I have since! I rescued mine from a priest who was trying to get rid of him...he was underweight, timid, and had been kept outside his whole life when I got him at 5 months old.
Wow..that sure is a great description! I wanted so much to compare notes because I have just never experienced a dog with this energy level. He has gotten me up and moving down the roads in my neighborhood, I haven't walked this much since my teens. Yet he is as gentle as a deer. He really loves other dogs..so this must be a part of the breed.
I am so sorry you lost yours. WE both got our dogs at the same age, in about the same condition. Victor was not timid though, I thought maybe he was attention deficiate hyperactive. That is about the best description of our first month together. Victor did have a terrible reaction to something when he was neutered. He swelled up with hives everywhere. Scared me so bad I almost drove him to the er. but i tried benedryl first and that took the welts down to splotches. He looked like he had been attacked by bees.
. VIctor is very smart, but getting him to slow down enough to learn hasn't been easy. He would down on command for a split second as many times as you asked ... but he just hit the deck and sprung back up. We gradually increased the time for praise and he began to get the idea.He came with so many bad habits ingrained. He wanted to snatch the toy away, get you to chase him was his favorite sport. He would put the toy on your leg and wait until u would reach for it then spring forward quite roughly. That had to be tackled first because of my grandchild. He plays gently now and has a soft mouth. He has to be very good at my Mother's for she will be 80 in june. I just can't have him racing through her house. He now knows to wait, down and be good. It is one of our greatest accomplishments. He guesses ahead to what he thinks I am going to say. I have to keep him second guessing to hold his attention on what we are trying to learn. When he wants my attention he will stomp his front feet and make a very faint whine.
My dog book called them the ferrari of the pointer class. . . He has been great for my Mary. That old dog is romping like her younger days. I was looking at his legs tonight while we sat together and thought this looks just like a deer's leg, about the same diameter and shape. If i imagined a tiny sharp hoof on the other end i think they would be created much alike. That is why I think of him as a springbok. Don't they have gorgous heads? I am going to sculpt one some day.
I am appriciative of your post. I want to learn more about the breed and some things u just don't "get" from the books.
I am so sorry you lost yours. WE both got our dogs at the same age, in about the same condition. Victor was not timid though, I thought maybe he was attention deficiate hyperactive. That is about the best description of our first month together. Victor did have a terrible reaction to something when he was neutered. He swelled up with hives everywhere. Scared me so bad I almost drove him to the er. but i tried benedryl first and that took the welts down to splotches. He looked like he had been attacked by bees.
. VIctor is very smart, but getting him to slow down enough to learn hasn't been easy. He would down on command for a split second as many times as you asked ... but he just hit the deck and sprung back up. We gradually increased the time for praise and he began to get the idea.He came with so many bad habits ingrained. He wanted to snatch the toy away, get you to chase him was his favorite sport. He would put the toy on your leg and wait until u would reach for it then spring forward quite roughly. That had to be tackled first because of my grandchild. He plays gently now and has a soft mouth. He has to be very good at my Mother's for she will be 80 in june. I just can't have him racing through her house. He now knows to wait, down and be good. It is one of our greatest accomplishments. He guesses ahead to what he thinks I am going to say. I have to keep him second guessing to hold his attention on what we are trying to learn. When he wants my attention he will stomp his front feet and make a very faint whine.
My dog book called them the ferrari of the pointer class. . . He has been great for my Mary. That old dog is romping like her younger days. I was looking at his legs tonight while we sat together and thought this looks just like a deer's leg, about the same diameter and shape. If i imagined a tiny sharp hoof on the other end i think they would be created much alike. That is why I think of him as a springbok. Don't they have gorgous heads? I am going to sculpt one some day.
I am appriciative of your post. I want to learn more about the breed and some things u just don't "get" from the books.
Don't it just make you wish you could run like that? Our lab Tate was like watching a concrete block run, and my friend Kelly has a coonhound something mix that is similar to TAte. Watching the pointer class run is like watching the olympics. I am really appriciating being able to watch this dog soar. He can cut on a dime too. When we were at the field trials with the labs sometimes we would have the pointer class go close to our test. The men and women would be on horseback. I think if you do have a pointer you have a moral responsibilty to take them where they can run often. To make one live in a little kennel except for hunting season should be a sin. I saw so many good labs waste their lives away waiting for their owner to come and show them attention. They think a dog is an object, not a soul. Victor almost went to a birdman in Oklahoma. I am glad that connie intrusted him to me. I hate the thought of him in a dog run. He so loves my bed.
I own an English Pointer/Boxer/Brittany Spaniel mix...quite the mix she is! Our last dog, Bishop, was A Labrador/English Pointer mix. I really do love that breed! They have what seems like endless amounts of energy, but can still be calm and quiet. Bishop was large enough that he was able to pull us on rollerblades (he had a harness on). Sunny has the brittany height and I run with her twice daily and then my brother takes her for a run in a field next door.
Our last dog, Bishop, was A Labrador/English Pointer mix. I really do love that breed! They have what seems like endless amounts of energy, but can still be calm and quiet. Bishop was large enough that he was able to pull us on rollerblades (he had a harness on). Sunny has the brittany height and I run with her twice daily and then my brother takes her for a run in a field next door.Wish I had some pictures to share. Growing up with English Pointers was the best! My step-father trained them as hunters for he and his friends, so there were a lot of
them for awhile. A litter of ten from his favorite gun dog kept us busy as kids. His pick of the litter, Cinder (black head and black flecks in her coat), was our constant companion. She got plenty of exercise as there were thousands of acres of rolling farm land to explore. She was a wonderful pet, and he said she was all business when it came to the hunt. When the farm cat showed no interest in her kittens, Cinder carried them one-by-one to her dog house and nursed them. (she had lost her newborns). those three kittens followed her everywhere. Looking back, I guess altering pets wasn't a high priority then.
them for awhile. A litter of ten from his favorite gun dog kept us busy as kids. His pick of the litter, Cinder (black head and black flecks in her coat), was our constant companion. She got plenty of exercise as there were thousands of acres of rolling farm land to explore. She was a wonderful pet, and he said she was all business when it came to the hunt. When the farm cat showed no interest in her kittens, Cinder carried them one-by-one to her dog house and nursed them. (she had lost her newborns). those three kittens followed her everywhere. Looking back, I guess altering pets wasn't a high priority then.
Thank you for sharing your memories with me!!! I know so little about the personality of the breed, and I don't see another one anywhere at the dog parks or on the forums that i have checked into. Victor is coming along nicely..Your dogs of your childhood sound marvelous..i wish he had a passle of children to help wear him out too! Cinder sounds like a special girl, the capacity of love just amazes me each and every day. I am sorry she lost her babies, and happy she found an outlet for her grief..She was quite a lady.