Quick Links: Table of Contents
- German Longhaired Pointer Breed Overview
- History of the German Longhaired Pointer Breed. Where German Longhaired Pointers came from
- What the German Longhaired Pointer Looks Like
- What Colors do German Longhaired Pointers Have?
- German Longhaired Pointer Litter Size
- How Fast German Longhaired Pointers Can Run
- Health Problems in German Longhaired Pointers and How to Prevent Them
- Dog Breeds That Are Similar to German Longhaired Pointers
- Other Things to Know About German Longhaired Pointers
German Longhaired Pointer Breed Overview
The German Longhaired Pointer is a large-sized dog.
The adult German Longhaired Pointer stands 23 to 28 inches.
The German Longhaired Pointer belongs to the Sporting Dogs group.
Dogs in the Sporting Dogs group, like the German Longhaired Pointer, were bred to help hunters catch and retrieve feathered game. Some sporting dog breeds such as Retrievers, which were built for swimming, were bred to hunt waterfowl in water.
Whereas sporting dog breeds like setters, spaniels, and pointing breeds were bred to hunt quail, pheasant, and other game birds nest on grasslands.
Many Sporting Group breeds have thick, water-repellent coats that protect them from harsh hunting conditions.
The fact that German Longhaired Pointers belong to the Sporting Dogs group is one of the reasons why German Longhaired Pointers have the personality and temperament that they have.
The temperament of the German Longhaired Pointer is generally described as:
- Affectionate
- Familial
- Friendly
- Gentle
- Intelligent
- Kind
History of the German Longhaired Pointer Breed. Where German Longhaired Pointers came from
Because the German Longhaired Pointer was a slow-moving dog at first, German breeders began incorporating setters and English Pointers into their lines in the nineteenth century.
The German Longhaired Pointer`s speed improved after adding these other breeds.
He is descended from bird, hawk, and water dogs, as well as scent hounds, also known as Brackens in Germany.
He was born in Germany.
The first German Longhaired Pointer was shown in Frankfurt in 1878, and the first breed standard was written that year.
its exact date of birth is unknown, but pure breeding of the German Longhaired Pointer has been going on since 1879.
Baron von Schorlemer wrote the breed standard that was officially adopted in 1897.
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What the German Longhaired Pointer Looks Like
The skin of the German Longhaired Pointer should be close to the body and wrinkle-free.
Excessive skin will impede its ability to work.
Despite being a longhair breed, its hair should not be too long or too short.
Hair that is too long will cause problems when he goes hunting in the brush.
its body hair has a slight wave, but it is not as wavy as the hair on its ears.
its underbelly should have medium-length hair and a bushy tail.
He has brown eyes and a brown nose.
The German Longhaired Pointer is available in a variety of colors, including brown, roan, brown roan, dark chocolate, white, and chocolate.
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What Colors do German Longhaired Pointers Have?
German Longhaired Pointers come in the following beautiful primary colors:
German Longhaired Pointers come in the following lovely secondary colors in addition to their primary colors:
German Longhaired Pointer Litter Size
Researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science did a study where they counted the numbers of puppies in 8 different German Longhaired Pointer birth litters.
From this study, the researchers found that the average number of puppies that German Longhaired Pointers can have is 7 puppies. Also, the German Longhaired Pointer can have as few as 5 puppies per litter and as many as 12 puppies per litter.
The number of puppies that the German Longhaired Pointer will have depends on factors such as the age of the German Longhaired Pointer, the method of pregnancy, etc.
Click here to see our calculator for predicting how many puppies your German Longhaired Pointer will have and how the litter size of the German Longhaired Pointer compares to the litter size of other dog breeds.
How Fast German Longhaired Pointers Can Run
How fast a dog breed can run is a good measure of how athletic the dog breed is.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) regularly conducts dog running competitions. The AKC records the running speed of competing dogs in these competitions. These competitions are open to all dog breeds.
Based on our analysis of the speeds of 1 different German Longhaired Pointers, the average speed of the German Longhaired Pointer is 26.4 mph (42.4 kmph).
The fastest speed on AKC record that the German Longhaired Pointer ran in a race is 26.67 mph (42.9 kmph) and the minimum speed on record in a race for a German Longhaired Pointer is 25.75 mph (41.4 kmph).
Click here to see how the speed of the German Longhaired Pointer compares to the speed of other dogs and other mammals such as cats, horses, humans, etc.
Health Problems in German Longhaired Pointers and How to Prevent Them
Every dog breed has its own set of health problems that it tends to develop. There is nothing like a perfect dog breed.
The German Longhaired Pointer is prone to certain genetic health conditions. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) is an organization that keeps track of genetic health problems in dog breeds.
From the extensive records that the OFA keeps, the OFA knows what health problems each dog breed is naturally prone to develop.
Hence, the OFA recommends which health screening breeders should perform on a dog breed to make sure that the breeders won`t breed `defective` dog parents that can pass down defective genes to their puppy offspring.
If you want a German Longhaired Pointer puppy that will grow up to be healthy, make sure that your German Longhaired Pointer breeder screens your puppy or your puppy`s parents for the health problems that the OFA recommends for your puppy`s breed. This will increase the chances that your puppy is free from genetic defects.
The following are the health tests that Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) recommends that breeders should screen German Longhaired Pointers for:
You can find out more about OFA`s recommended tests for German Longhaired Pointers here.
Dog Breeds That Are Similar to German Longhaired Pointers
If you have not made up your mind on which dog breed to get, you may also want to consider some other dogs similar to the German Longhaired Pointer.
We crunched the numbers and found that the following dog breeds that have similar behavior and temperament as the German Longhaired Pointer:
- Aussiedoodle (78 percent match with German Longhaired Pointer). Learn more about the Aussiedoodle here.
- Black Mouth Cur (77 percent match with German Longhaired Pointer). Learn more about the Black Mouth Cur here.
- Boxerdoodle (77 percent match with German Longhaired Pointer). Learn more about the Boxerdoodle here.
Other Things to Know About German Longhaired Pointers
Here are some of the very important characteristics of the German Longhaired Pointer that you need to know about the German Longhaired Pointer breed: