The German Drahthaar is a born hunter

• Drathaar

The Drathaar is a large hunting dog breed with a harmonious build. A dog with excellent working qualities that can withstand any bad weather and physical activity.

1. Country of origin : Germany
2. Height at withers : male: 61-68; female: 57-64 cm
3. Weight : 23-32 kg
4. Lifespan : 12-14 years
5. Use : Hunting, Companion Dog
6. Other names : German Wirehaired Pointer

Purchasing a Drahthaar puppy is a responsible and important act that you need to think carefully about before doing. This is especially true for those people who are going to become truly responsible dog breeders. The question of choice should be approached carefully and without haste, comparing your own habits, daily routine and the nature of the chosen breed. When the future owner has decided on the breed, a new dilemma arises: how to find a bona fide breeder? Here you need to be extremely careful not to become a prematurely disappointed dog owner.

Buying a Drahthaar puppy is a very exciting event, because you can say that a new family member will appear. To ensure that the event does not overshadow anything, it is worth taking a responsible approach to choosing a breeder. There are no bad dog breeds; you can simply run into an unscrupulous breeder for whom money comes first. The future owner is at great risk of buying an animal that has a lot of health problems. It is for this reason that you need, first of all, to get to know the breeder well, read reviews about him and the like.

A complete package of documents for a drathaar puppy

When buying a Drahthaar puppy from a kennel, you need to carefully check the required list of documents.

Veterinary passport , better than the international standard. This is the main document of the dog, regardless of the breed of the animal. It contains the necessary information about the owner and the pet itself. When purchasing a puppy, the passport must contain notes regarding treatment against parasites, as well as primary vaccination. You need to ask the breeder when the next vaccination is.

Kennel mark , which is usually affixed in the groin area or on the inner surface of the ear. Thanks to the brand, the dog can be accurately identified in various official cynological systems and the Russian Cynological Federation. A Drahthaar puppy from a proven, legally operating kennel cannot be without a brand. Therefore, if it is missing, there is no need to listen to fairy tales, but feel free to leave; buying from such a dubious place is not recommended. In addition to branding, breeders microchip their dogs, which indicates the high professionalism of the breeder. A pet without a chip cannot travel abroad with its owner, because having a chip is a prerequisite.

The pet's primary document is the drathaar puppy's metric , which is necessary for the further process of registering the pedigree. In this document, the following information is indicated: the puppy’s parents, breed, owner and breeder information, gender, date of birth, brand, nickname. The document must be certified by the seals of the kennel, as well as the kennel club. The person responsible for breeding work is required to sign the puppy's certificate. At the top of the document, you can read what canine system the selected breeder uses.

I WILL GIVE UP A PUPPY WITHOUT PEDIGREE...

In August, during one of the hunts, my assistant, the female fox terrier Mink, died. Died from wolf teeth. I lost a friend. Our house is empty. The way of life has changed.

Hallucinations appeared. Sometimes, sitting in a chair with a book, I suddenly noticed with peripheral vision how a white spot flashed in the doorway opening into the hallway. Sometimes I could clearly hear the sound of claws on the parquet. He looked questioningly at his family: “Did you hear that?” There was only one answer: “Yes, calm down... She’s not there...”

The dog bowl superstitiously stood in its place and I don’t know why. This continued throughout the fall and winter. But without a dog, I didn’t see my future hunts. Although Mink was a fox, he was not a mink hunter, and I did not seek to develop a narrow specialty in her. I called her “animal spaniel.” I consider myself a versatile hunter and am on the hunting grounds from August to February and April. And I need an assistant who is equally versatile.

In my youth, I was very gambling, I tried to get things at any cost, sometimes at risk to my health. He was more inclined towards animal hunting. The exception is woodcock. This amazing bird occupies a special place. But with age, restless passion transformed into the desire to get it beautifully, not in a hurry, but with purpose and order. I was looking for the same dog. And then chance gave me a chance. My wife, looking through the advertisements, among the “for sale” cats and hamsters, found: “I will give away a Drathaar puppy, without a pedigree.” There were no legionnaires I knew - there was no one to consult with, and I took a risk. Again for nothing. I had my eye on this breed for a long time, I liked a lot about it, but the word “cop” confused me. Some birds, Easter cakes...

I was still a beast hunter. The previous owner, giving it away, said: “Try it, maybe something will come of it. And if not, do as you please.” Gray, named after his color, appeared with us in January. The puppy turned out to be an eight-month-old, lanky, awkward teenager, about sixty centimeters. After Fox he looked like a monster. Apparently he was an “unwanted child.” The parents are workers, but their relationship was not formalized. Always hungry, his ribs visible through his fur, he couldn’t get enough to eat. Huge, he stole food from the table. But over time everything got better. He turned out to be understanding and quickly mastered the general course. Winter and March have flown by. The craving was approaching. And this means - we will hunt woodcock! Maybe I took the cop for his sake! What plans were made! There will be no need to feel around in the dark for a dead bird when you have such an assistant. Yes, a lot is possible. I went to the far corner of the region for the opening and spent two nights. In the suburbs they stand almost shoulder to shoulder. A rare woodcock will reach the middle of the clearing. In general, we arrived and stood in a familiar lowland. Gray was spinning under his feet.

I wanted to take the first woodcock and check the dog’s reaction. And here he is flying! Shot! Kulik falls. But where is Gray? The dog ran into the bushes after the shot! When I called him over, he approached, half-bent, tail between his legs.

Another one came. Shot. Gray darted to the side and disappeared! Wow! He is terrified of being shot! And the woodcock is pulling! Either take care of the dog, or shoot. Screaming and swearing, I catch the dog, drag it into the clearing and tie it to a bush. Another bird - shot. Drathaar rushes about on the leash, shaking him. Apparently he started vomiting from fear. I pick up the wounded, trembling sandpiper and place it at the feet of the cop. He jumped over the wounded animal and began to struggle, choking in the collar! Drathaar stepped over the sacred woodcock. He didn’t even turn his nose up! The dog did not understand where they had brought him and what they wanted from him. My state was close to hysteria. Cravings turned from a holiday into a nightmare.

Everything collapsed. No reaction to game, to the blood of a wounded animal and fear of being shot. I was furious. Why didn't I shoot him right there? I didn't lose anything. I got it for thanks. It was enough just to point the barrels and pull the trigger... I heard from many hunters how such situations ended. But how do you shoot a stupid young dog? This is too much for me. It was with a heavy heart that I left the dog. Just out of pity. The rest of the spring and all summer spent training on books. He was great at fetching from land and water, and I didn’t teach him this. What amazed me most of all was that he even walked in a shuttle while walking on the lawns! All the time I tried to teach the dog to shoot - I blew up small firecrackers. But this only made the situation worse. The dog was completely intimidated. I’ve lived with dogs since childhood, and I’ve been hunting for two decades. Now I didn’t know what to do.

In the fields surrounding the dacha there were a couple of broods of black grouse and corncrake. Drathaar passed through the fields in a magnificent shuttle, from the very first exit, and I did not teach him this! But during all his outings he did not raise a single bird! The dog was not interested in birds at all, he avoided cats... The male was one and a half years old, but what could he do? Bring sticks and prance beautifully across the field. Everything else is cons. The dog was perceived as a burden, and it was a pity for the time wasted.

It's already August. For the opening of the hunt, a friend and I went to a reliable swamp - a hole for ducks. Let's check the dog...

We walk through overgrown fields along the river, with a swamp ahead. The dog behaves like a gentleman in the open air. Cowardly nearby. If only I could stick my nose under a bush! Along the way we came to a small stretch of land, just a saucer, overgrown with sedge. Gray got ahead of us and stood by the water. And he became somehow strange, with his head raised high and his hind paw hanging in the air. He moved his head from side to side. The friend nodded at him: “What’s wrong with him?” I waved my hand doomedly: “You never know...” And at that moment the dead reach explodes with the flapping of wings and quacking. More than a dozen quacks rise from nowhere. I always have a gun in my hands, I don’t use a shoulder strap. A shot... one falls cleanly broken.

The second shot... The wounded animal, stretching out a little, falls into the grass. What about Gray? He looked at the dog cautiously. The dog remained as he stood, only lowered his paw. But a twelve-gauge shot fired over his ear! Just two weeks ago he was hiding from the pop of a firecracker, but now he didn’t even change his position! Out of excitement I whisper: “Grey, go ahead. Aport." The dog, after briefly looking at me, literally flew into the water. He grabbed the duck and sat down next to him. He dumped the bird into his palm and just breathed noisily. Afraid of scaring me off, I exhale: “Gray, look again. Forward!" Drathaar climbs into the water, breaks through the sedge, where he swims, where he combs the thickets with jumps. The wounded man flaps his broken wing to escape. The dog catches him, the bird hits his face with his wing, he intercepts the duck more comfortably so that the bones crack, and lifting his head high, comes out to me.

“Grey, give!” But the male dog is circling around us in excitement, wagging his tail, grumbling, and puffing. When trying to pick up prey, it turns away. Finally manages to persuade him. To celebrate, I slip him a piece of his favorite cookie, but the dog does not pay any attention to the treat, but only sniffs and sniffs the prey. He inhaled the smell of birds and game. He found out what kind of game she was! This is no longer a timid dog, afraid of every loud sound. This is a beast! Hunter! His posture even changed, he became tense, his eyes lit up.

I hug the drathaar, kiss him! My you are good! What a great guy you are! He breaks free and pokes his head towards the prey, trying to pinch it. Having calmed the dog and calmed down, we move on. In the swamp it turned out that we were too late. The larks were already combing the water's edge. Nothing to do. We decided to prepare an overnight stay for now. But for some reason the male lingered at the edge of the sedge, pulled and pulled, and stood. Just stopped. When I approached, he turned around with widened eyes, somehow scared. I commanded: “Forward!”, and a black grouse rose from under the dog’s muzzle! The rooster was still molting, and the shot was simple. Before serving, the dog carefully sniffed the unfamiliar bird for a long time. And now, when Gray finds black grouse, he will definitely turn around and look for me, as if saying: “Attention! This is real game! A habit was immediately formed. No other game evokes such emotions in him as the black grouse.

What happened to the dog? Obviously, the smell of game opened some kind of tap in the dog's heart. And all his instincts splashed out in such a flood that the young dog did not hear the shots that frightened him so much. Where did this little guy store these ancient instincts for the time being?

In the evening, as usual, we drank to the opening. Second toast to Gray! Now the opening of the season is also the birthday of the hunting dog.

The first thing I did when I returned from hunting was to drill out the lower part to the cylinder, now I will shoot from under the pointer. It’s scary to remember that I wanted him... Yes, I wouldn’t trade my Gray for any diplomas or pedigree.

Vyacheslav KHAUSTOV September 30, 2008 at 16:23

Drahthaar nurseries

Source - https://rkf.online/organizations?organization_type=3&active_rkf_user=false&activated=false

For more information, see the official website of the RKF.

Maintenance and care

German Wirehaired Pointers are active and energetic dogs, so keeping them in a city apartment is not advisable. A dream home for a pet would be a dacha or cottage with a plot, garden or forest within walking distance. Drahthaars have dense fur and can easily tolerate light frosts, so representatives of this breed can be placed in the yard, provided that you provide your pet with a warm kennel with double walls. But do not forget that if the temperature drops sharply (-20 °C), the dog should be taken indoors.

Individuals forced to live in apartments need good walking combined with sufficient physical activity. Typically, drathaars are walked twice a day, and each of these “excursions” should last at least 2-3 hours. You can include elements of training in your walk. For example, it will be useful for a dog to run a couple of kilometers.

Hygiene

The owner of the drathaar does not have to “dance” around his pet with a comb and slicker every day. The coat of this breed is not the longest and practically does not tangle, so it is enough to go through it with a brush once a week to remove dead hairs. But during the molting period, this procedure will have to be carried out more often, especially if the animal lives in an apartment. To do this, buy a brush with metal teeth, since other types with hard, “wirey” dog hair simply won’t cope. It is also useful to comb the drathaar after running through forests and swamps to free the fur from plant seeds and thorns. In addition, for additional protection of the dog’s “fur coat,” you can buy a pair of blankets and put them on your pet every time you go out with him for a walk.

You will have to tinker with the “mustache” and “beard” of the drathaar. While eating, the dog often dips them in the bowl; as a result, food particles get stuck in the fur, giving the animal an unkempt appearance. Accordingly, after each feeding, the pet’s face must be wiped with a rag, and in particularly advanced cases, also washed. If you don’t want to turn into a lackey for your four-legged friend, shorten the hair around his face. The drathaar's charisma will, of course, suffer from this, but you will be spared the need to be on duty next to the dog with a napkin.

German Wirehaired Pointers can be bathed up to twice a year, but in fact the animal takes baths much more often, for example, while hunting waterfowl. The dog's ears and eyes should be examined regularly for inflammation. If the drathaar's ear funnel is dirty, wipe it with a damp cloth or napkin. It’s a good idea to lift and straighten your pet’s floppy ear flap to slightly ventilate the inside of the shell.

Individuals that are often taken hunting need regular inspection of their paws. In the heat of pursuit, dogs often step on sharp branches, driving particles of wood into the soft surface of the pads. If cracks are found on the paws, this is a signal about a lack of fat in your pet’s diet. In this case, treat the pads with any nourishing cream, additionally including vegetable oil in the dog’s menu.

Once a month, drathaars are treated with antiparasitic agents, which is especially important for animals kept in open-air cages. During the period from March to October, the procedure can be carried out more often, as mites become active during this time.

Feeding

While domestic dog handlers continue to advocate natural feeding of wire-haired pointers, European breeders successfully treat their pets to “drying”. If you choose the second method, as it is less labor-intensive, please note that the food for the drathaar must be grain-free and contain a large amount of protein (from 30%). Some owners practice mixed feeding, when the animal receives dry food at one meal, and natural food at the second. This option is not considered ideal, but is accepted by most breeders.

The basis of the drathaar's natural diet is raw, lean meat and offal. At the same time, it is absolutely not necessary to feed the dog with tenderloin: German wire-haired pointers readily content themselves with trimmings or meat waste. You can dilute animal proteins in your pet’s diet with buckwheat, rice or oatmeal porridge, as well as fermented milk products. The dog’s digestion also treats seasonal vegetables quite favorably, if they are not potatoes, peas or beans. Sometimes the drathaar can be treated to a chicken egg.

Drathaar Health and Diseases

An active lifestyle and natural endurance do not protect German Wirehaired Pointers from a predisposition to a number of diseases. Most often, representatives of this tribe are diagnosed with hip dysplasia, diabetes and hypothyroidism. Aortic stenosis, melanoma and cataracts are also considered quite common ailments of the breed. In addition, drathaars often suffer from lick granuloma, eczema and otitis media.