Thoughts/advice on Wirehaired Pointing Griffons?

[nvsnowcock]

Hi All,

I am looking at getting my first dog of my adult life and have gotten pretty interested in Wirehaired Pointing Griffons. I've never been around one but like what I am reading and just want to check some facts before I go too far down the rabbit hole.

From what I'm reading, WPG's are somewhat more mellow and not as tightly wound as a German Shorthair or German Wirehair- is this an accurate statement in your experiences?

In general, both my wife and I are pretty passive agressive. I want something that is slightly less stubborn than me to make sure it will work out. Are WPG's fairly trainable for a newbie?

How do they do alone during the day? I work some less than ideal hours (leave the house at 3:45 AM and get home after 5 PM) and my wife works banker's hours. We live in town and have a decent size house on a small to medium lot. I fully plan on taking the dog out for a run or playing in the empty lot behind my house daily with regular outings either chukar hunting or hiking or hopefully chasing sheds on the weekends. Will this be enough exercise to keep a WPG content, or am I going down a path that won't be fair to the dog?

How do they do in the heat? I've seen mixed reviews saying that they aren't bothered by some folks and others saying they are absolutely miserable. I'm here in Northern NV and it gets pretty warm in the early season/all summer. Any experience out there? Has anyone ever shaved their WPG down for the summer and then just let it grow out for winter? Is there some reason that they wouldn't do well with a good haircut?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Jason Snyder]

I don't have a WPG, but I do have a GWP. Here's my take.

My dog is a GREAT family and house dog. He has lots of energy and craves attention. I firmly believe social time with these dogs is nearly as important as physical activity. I don't think he's tightly wound, he's just really smart and knows how to get attention. If he isn't getting positive attention, he'll get negative attention.

We crate him during the day when we're at work. I hunt him twice a week during the fall, pretty much October through January. I try to run him several days a week during the spring and summer. He loves to run with me when I mountain bike.

He does fairly well in the heat. I don't see why you couldn't shave him.

I found the GWP to be very intelligent and very trainable. I love hunting chukars and pheasants with him.

 

[LandYacht]

I don't have a WPG, but have two GSPs. I would echo what Jason said.

I'd add that 20 minutes of hard work or play for them will take their edge off. I have an acre and a half fenced yard for them and I still have to make sure they don't get into trouble. They are a year old now and I don't think they match the negative repuatation that GSPs are often labeled with for being hyper.

The last 4 days I've been out with them and have over 50 miles on them and they are quite content. The more you get to exercise your dog the less problems you'll have with chewing or finding unsavory things to let their energy out on.

My girls get crates maybe a couple times a month. They are the best family dogs. We have 4 kids from age 7 to 7 months and they are great with the kids and provide the security my wife loves. They are always around the kids when outside and watching for me to come home. I don't know how I functioned without them lol.

We have 13 chickens and a turkey and it's always fun to watch my bird dogs interact with our domestic fowl. Little bird entertain them for hours on end.

Good luck with your decision! It's a lot more work to always work with them then you'd initially imagine, but well worth it once things start to click. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Matt W.]

My first dog was a GSP. She was a lot of fun and smart as a whip. We haven't had a dog for a few years now, but are looking at a Pudelpointer for our next dog. Very much like a Wirehair. Worth checking out as you do your research.
http://www.talltimberpudelpointers.com/pudelpointer-history

 

[1hoda]

As for the heat it's more dog specific. I have two Elhew's - one can hunt all day in the early season and the other is a half day dog, even on mild days.

Any pointing dog is going to be higher energy. Make sure you are mentally prepared for that before you commit.

As for trainable - the single most important thing is to do your homework on the sire and dam. Spend some time with them in the field if possible before you commit. If the breeder isn't willing to offer that, move on.

Good luck and enjoy the new dog!

 

[4875]

Hello, I have a young WPG (he will be 2 years old in July).

He is pretty high energy in spurts (we also have a lab and compared to the lab he is definitely "high energy") but he lives in the house with us so it is certainly manageable. He is still a pup too. From the other Griff's I've seen I think he will probably get a bit more mellow as he matures.

He is quite smart and as posted above, if I don't give him lots of chores and training he will get into trouble.

We crate him all night but my wife works at home so we don't need to crate him much during the day. I would be a little concerned about crating any dog all day.

I live in Western WA so we don't deal with the heat much. I did take him to Cambridge ID on a chukar hunt, it was pretty hot, he did fine.

He is eager to please. This is my first pointer and versatile hunting dog and so it's all new to me but with a little help from some more experienced guys the training has come pretty easy.

The last thing I'll say is he is a big lover dog and very social. I have yet to see him posture with another dog, he is great with kids and I wouldn't trade him for the world.

Send me a pm if you want more info or the name of the breeder.

 

[Bughalli]

I've heard nothing but good things about them. Harder to find here in CA. If I was getting a new dog they would be very high on my list. I believe either Randy Newburg or Steve Rinella had a guy on their podcast that was a big upland hunter and now he exclusively hunts/trains with WPG. They had a discussion about what dogs might be best for certain situations and the WPG was a top choice. Find and listen to the pod cast, maybe give him a call.

 

[nvsnowcock]

Thanks for the input guys. What are you folks doing for daily exercise with your dogs? How long do you run them at night? How are you incorporating training into their workouts?

 

[LandYacht]

For around the house I do retrieving and scent work. We'll go on walks and bike rides as well. Plenty of time in the woods squirrel hunting, grouse hunting, and just enjoying the woods. Not much pheasant or quail around here sadly.

Took them sheep scouting last fall. Just got done cross country skiing into my elk hunting spots last week, it's gotta be some serious work when they dissapear into the fluffy white stuff off my trail.

One of their favorite things to do is run the back roads while I pace them in my truck or Cruiser.

 

[LandYacht]

They will run upwards of 20 miles when I pace them, but I usually keep them at 15 tops. They want to do more, but they are still just pups.

 

[Broomd]

I have two WPGs, male and female...I bred them in their younger days, there are many of their offspring all over the country hunting hard and enjoying life as fabulous family dogs. Mine are now 15 and 12 so those breeding years are behind them, but they are fabulous dogs. The best breed in the world!

I'd rather gab on the phone, nvsc, there is much to say about them and their attributes...drop me a PM with a number if interested.

 

[RallySquirrel]

SC,

I would take broomd up on his offer. Those are some nice looking dogs he has. Half the battle is finding someone who has nice dogs to begin with. They usually have done the legwork and know a little about who the go to breeders are. You might also check out your local NAVHDA chapter to see if there are any active members with WPG.

 

[hobbes]

I have a 2 yr old WPG female and a 7 yr old GWP male. The WPG is still a pup, so of course she's still high energy. I leave the WPG out during the day but my wife kennels the Griff if she's gone. They are both big time family dogs. They crave attention, maybe more so than the labs I've had. They are both very intelligent dogs, probably to the point of knowing more about me than I know about them.

The older male GWP has only been mine for one year, and was professionally trained so he's good to go on that end. He's a rooster finding, pointing, trailing, retrieving machine. Living inside with a family was new to him, but he adapted quickly. I have to watch him though because he is starting to become somewhat protective if he feels that anyone in the house is some sort of a threat to me or my wife. Some of that may come from the 6 years before I got him.

The female WPG is our baby. My family loves her as much or more than any dog we've had. She needs a lot of fine tuning or finish work. However, any flaws or bad habits she has is more my inadequacy as a trainer than any fault of hers. She also does well finding birds but the puppy shows through sometimes in the way of excitement. I've read that 2 yr olds can be the worst. She only hunted a few times season before last. I hunted her quite a bit this season and was very pleased with her improvement, but again........she had her puppy moments. I'm planning to start putting some control on her now that she's more than developed a mad desire to find birds. I like that she's not a bootlicker but with her inexperience and the way these wild roosters act, she needs to be dialed back in some for the way I like/need to hunt. Right now all it takes is a couple days hunting and she slows down.

Kassie is my first WPG, but I think its clear that a WPG craves human interaction. I do not believe they are a dog that needs to be stuck in a kennel alone day in and day out without interaction. I am incredibly pleased with the breed and will have another at some point. It's likely that I'll allow her to have one litter if she continues to impress me and I can find a stud that I like and that works out financially

 

[LifeAndLiberty]

How do WPG's compare to Labs for Waterfowl hunting? How are they with shedding compared to the typical hunting dogs? My wife is allergic to short haired dogs (her brother's labs make her itch) and I really want a bird dog. But I'm more of a waterfowl hunter than an upland guy.

 

[Broomd]

WPGs are damn fine blind dogs...they are strong swimmers with webbed feet and their durable undercoat keeps them warm.
Their retriever instinct is every bit as strong as a lab or spaniel.
Griffs are known for very minimal shedding, no comparison with a lab.

We lived in Alaska for years and loved hitting Valdez for the pink/silvers run. One year we were walking the shoreline near Allison Point at about 3am--we were looking for snagged spoons. It was still dim light outside in AK, and there was an old lady smoking a stogey in her nightgown (if you can believe it). She was chunking a bobble and bait for silvers.
She wrung it out there and her large float sailed off her line and into the far distance, and she cursed her bad luck--it was her last float
I told her we'd get it...and she scoffed. I instructed Alf, my griff to 'fetch' and he eyeballed the horizon and locked onto the distant float; he dove into the ocean and swam out into the cold, incoming tide.

He gently mouthed the bobbing float and swam it back to shore where he dropped it. The amazed old lady was waiting with praise and hugs for him....


Picture is one of our sold pups "patches," a fine waterfowl dog...

 

[WyoElk]

I have a 5 year old female Griff and Broomd summed them up pretty well. Mine is not turned off by cold icy water at all and is quite a retriever. When I kill pheasants over my griffon and lab the griffon always retrieves the birds while my lab just hangs out. In the heat she does fine, you can tell she gets warm but hunting pheasants in the upper 50's or low 60's all day is no problem. In the summer we put out a kiddie pool and mine will lay down in it for hours. She is pretty goofy when the pool comes out.

Ours doesn't shed much but her hair type can be a bit messy. She brings in a lot of grass and junk from the yard. When ours drinks she likes to submerge her entire snout so it's a bit of a waterfall when she first pulls her head out of the water bowl. All in all its not bad but she can definitaly be a pig.

We had GSP's before and went to the griffin due to their reputation of being a little more mellow. Ours is a family dog first and a hunting dog second and she excels at that. My kids toture the poor girl and she is always patient with them. Today they were jumping onto her from a standing posture and she just laid there and let them. She is super affectionate with me, not so much with my wife. She is 100 percent sure she is a lap dog and climbs into my lap any chance she gets. I sometimes think she has some slight seperation anxiety as well so I'm not sure if that's just with my dog or common to the breed.

Ours likes to chase a ball which is fairly easy daily exercise but she will gladly go hiking or running if she gets the chance. The only issue we have is when it's snowy she will get snow build up in her feet. You can tell it starts hurting her so I just pick her feet up and pull the snow buildup out and she good for a while. We have used a product called "mushers secret" which helps keep snow from sticking to her feet.

Ours has definitaly mellowed as she has aged but she was never too wild or out of control. I really enjoy the breed and think we may have more in our future. As someone above mentioned, they yearn for a human interaction so they may not be the best hardcore bird dog but it sounds like it would suit you guys well.

Let me know if you have any other questions or want some photos, sorry for the long winded response.

Josh

 

[jaredgreen]

I've got a GSP, a GWP, and a WPG. The Griff is a pup, just turned a year. She is definitely less independent than my other two. I have yet to need a collar for her- I'd never see my shorthair again without one! Much calmer around the house, and the best natural marking ability of any year old I've ever owned, including three labs. Destructive if left alone for long periods (crating is a good idea if possible)
Be very deliberate about socializing. Breed is know for being cautious which can quickly turn to timidness if not properly socialized. Hunts very close to gun, hoping for more range with age. Strong desire and natural pointing instincts. Least stubborn bird dog I've owned to date.

 

[Broomd]

Well said, guys.

Wyoelk, you exactly described our dogs too. Amazing. And they are total slobs at the water bowl. We find that grabbing the scissors once in awhile to trip the beard helps with that.
In the 26 1/2 combined age years of owning our two dogs we have yet to see them aggressive at any human, ever. They channel that to the birds.
Very intelligent. I taught Alf to fetch slippers in 15 minutes. At first he'd bring wife's high heel or flip flop. but then he got the memo I wanted my slippers, he had it. And he got rewarded with treats for that...funny thing is, he quickly realized that if he brought one slipper at a time, he got double the treats.
When we brought him to agility training as a young dog, he was pretty aloof wanting to play with other dogs rather than learn, but after about a half hour there he had the course down cold.
The other dogs owners were clearly miffed that he could master the detailed course in mere minutes, and not miss a single exercise. (Those dog owners can be pompous jerks)....we didn't go back for a while, but when we did, several there had griffons!

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that with the WPG breed, the males tend to be the more docile of the sexes...They do need human interaction though, a WPG that has little attention will likely have anxiety issues. I've never seen it, but know those who have.

 

[Cross]

How do you guys feel about the WPG on the ability to be guard dog (in addition to a family/hunting dog) I have a lab mix now and as annoying has he can be, he is great with my daughter and will bark at sounds that aren't part of the normal day. Makes us feel pretty safe, and lets me know when I need to check up on things.

 

[Broomd]

Cross, our female has a ferocious bark in the house with strangers approaching, and when in the car she can be protective and come off like a bad ass, but frankly I don't think it would amount to much if someone actually did break into the house or car.

Griffs are social creatures and inherently enjoy humans. if an owner were attacked that could change, but again, I haven't experienced anything like that.