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January 2010
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The Weimaraner
by
Luanne "BeaglePup" Bragg
THE Weimaraner a/k/a The Gray
Ghost. Although is recent years
thought of as a pointing upland
game dog the Weimar was
originally bred in Germany to
hunt bear and wild boar and also
to retrieve waterfowl. The
Weimaraner is a centuries old
breed which appears in paintings
by Van Dyke in the early 1600’s.
There are various theories on
its original origin. Some feel
that it is the result of
albinism that overtook some
ancient German pointing dogs;
others feel it is a descendent
of the German hound and still
others feel it is the fruit of
crossings overseen by the Grand
Duke Karl August of Weimar
between a regular pointer and a
certain yellow pointer.
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The
Weimaraner is a striking animal. The
males will range between 24 and 28
inches in height and the ladies will be
slightly shorter. Males should weigh
between 70 and 85 pounds and the females
should not exceed 80 pounds in weight.
The lean head should be long and broad
above the brow with a long muzzle. The
nose should be flesh colored and almost
blend into the face. The eyes must be
amber to yellow in color but blue-gray
eyes are seen but considered a fault.
The Weimar should have an intelligent
expression. The ears should be long,
broad and rounded. Tails on the breed
should be docked (1 ½ inches at that
time) and dew claws removed very shortly
after birth. The body should be long
and muscular with refinement noticed.
The coat is very short and the breed
sheds very little. All shades of gray
are acceptable and the head and ears
should be slightly lighter in color.
This is
not a breed for everyone. They tend to
be very stubborn and strong willed.
This breed has energy to burn and
required room to run and exercise.
Weimar’s need firm, thorough training to
control its tendency to dominate and be
aggressive. They make great watchdogs
and are good with children of their own
family.
The breed
has very few health problems which
include bloat (as can be common in
larger dog breeds) and occasionally hip
dysplasia
With the
proper training the Weimaraner can be
used to hunt in the field or in the
water. Fact is, your author’s Weimar’s
absolute favorite thing to point is Bull
Frogs……and he is a relentless guard dog.
Luanne
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