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The handsome chestnut-marked dog with the huge expressive eyes, bushy eyebrows and beard and that charming, characteristic disheveled coat could only be one animal—the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon. But that furry face is deceiving; under the Benji-like tousled tresses is a determined hunter whose magnetism is outweighed only by his superb instincts, high energy level and keen desire to please.
The strong hunting instinct and tousled look of the WPG is passed from generation to generation by responsible breeders.
PHYSICAL TRAITS
The Wirehaired Pointing Griffon is a medium-sized, double-coated hunting dog typically used for pointing and retrieving upland game but will track fur-bearing animals as well. The male weighs 55–70 pounds on average and is 22–24 inches at the shoulder; the female is generally 45–55 pounds and 20–22 inches at the shoulder. Only the French disqualify for height, meaning if the dogs don’t fall within range, they are disqualified—50–55 cm for females (with a “tolerance” for a 56-cm bitch if she’s exceptional) and 55–60 cm (with a tolerance of 61 cm for males). The dogs aren’t measured in the show ring in the United States—if a dog falls half an inch or so above the height for the standard, the judge would have to have a keen eye to notice it. Some of the European WPGs, often the German-bred dogs, are much larger than their American (or French) counterparts, though this is considered a fault. The dog should be slightly longer than it is tall, giving it a “rectangular” shape; it should not be a “square” dog.
The WPG’s outer coat is shaggy and coarse, and the undercoat is soft and insulating, a perfect combination for a hunting dog who works in heavy cover, marsh and water. The coat is resistant to burs and other prickly woodsy objects, though owners should go over the coat after each run in the field to make sure that it’s clean and free of debris. The dog often looks “unkempt,” which is exactly how this breed should look; even the best of conformation WPGs have a “shaggy” look.
According to the American Kennel Club standard, the coat should be “steel gray with brown markings, frequently chestnut brown, or roan, white and brown; white and orange also acceptable. A uniformly brown coat, all white coat, or white and oranges are less desirable. A black coat disqualifies.” The coat takes two to three years to fully develop. In a show dog, the nose should always be brown but sometimes occurs in pink as a deviation.
Ready for the hunt, the Griff is an all-weather, all-terrain, “do-it-all” companion in the field.
The tail is docked to protect it during hunting. It’s docked by one-third to one-half, still allowing the dog ample length to communicate with his tail. The breed’s natural tail is thin and sparsely coated, and can be easily injured in the field or home if undocked. In Holland and Belgium, a Griff in the ring cannot have a docked tail; the French are scheduled to adopt this no-docking law in 2008. The reason is humane. The French have already changed the standard for the tail by adding one sentence about its appearance. In many countries in Europe, it’s forbidden to cut the tail of any dog.
The ears are natural (untrained and uncut) and flap over the ear openings to protect the ears from injury while the dog is on hunt through tall brush. The hair inside the ears must be plucked regularly to prevent infection. Dogs that swim are particularly susceptible to this problem.
THE AGE OF ROBO-DOG
Studies at the Center for the Human-Animal Bond show that children who interact with pets benefit physiologically, socially and educationally. Dogs, in particular, increase children’s learning capacities and expand their abilities to function in social situations. Families with young children commonly add a canine to their homes.
Enter Robo-dog. Efforts to create a robotic canine companion are fast underway, and there have been some interesting results. It is the hope of scientists that the interaction between children and robotic dogs will shed light on the physical, mental, moral and social concepts of such relationships. Robotic dogs offer some advantages over real dogs—they don’t require food or water and never have accidents indoors. Even so, Robo-dogs will never take the place of real dogs—even George Jetson’s futuristic family included Astro, a real-live dog! It is curious that 21st-century humans would invest so much money and energy into inventing robots to do for us what dogs have been doing for centuries for nothing more than a pat on the head and a bowl of food.
How the Griff moves is of particular importance as well. The WPG is expected to cover ground tirelessly at medium speed and have perfect coordination between front and rear legs. According to the French working standard for the breed, “The general running style of the Griffon is that of a galloper, with a slight rocking movement from front to rear around the center of gravity. The feline pace, supple and skimming gallop is characteristic.”
One distinguishing Griff characteristic is his bushy beard and the ability of the dog to soak up what seems like an entire bowlful of water into his beard and then slop it around the house and on every human leg he comes in contact with. Where there are thirsty Griffs, there are puddles of water.
TEMPERAMENT AND PERSONALITY
Goofy, funny, serious, aloof, driven, energetic, passionate, faithful—all of these words describe the Griff. As with any breed, personality and temperament vary with the individual, but one thing is for certain—WPGs are people-oriented dogs, easy to live with and as comfortable in a home setting as they are in the field. Many people who are used to more “hyper” breeds are pleased with the Griff’s ability to “settle” once inside the home. This isn’t a bounce-off-the-wall breed, though a WPG that doesn’t get enough exercise or attention can certainly do some damage to a home in an effort to entertain himself or burn off some excess energy.
On the hunt, the Griff is a “team player,” keeping track of his human companion. It’s a close working breed, much different from some of the other pointers. They tend to “check in” with their humans during a hunt and range according to the type of cover—farther in lower brush, closer in dense or taller brush. Some individuals can be “run-off” dogs, but that isn’t the norm.
The WPG is known to be great with children and is generally happy to meet guests. Individuals can be bouncy when excited but if trained correctly will calm down easily. They make good sentries but aren’t great guard dogs in general; they may be more interested to see if an intruder has a treat than protect the house from him. However, some individuals can be quite possessive and will not allow intruders to cross their boundaries, protecting what’s theirs. They have a high tolerance for human activities, which makes them easy to keep. They will perform in the show ring on Monday, hunt on Tuesday and play ball all day with the kids on Wednesday.
A close and lasting bond is the goal of proper, early socialization with children. There are many wonderful fishing days ahead for these best friends.
Children should be taught to respect the Griff. The dog will tolerate a little tail-pulling and beard-grabbing from a small child, but he shouldn’t have to. In general, the breed is known as a good family dog, gentle and protective, but he has his limits. Most breeders prefer to place their pups with families who have kids
