Preserving Pudelpointers
Future of the First Purposefully-built Scruffy Brown and Bearded Hunting Dog
Published by Project Upland Magazine Fall 2021, print issue
One versatile hunting dog breed showing up with more frequency to training and testing days has a beard (most of the time); is all milk chocolate brown (unless it’s black); and has a shaggy, dense, coarse coat (or a super short and wiry one). How’s that for conformation for you? That about describes the Pudelpointer and what we hunters love about it: no one is precisely dictating what this breed is all about.
In the late 1880s, German hunters bred the best pointers and the best waterdogs, known at that time as Pudels. They worked a little trial and error over decades with minimal understanding of genetics. Eventually they made a water-loving upland machine with a goofy-at-home personality. The Pudelpointer was the foundation breed that created the Drahthaar first purposefully-crafted hunting dog (AKA the hunting man’s original designer dog).
“The Pudelpointer helped usher in the golden age of versatile hunting dog creation,” said Craig Koshyk of the Hunting Dog Confidential podcast. “It was built by forward-thinking hunters that refused to be handcuffed by traditional ways of breeding dogs.” “The Pudelpointer helped usher in the golden age of versatile hunting dog creation.” (the German Wirehaired Pointer to North Americans), which eventually outpaced the Pudelpointer in popularity. But today, the Pudelpointer population is again increasing, and many breeders and hunters see this as a crucial moment for the dog.
Koshyk has extensively studied the history of hunting dogs and reflected on the fact that at the time of the Pudelpointer’s development, Germany was emerging as a new power on the world’s stage. They were catching up and outpacing major countries in sciences, literature, and industry. They wanted to be like all the other major players and wanted to have their own home-grown breeds of dogs. A fierce nationalism and sense of independence abounded. “By doing so, they foreshadowed changes to come in society and dog breeding around the world,” Koshyk said.
Hunters within and outside of the Pudelpointer community know the dangers that come with being more visible and desired. This article explores a few of the philosophies as to what will dictate the future of the Project Upland Fast-forward to the 1950s when Sigbot “Bodo” Winterhelt left Germany and brought the Pudelpointer to the Western hemisphere. He also transported the concept of testing dogs based on their hunting aptitude along with emphasizing hunter ethics and responsibility to the game animals and dogs. With this theory in mind, Bodo and others founded the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA). NAVHDA developed into the premier testing system across North America for versatile hunting dogs, and the Pudelpointer has caught the eye of an increasing numbers of hunters. In 2020, it was the second most tested breed in NAVDHA events. This can be attributed to the breed’s close connections with the testing organization and the fact that many breeders advertise their stud dog’s NAVHDA scores providing a high level of transparency.
“The next 10 years, which is just a few breeding cycles, will really chart the course for this breed,” said Ruth Weiss, a Pudelpointer breeder with Boones Farm Kennel and a NAVHDA Senior Judge. “It’s definitely grown and spreading beyond hunters. I’m not crazy about that part, so now is a key time.”
Weiss emphasizes that yes, much of the responsibility for the future of the breed lies in the hands of breeders, but not every breeder aims for the highest standards. So that puts a lot of power in the hands of dog buyers to ensure the health and future of Pudelpointers.
“We get so many calls from people that just want a puppy, asking how much and how soon. I don’t even answer those emails anymore,” Weiss said. “Dog buyers need to do their homework, and a lot of it, to help in making thoughtful decisions on why they want a certain dog. They need to ask about all the potential health issues, temperament, style of hunting, personality, drive type, home life, durability, and longevity.”
If people want the future of Pudelpointers to stay in the hands of hunters, it comes down to responsible breeding and dog buying. There are numerous organizations that have formed in North America working to do just that, and these are some of the most passionate dog people you’ll come across. These guys and gals love to pore over dog genealogy and history. They intensely research breedings, nutrition, health, and the latest in dog medicine. They probably own quite a few shotguns, and they hunt. A lot.
“Yea, I’m definitely a dog snob,” said Daryl Pernat, an avid Pudelpointer owner and hunter who runs his dogs at some of the highest levels of testing. “The problem with dog people is that we [all] think we’re right and new dog owners have to sort through that.”
But fundamentally, Pernat says, all of the organizations invested in the future of the Pudelpointer want to see the same thing: they want to see the breed improve. “They want the average person like you and I to have amazing hunting dogs,” he said. “There will be different ways they’ll go about it, but most are dedicated to testing dogs and using a standard by which to have an objective manner determining if it should be bred.”
Many hunting dogs have breed clubs or associations that have established a standard a dog must meet to be considered for breeding. Standards vary widely but mostly describe the dog’s appearance (average coat, coloring, weight, height, etc.). Some organizations go a step farther, requiring that a dog pass certain health tests as well as achieve certain scores in hunting tests. These organizations often publicize the scores of sufficiently achieving stud dogs to support dog buyers in their research for high-quality dogs.
“When you look at the Pudelpointer, there was definitely a push to get the gene pool to be a little larger,” Pernat said. “Now we’ve started to get a good number of great dogs, so the bar setting the required breeding standard needs to go up. Dogs that are vetted before you breed them are going to be better hunters.”
One of the groups doing just that is the North American Pudelpointer Alliance (NAPPA). By choosing to be a breeder’s alliance and not a breed club, NAPPA is made of Pudelpointer breeders that choose to continue the genetics of females that have achieved a score of 105 in the NAVHDA Natural Ability Test and males must have a score of 175 in the Utility Test. NAPPA then publishes the dogs that have achieved these scores on their website to promote what they see as benefits to the breed and to help inform others. Tying the organization’s standard to the NAVHDA testing system provides an independent three-judge method to evaluate and score dogs.
“The future of NAPPA is to raise the performance standard, especially on the females, and we are working on what that might look like,” said Brandon Smith, an officer with NAPPA and Pudelpointer breeder at Evergreen Gundogs. “We want to be a unified group that can do great things for the breed and thus help the breed do great things for hunters.”
Bob Farris with Cedarwood Pudelpointers was around when the Bodo and these dogs first hit the United States. Over the years, Farris influenced in the breed’s direction extensively. He also helped lead in the foundation of NAPPA and recently handed the organization over to the next generation of officers.
“I think the best way to evaluate any hunting dog is on the chukar slopes or recovering a cripple in a South Dakota CRP field,” Farris said. “But in our modern world, we need organizations and alliances that focus on performance to create guidelines to hold each other accountable to breed good hunting dogs.”
NAPPA chooses not to require an appearance standard for its members but encourages Pudelpointer breeders to follow a reputable breed standard set by groups like the Verein Pudelpointer Club, Pudelpointer Club of North America, and North American Pudelpointer Society (NAPS). “With some breeds, you get to see certain dogs frequently in all the tests and trials, but with Pudelpointer, it’s a little harder to study the breed because there aren’t a ton out there,” said Jeff George, president of NAPS and Pudelpointer breeder at Ripsnorter Kennel. “I really want to see the dogs I breed to—see them work, and get a good feel for their personalities. I do want to see scores, but that’s not everything I make my decision on. I want to see the whole dog and so should dog buyers.”
George said he is starting to see a few things that worry him, such as some dogs with sharper personalities getting bred as well as those that run really high-strung, not having the prized off switch that many love in Pudelpointers. George said his primary advice to people exploring Pudelpointers is to check out the numerous organizations working for the betterment of the breed and meet with breeders in person.
Bringing it back to the idea that changes in the Pudelpointer world reflect societal shifts, Craig Koshyk notes the massive impact that internet-based communication is having on the future of dog breeds, especially those that are not very common. Social media, blogs, podcasts, and virtual publications have changed how people learn about dogs, connect with breeders, and educate themselves. People don’t have to physically be at every field trial and dog test to learn about what’s hot in the dog world. The old ways of evaluating and registering dogs are changing. Breeders, breed organizations, and dog buyers are making their decisions with a wider variety of resources than ever before.
“The Pudelpointer has always represented a new way of approaching old concepts that is willing to evolve. The people and organizations behind this dog are an example of that,” Koshyk said. “It’s an inspiration to those of us that love other rare hunting breeds.”
On a personal level, I’m your typical millennial example of the new era of dog buyer. I found the breed online, followed a bunch of social media accounts dedicated to it, saw a few hunt the Montana prairie, asked for recommendations, visited and interrogated breeders, and eventually proved to the breeder I’m a serious enough hunter to land me my very own Pudelpointer—Bannack. As I learn more about the Pudelpointer community I’m now a part of, I’ve been delighted to discover how intense this dog’s people are about keeping the breed focused on hunting performance and how they are adapting. I’ve also been surprised about the politics that surround the Pudelpointer organizations. There’s a lot of this in the dog world, but for those of us that just want an awesome hunting buddy, it can be frustrating.
I’d recommend sampling a bit of every group and talking with a bunch of people, especially those that disagree with each other. Work with what jibes with you, and dump the rest. This goes for advice and people. Much of what has been shared in this article could be said for any breed: careful and educated breeding for hunting results in healthier, happier furry hunters. Pudelpointers just happen to be a rarer breed than most in the hunting dog world, and much of their future is yet to be determined. If you’re interested in them, reach out to those of us that now have these bearded (most of the time) goofballs sprawled on our couches. Invest your time and money into those seeking to do better for the breed long-term. Then, maybe consider asking the question of how much and when you can get your hands on a puppy. After that, you’re in for an epic ride with an insanely awesome dog and its community.
