Pointer E-Book

Richard G. Beauchamp

• Herausgeber: CompanionHouse Books
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Serie: Comprehensive Owner's Guide
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 254

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2012

Beschreibung

An aristocrat bred for sports afield, the Pointer is the quintessential hunting dog, pure-bred in origin and unmistakable for his passion in the field. Bred and hunted in Britain for hundreds of years, this is a graceful, symmetrical and strong sporting dog. The Pointer is congenial and alert, making a terrific pet, a fine watchdog and an active weekend sports pal. Endowed with dignity, kindness and nobility, the Pointer possesses all of the desirable characteristics of a devoted companion dog. This Special Limited Edition serves as an excellent introduction to the Pointer, including a special section on the breed in the United States written by guest author WAYNE G. CAVANAUGH, and a lively chapter on the breed's characteristics and personality. Author Richard G. Beauchamp, respected dog show judge and breeder, also discusses the selection of a puppy, introducing the puppy to your safe home, house-training and obedience lessons. All of the basics of care and maintenance are detailed, including feeding the Pointer throughout his life, grooming, exercise and conditioning. Spectacular color photographs accompany a special chapter on preventive healthcare written by world-renowned veterinarian Dr. Lowell Ackerman, including such vital topics as selecting a veterinarian, spaying/neutering and preventing the onset of parasites and infectious diseases. Whether you are a newcomer to the Pointer or a long-time owner, this new volume will be a treasured addition to your dog-book shelf.

Leseprobe

Physical Characteristics of the Pointer

(from the American Kennel Club breed standard)

Head: Medium width, approximately as wide as the length of the muzzle, resulting in an impression of length rather than width. Slight furrow between the eyes, cheeks cleanly chiseled. There should be a pronounced stop.

Eyes: Of ample size, rounded and intense. The eye color should be dark in contrast with the color of the markings.

Muzzle: Should be deep without pendulous flews. Nostrils well developed and wide open.

Ears: Set on at eye level. When hanging naturally, they should reach just below the lower jaw, close to the head. They should be somewhat pointed at the tip.

Neck: Long, dry, muscular and slightly arched, springing cleanly from the shoulders.

Shoulders: Long, thin and sloping. The top of blades close together.

Chest: Deep rather than wide, must not hinder free action of forelegs. The breastbone bold, without being unduly prominent. The ribs well sprung, descending as low as the elbow-point.

Forequarters: Elbows well let down, directly under the withers and truly parallel so as to work just clear of the body. Forelegs straight and with oval bone. Knee joint never to knuckle over. Pasterns of moderate length, perceptibly finer in bone than the leg, and slightly slanting.

Coat: Short, dense, smooth with a sheen.

Feet: Oval, with long, closely-set, arched toes, well-padded and deep.

Back: Strong and solid with only a slight rise from croup to top of shoulders. Loin of moderate length, powerful and slightly arched. Croup falling only slightly to base of tail. Tuck-up should be apparent, but not exaggerated

Tail: Heavier at the root, tapering to a fine point. Length no greater than to hock.

Hindquarters: Muscular and powerful with great propelling leverage. Thighs long and well developed. Stifles well bent. The hocks clean; the legs straight as viewed from behind.

Size:Dogs: Height–25–28 inches, Weight–55–75 pounds. Bitches: Height–23–26 inches, Weight–44–65 pounds.

Color: Liver, lemon, black, orange; either in combination with white or solid-colored. In the darker colors, the nose should be black or brown; in the lighter shades it may be lighter or flesh-colored.

Contents

History of the Pointer

Deriving from the swift-moving hunters and scenting gundogs, the Pointer represents England’s quintessential pointing dog. Trace the Pointer’s development from England to the United States, where the breed became one of the nation’s top field dogs. Meet the foundation dogs and their breeders from around the US.

Characteristics of the Pointer

Whether the Pointer is a field dog or a show dog, he is first and foremost a companion animal. Get to know the characteristics of this remarkable sporting breed as a hunting dog and a house dog, and find out who makes the ideal owner for this active, intelligent, sometimes stubborn dog. Also learn about the breed-specific health problems that concern breeders and new owners.

Breed Standard for the Pointer

Learn the requirements of a well-bred Pointer by studying the description of the breed set forth in the American Kennel Club and United Kennel Club standards. Both show dogs and field dogs must possess key characteristics as outlined in the breed standard.

Your Puppy Pointer

Find out about how to locate a well-bred Pointer puppy for pet, show or field dog. Discover which questions to ask the breeder and what to expect when visiting the litter. Prepare for your puppy-accessory shopping spree. Also discussed are home safety, the first trip to the vet, socialization and solving basic puppy problems.

Proper Care of Your Pointer

Cover the specifics of taking care of your Pointer every day: feeding for the puppy, adult and senior dog; grooming, including coat care, ears, eyes, nails, teeth and bathing; and exercise. Proper identification is also discussed.

Training Your Pointer

Learn the principles of house-training the Pointer, including the use of crates and basic scent instincts. Enter puppy kindergarten and introduce the pup to his collar and leash, and progress to the basic commands. Learn about training a field puppy and devise a lesson plan for the pup’s first year of hunting.

Healthcare of Your Pointer

By Lowell Ackerman DVM, DACVD

Become your dog’s healthcare advocate and a well-educated canine keeper. Select a skilled and able veterinarian. Discuss pet insurance, vaccinations and infectious diseases, the neuter/spay decision and a sensible, effective plan for parasite control, including fleas, ticks and worms.

Competing with Your Pointer

Go afield with your Pointer and find out about the world of competing with pure-bred dogs under the different clubs. Here’s how to get started in trials, tests and shows. Explore conformation shows, field trials, obedience trials, agility trials and hunting tests.

KENNEL CLUB BOOKS®POINTER

ISBN 13: 978-1-59378-266-5

eISBN 13: 978-1-62187-008-1

Copyright © 2006 • i-5 Publishing, LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by photostat, scanner, microfilm, xerography or any other means, or incorporated into any information retrieval system, electronic or mechanical, without the written permission of the copyright owner.

Photography by Carol Ann Johnson and Michael Trafford

with additional photographs by

John Ashbey, Rich Bergman, Paulette Braun, Isabelle Français, Gilbert Studios, Graham Studios, Bill Jonas, Philippe Roca and Missy Yuhl.

Illustrations by Renée Low and Patricia Peters.

The publisher wishes to thank all of the owners whose dogs are illustrated in this book, including Erica and John Bandes, Barbara Cherry and Wendy Gordon.

Special thanks to Wayne Cavanaugh, Nona Kilgore Bauer and Philippe Roca for their assistance with this book.

Countries throughout Europe have developed their own versions of “pointing dogs,” but the breed that bears the name Pointer is the one hailing from England, shown here.

In The Natural History of Dogs, a fascinating and enlightening study of the development of the dog breeds of the world, authors Richard and Alice Feinnes classify most dogs as having descended from one of four major groups, all of which trace back to separate and distinct branches of the wolf family. These four classifications are the Dingo Group, the Greyhound Group, the Northern Group and the Mastiff Group. It is important to have at least a basic understanding of these groups, as very few breeds of dog are of pure descent; instead, they owe their widely diverse characteristics to an intermingling of the blood of as many as all four of the groups.

FROM HIS ANCESTORS…

It is believed that the solid-colored Pointers are the result of the cross that was made to the Greyhound many generations ago. On occasion, solid-color black, liver and, more rarely, orange and lemon Pointers may be seen. The highly developed eyesight of the Pointer can easily be attributed to the breed’s sighthound ancestor, as can a Pointer’s aloof and aristocratic demeanor.

The Pointer, whose ancestors are many and greatly varied, today possesses a purity and nobility that are all his own.

The Dingo Group traces its origin to the Asian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes). Two well-known examples of the Dingo Group are the Basenji and, through the crossing of several European breeds, the Rhodesian Ridgeback.

The Greyhound Group descends from a coursing-type relative of the Asian wolf. The group includes all those dogs that hunt by sight and are capable of great speed. The Greyhound itself, the Afghan Hound, the Borzoi and the Irish Wolfhound are all examples of this group. These dogs also are known as the coursing breeds or sighthounds, though they are not true hounds, as they do not hunt by scent. It is worth noting that the Pointer has been influenced by this group of swift-moving hunters.

The Italian Pointer is known as the Bracco Italiano, colored in chestnut, orange and/or white.

The Arctic or Nordic (Northern) Group of dogs is a direct descendant of the rugged northern wolf (Canis lupus). Included in this group are the Alaskan Malamute, Chow Chow, German Shepherd and the much smaller spitz-type dogs.

The Perdiguero de Burgos stands between 20 and 24 inches tall and weighs up to 66 pounds. He is known as the Spanish Pointer.

The Braque du Bourbonnais, in brown, liver or orange roan, is also known as the Bourbonnais Pointer, a handsome French hunting dog.

The fourth classification, and the one that is of special interest to those who wish to research the history of the Pointer, is the Mastiff Group. This group owes its primary heritage to the Tibetan wolf (Canis lupus chanco or laniger). The great diversity of dogs included in this group indicates that they are not entirely of pure origins, as they have undoubtedly been influenced by descendants of the other three groups.

The widely divergent descendants of the Mastiff Group are known to include many of the scenting breeds—breeds that find game by the use of their olfactory senses rather than by sight. These breeds include those we now classify as gundogs and the true hounds.

As man became more sophisticated and his lifestyle more complex, he found that he could produce dogs that could suit his specific needs from the various descendants of the wolf. Often these needs were based on the manner in which man himself went after game on particular terrain. The importance here is that man had taken control of the individual dogs that mated. Specific characteristics were prized, and inbreeding practices were employed to perpetuate these characteristics.

TROPHY MODEL

One of the legendary show Pointers of all time was Eng. Ch. Lune Prince, owned by Mr. T. Moorby. Prince was so revered by enthusiasts of the breed that he was used as a model by the Pointer Club for one of its trophies. During his career in the ring, he obtained 700 firsts and 33 Challenge Certificates.

One type of hunting dog that man developed retained the wolf characteristics of pursuing the prey until it was cornered and killed or chased up a tree. This practice is more or less typical of that group of dogs known today as our scenthounds. While their tenacity was held in high regard, the hounds’ willingness to continue the chase for miles, if necessary, often became rather tiresome for their owners. Thus was born a need for the hunting dog that never followed through with the chase or the attack. The dog’s job was not to do the hunting or killing but rather to assist the human hunter by finding the game and indicating his discovery to the hunter quietly so as not to scare away the birds. Furthermore, like any good assistant, the dog obeyed his master’s commands without hesitation.

A well-balanced pointing dog, the Braque Saint-Germain derived from the Pointer and is characteristically colored in orange and white.

The Braque d’Auvergne, one of the many pointers of France, stands 24 inches high and is marked in a black and white roaning pattern.

References have been made to the existence of this kind of dog as early as the time of the ancient Greeks. Written records point to the existence of a rough-coated breed of dog in Italy that signaled his discovery of game to the hunter by assuming a rigid position and placing his body in direct line with the find.

Today we think of the Pointer as a distinct breed of dog, but in fact the name refers to a dog that works the field in a distinctive manner, not unlike that described in ancient Greece. Countries throughout Europe developed their own unique breeds of “pointers” or “pointing dogs” based upon the demands made by their specific terrain. The results of these efforts can be seen in Italy’s Bracco Italiano and Spinone Italiano, Germany’s Shorthaired and Wirehaired Pointers, the Braque Francais and Brittany of France, as well as Britain’s contribution, the breed known simply as the Pointer.

A photograph from the turn of the 19th century, showing trained Pointers in the field. The photo was captioned “Waiting the Flight.”

Popular but controversial opinion has influenced many to believe that all of the pointing breeds owe their basic foundation to Spain and that the Pointer, as developed in Great Britain, owes its source exclusively to the Spanish Pointer, the Perdiguero de Burgos. However, many of Britain’s Pointer aficionados beg to differ.

Drayton Lady and Eng. Ch. Coronation, a brace of show and working Pointer bitches owned by Mr. H. Sawtell, circa 1935.

The Pointer and His Predecessors, written by William Arkwright of Sutton Scarsdale, near Chesterfield, England, is the most universally accepted work on the development of the Pointer breed. He began work on his book late in the 19th century and researched the material included over a period of 30 years. Throughout this work, Arkwright, while fully admitting the existence of a Spanish Pointer in England, maintained that the influence of the Spanish dog had little, if any, effect on the development of his chosen breed.

POINTERS ON THE CONTINENT

Every major European nation has produced its own version of the Pointer, with Germany and France leading the list. France has nine such breeds, including the multi-talented Brittany, Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, also called Korthals Griffon, and the seven Braques named for their regions, such as the Auvergne, Bourbonnais and Saint-Germain. Germany has six distinct pointing breeds, including the Stichelhaar, Weimaraner, Pudelpointer and the German Short-, Wire-and Longhaired Pointers.

Hungary boasts its talented Vizsla; Slovakia its Cesky Fousek; the Slavs their incredibly popular Dalmatian; Italy its Bracco Italiano and Segugio Italiano, both gaining fans in the UK; Spain its Perdiguero de Burgos and Navarro; and Portugal its Perdigueiro Portugueso. Belgium’s Shorthaired Pointer is considered extremely rare, as are the two Danish breeds, the Old Danish Bird Dog (or Gammel Dansk Hønsehund) and the Hertha Pointer.

ADAPTABILITY AND SOPHISTICATION

Hunting has demanded different skills through the ages, and the dogs that man has used in this pursuit have also changed. In the earliest stages, man hunted to obtain food and to get rid of dangerous beasts. As man developed his techniques, and hunting began to be regulated by the government, it became a sporting event and the duties of his dogs became increasingly complex. Those who fancy the Pointer as a hunter believe that their breed represents the highest level of canine adaptability and sophistication.

Lending credence to Arkwright’s belief is Anecdotes of Dogs, written by Edward Jesse, Esq., and published in 1880. Jesse wrote of the Spanish Pointer in England during his day and describes a dog so unlike the Pointer as we know it that it is difficult to associate the two breeds. “How well do I recollect in my early youth seeing the slow, heavy, solemn-looking, and thick-shouldered (sic) Spanish pointer, tired with two or three hours’ work in turnips, and so stiff after it the next day, as to be little capable of resuming his labors.”

In 1895 this rare black bitch, Leader, made a name for herself in the field. She belonged to breed expert William Arkwright.

Although he does go on to explain away the streamlining of the breed by a simple cross to the “fox-hound,” certainly one would question whether the so-called foxhound of that era had the conformation that would produce the lithe lines and increased speed of the Pointer as we know it. Arkwright not only dismisses the Spanish dog as the foundation of the Pointer, he also casts doubt on Spain as the origin of the pointing breeds in the first place. He refers to a letter written by the US Vice Consul in Valencia, Spain in 1900. In that letter the Vice Consul stated that pointing dogs existed in Spain for many generations and were the descendants of an original pair that were presented as gifts to the Spanish court “by an Italian prince.”

The famous Lloyd Price’s Pointer, named Wragg. This painting was published in 1881 and is an interesting comparison to the Pointers of today.

Sandford Dum Dum is an example of an old-time Pointer, produced from Foxhound and Spanish Pointer breeding.

Colonel David Hancock has researched this question of origin quite thoroughly in his excellent work The Heritage of the Dog, and the Drury book British Dogs revealed that the first record of the Pointer in Great Britain is the Tilleman painting of the Duke of Kingston with his kennel of Pointers in 1725. Drury describes these dogs as “…the same elegant Franco-Italian type as the pointing dogs painted by Oudry (1686–1755) and Desportes (1661–1743) at the end of the 17th century.”

Eng. Ch. Flagon of Ardagh was a top winner of the late 1920s/early 1930s. He added to his many honors two further Challenge Certificates in 1933, at the age of seven.

Finally, and contrary to what has been readily accepted by many theorists, research indicates that the pointing dog was well established in France long before the Spanish Pointer made its way to Great Britain. Moreover, those French dogs, very frequently seen throughout Great Britain, far more closely resembled the Pointer of today than the Spanish dogs.

DOG SHOW CONQUERED

England’s prestigious Crufts Dog Show has been conquered by the Pointer on two occasions, the first of which was in 1935 by Pennine Prima Donna, owned by A. Eggleston, and the second in 1958 by Eng. Ch. Chiming Bells, owned by Mrs. W. Parkinson.

OTHER INFLUENCES

“Horses for courses” is an old saying among British stockmen that has served as the basis for the development of many kinds of prized livestock. Translated in layman’s terms, this adage simply refers to choosing a breeding formula that will produce a horse best suited to work in the terrain of the region. This formula not only applied to horses but also was the basis upon which many of Britain’s outstanding dog breeds were developed. Often this practice required going to totally unrelated breeds for what was needed. At times a dash of one breed, a smattering of another and perhaps even a sprinkling of two or three others were necessary to complete the recipe for the ideal dog! Although this practice was not particularly something to be shouted from the rooftops, it is to what we owe the incredible characteristics of some of our modern-day breeds, including the Pointer.

THE POINTER’S RANGE OF SKILLS

The Pointer owes a good deal of the respect it enjoys among hunters to the popularity of what was called “wing-shooting” or shooting the game in the air. To accomplish this, a dog had first to locate the birds by scent and then alert the hunter to their presence by standing at point. When the hunter approached, or upon signal, the dog would flush out the covey and set the birds to wing. Although many breeds were accomplished at perhaps one of these skills, few could compare to Britain’s Pointer in the excellent manner in which they performed the entire range.

Perhaps the question of the Pointer’s country of origin will never be satisfactorily answered, but there is no doubt that the gene pool of its descendants is certainly diverse. Breed historians acknowledge that at least four crosses to other breeds were employed to bring about the Pointer as we know it today. The four breeds credited are the Greyhound, the Bloodhound, the Foxhound and, more surprisingly, the Bull Terrier.

This original painting of a Spanish Pointer by renowned dog artist Reinagle appeared in The Sportsman’s Cabinet in 1803.

At first reading, these crosses may seem to be somewhat bizarre choices. However, you will see how these crosses made perfect sense in our forefathers’ attempt to produce the ideal hunting dog. You will also see that these astute breeders had to take a bit of the bitter for the sake of the sweet. There are a number of problems resulting from these crosses that continue to haunt the breed today, many generations later.

This photo, circa 1930, was captioned “Pointers at School on the Moors.”

Nancolleth Billy Mischief was the name of this dog bred by Mrs. F. A. Rowe in 1931.

Rock of Ballymoy, a Pointer of the 1930s, was bred by Mr. G. Davies and owned by Mrs. M. V. Christian.

His Grace the Duke of Montrose was a renowned Pointer expert who owned one of the most important kennels in the breed. Two Pointers of his breeding are shown (foreground) in this photo taken at the 1930 Ulster Gun Trials.

REMARKABLE!

One of the most remarkable Pointers in the breed’s history was the dog Drake, who had been bred by Sir R. Garth and sold by him at what was then considered a “staggering figure” to Mr. R. J. Lloyd Price of Wales. The dog was then at the advanced age of seven years but was said to work the field far better than even puppies of the highest class. The speed at which he worked was such that he sent up a cloud of dust when he stopped to drop to the scent of game.

Let us look first at the Greyhound cross. There can be no doubt that the use of Greyhound blood gave the modern Pointer its speed, elegance and grace. The short sleek coat harkens back to the breed’s Greyhound ancestor, as does the long, well-arched neck, graceful underline and turn-on-the-spot agility. On the other hand, the Greyhound cross can plague the breeder with excessive refinement of head. A narrow front and rib cage, a tilted pelvis and excessive loin arch are also undesirable characteristics that sometimes appear in the Pointer.

The Pointer is not alone in its use of the ancient Bloodhound for its highly developed scenting ability and robust constitution. The undesirable features that accompanied those highly desirable Bloodhound characteristics, however, were the plodding movement, long rounded ears andstraight underline, with which Pointer breeders are still forced to contend.

Foxhound blood was also incorporated for scenting ability and easy maintenance. The well-developed rib cage and relentless endurance were positive assets as well. Such advantages were not without their price, however, as round bone, plain heads, long ropy tails carried vertically and houndy underlines plague the breed to this day.

There are probably few breeds more alert or persistent and determined than the Bull Terrier, and this is what the early Pointer breeders sought. However, the barrel chest, the overly broad front and the hard-bitten terrier eye and expression were contributions the Pointer did not need.

Despite such problems, the Pointer breed rapidly took shape, and the future of the breed was certainly given a major boost in the right direction by the aristocratic names who took up the breed: Lord Lichfield, the Duke of Kingston, Lord Mexborough and the Earl of Lauderdale, just to name a few.

Four early dogs are generally given credit for laying the foundation for all that was to come in the breed: Brocton’s Bounce, Stater’s Major, Whitehouse’s Hamlet and Garth’s Drake (who was said to be one-eighth Foxhound) were the names that dominated Pointer circles. Eng. Ch. Ranger, a dog owned by Mr. Newton, became the breed’s first bench champion, winning three first prizes at England’s premier events—Leeds and Birmingham in 1861, and the final award at Chelsea in 1863. Eng. Ch. Flash gained her title at Birmingham in 1865. The first field trial champion was Drake, born in 1868, bred and owned by Sir Richard Garth. Henry Sawtell bred and owned the breed’s first Dual Champion, Faskally Brag, who was also a sire of significant impact.

Stainton Startler was born in 1932 and won his first Challenge Certificate in 1933 at the Scottish Kennel Club Show.

Pennine Prima Donna, born in 1931, is not considered a champion despite having won 12 Challenge Certificates and even Best in Show (BIS) at Crufts.

In the end, British stockmanship produced an elegant animal, strikingly painted and blessed with exquisite balance and proportion. Of crucial importance was his unmatched ability to perform in the field. Here was a tenacious hunter willing to meet the demands of any job assigned to him. Descriptions such as “a paragon of the pointing breeds” and “a non-stop hunting machine” reverberated throughout the hillsides, sounding loud and clear across the English Channel to the rest of Europe and then across the Atlantic to America.

Jake’s Carolina Boy, an American-bred Pointer of the 1930s. He was owned by Miss Claudia Lea Phelps and won the Amateur Derby Stakes, held by the Pinehurst Field Trials Club in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

POINTERS IN THE UNITED STATES

English settlers coming to America, a country overflowing in game and open land, no doubt brought their superb hunting dogs with them, thus the beginning of the Pointer in America can be traced to pre-Colonial times. The first documented importations of Pointers began in the late 1870s, notably those of the newly formed Westminster Kennel Club, including their trademark dog Sensation, and the St. Louis Kennel Club, which imported a fast field dog named Sleaford in 1877. The famed Westminster Pointer, as history would have it, hardly lived up to his namesake: as a matter of fact, his “unsensational” show record reflects that he won his championship entirely under Westminster judges and was sold at auction for $35, not an impressive sum even back then. Some other famous imports of this period were: Bow, imported by T.H. Scott; Meteor, the first small Pointer who excelled as a stud dog, imported by the St. Louis Kennel Club; Faust, imported by S.A. Kaye; and Croxteth, brought over by Rev. J.C. MacDonna in 1879 and sold to Mr. Dodeffroy of New York. This young dog improved the quality of American Pointers, being a better size and shape than the dogs in the States, with stronger bone, more muscle and a long, lean head, different from the cloddy heads imported by the others.

WESTMINSTER COAT OF ARMS

The Pointer became the symbol of the nation’s most prestigious dog show, the Westminster Kennel Club show. The club’s first English import, “Sensation,” is used as the club’s logo. The Pointer took the honor of Best in Show at that show three times during the 20th century. The first Pointer to win Westminster was R.F. Maloney’s Int. Ch. Governor Moscow in 1925. The second of these victories was claimed by Ch. Nancolleth Markable, owned by the famous Giralda Farms, in 1932. Over 50 years later, in 1986, Ch. Marjetta National Acclaim, owned by Mrs. A.R. Robson and Michael Zollo, won Best in Show at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the third and last Pointer to win Westminster in the century.

Arnold Burges’s The American Kennel and Sporting Field was published in 1876, and the National American Kennel Club followed, along with Dr. N. Rowe’s American Kennel Stud Book. The first pointing-dog field trial, sponsored by the Tennessee State Sportsmen’s Association, was held in October 1874 near Memphis, Tennessee. A black and white Pointer named Rex, owned by A. Merriman, came in sixth place, scoring 67 out of a possible 100 points.

The very first Pointer to be registered by the American Kennel Club (AKC) was a black and white dog by the name of Ace of Spades, even though this dog was by no means one of the first dogs imported into the country. Whelped in June 1875, Ace was owned by J.J. Snellenberg of New Brighton, Pennsylvania. He was sired by Button, who was out of David Stewart’s brace imported from Britain.

Edmund Orgill of New York, who greatly favored the lemon and white dogs, bred and owned many famous Pointers in this period, including Ch. Orgill’s Rush, born in April 1876, as well as Beulah, Rap, Rose and Ruby. In September 1882, Don, owned by R.T. Vandevort, made Pointer history by winning first place in the Free-For-All stake of the National American Kennel Club’s trials in Minnesota.

Ch. Shandown’s Touch O’Kings, BIS at Forsyth KC in 1972, handled by Bobby Barlow under judge Mrs. John B. Patterson.

Imports continued from England in the 1880s with the arrival of Eng. Ch. Graphic and Nell of Efford, imported by Mr. James L. Anthony of New York in 1885. These dogs owned by Mr. Norrish came from Devonshire, England. They proved top winning dogs and valuable breeding stock.

A group of the most important Pointer men in the US banded together to create the Pointer Club of America to safeguard the breed: among the members in 1890 were Hon. John S. Wise, president; George W. LaRue, secretary and treasurer; and James L. Anthony, first of four vice-presidents. Artist Gustav Muss-Arnolt was the Pointer Club of America’s first AKC delegate.

Ch. Cumbrian Black Pearl, winning a Group at Santa Barbara KC in 1983, handled by Corky Vroom. The following year Black Pearl was the number-one Sporting Dog and the top Pointer of all time.

In 1889 the black and white dog Rip Rap came on the scene to distinguish himself in field trials. This color was not desirable by American fanciers at the time, but Rip Rap changed their minds. He sired 19 field trial winners, including Young Rip Rap, a famous producer and show dog. Ripsey, sired by Rip Rap, became the most famous dog of Edmund Osthaus’s kennel, one of the leading field Pointer breeding establishments for decades.

James Monroe Avent and Hobart Ames founded the National Bird Dog Championship in West Point, Mississippi in 1896. Bird dog trialers consider this the most important of all trials, though it wasn’t won by a Pointer until 1909, when the three-year-old Manitoba Rap, bred by W.T.F. Fielde and owned by Thomas Johnson, did so. In 1915 the 6,000-acre Ames Plantation became the event’s permanent home where the trial is still conducted. Among the Pointers who have dominated the trial, three of the early multiple national winners were bitches: Mary Montrose, four-time winner; Becky Broomhill, three-time winner; and Mary Blue, two-time winner. Other multiple winners over the decades were Ariel, Paladin, Palamonium, and Whipporwill’s Rebel.

On November 14, 1900, the Pointer Club of America held its inaugural field trial at Jamesport, Long Island, New York. FC Alford’s John and Fishel’s Frank appeared on the scene in the early 1900s and upped the ante for the breed in field trials. Frank sired 58 field trial winners, including “Peerless” Mary Montrose, the four-time national winner and Winners Bitch at the 1917 Westminster show, Comanche Frank and John Proctor, the latter two going back to Alford’s John. All of these dogs won nationals and established major lines in Pointers in the US.

A number of important show dogs emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, including Ch. Governor Moscow, the 1925 Westminster Best in Show (BIS) winner, as well as Ch. Nancolleth Belle and Ch. Dapple Joe, both Westminster Group winners. The next Pointer Westminster BIS winner was Nancolleth Markable, bred by Mrs. F.A. Rowe, who took the title in 1932. Other Westminster Group winners of this period were Ch. Benson of Crombie (1934) and Ch. Nancolleth Marquis (1935).

AMERICAN POINTER CLUB