No offense, but what is up with all the GSPs?

Frankug · Post by **Frankug** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 2:13 pm

Is it a western thing? Hunted birds my whole life in the southeast and have not seen that many. Is it the first gun dog of choice because of its looks or what? Seems like everyone on this site has a GSP. Feel like I'm on a GSP forum. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Please explain.

Vonzeppelinkennels · Post by **Vonzeppelinkennels** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 2:20 pm

GSPS are probably the most popular pointing breed in this country today.

hustonmc · Post by **hustonmc** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 2:26 pm

A lot of first time dog folks on here. Most people wouldn't have lasted 10min without wrapping a Maseratti around a utility pole when they first got their driver license.

So why start with a pointer,

I kid I kid

Traditionally a Shorthair is a lot more forgiving in training when WE screw up. I know darn well that if I had finished my Pointers out like I tried to do with Shorthairs as a kid or a Weim , I would t have had much of a Pointer as far as style goes, in my opinion.

markj · Post by **markj** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 2:32 pm

Grandpa had setters, real nice ones, he got 200 per pup in the 30s. Grandpa was a railroad man. Dad had springers. I loved them dogs but one day in 1967 I watched a shorthair dog find, point and hold a wild bird till the person flushed it and shot it, that dog fetched the bird and put in his hand. I was hooked at age 6 or so. Told my dad I was gonna get me one of them pointing dogs. He got to hunt over several of them

he still owned springers tho. He sure did love my ossie girl, she was hege-haus bred.

deseeker · Post by **deseeker** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 3:03 pm

Look at my avatar---I've got 5 of them and not 1 shorthair

In my next life I'll try a pointer---if I don't like it, I'll just shorten the tail and I'll have a shorthair :roll: I'm just kidding---I like and respect ALL gundogs.

bobman · Post by **bobman** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 3:03 pm

I have GSPs and Eps if I only hunted here in Georgia I wouldn't own an EP
Quail are gone at least a GSPs will retrieve ducks and trail wounded deer

Get on the local Georgia forum more guys have GSPs and brittanies than anything

And I like all breeds of bird dogs

Vonzeppelinkennels · Post by **Vonzeppelinkennels** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 3:05 pm

Yeah & I have 9 GSPS plus pups,what's your point? He ask a question I answered it!

DonF · Post by **DonF** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 3:57 pm

I've had a bunch of GSP's, my favorite breed. I've had Pointer's and I find the GSP's much more willing to hunt to the handler than Pointer's. I've trained Britt's and a number of E. Setter's, I find GSP's much more forgiving of mistakes. I have two E.Setter's right now. I don't find them anywhere near as smart as my GSP's were. Time will tell with my little Red Setter. His mom a,d dad were the first two Red's I ever saw. What I saw, I really liked and really like how this little snot is coming so far. But i think n o matter how he turns out there will always be Shorthairs,on my mind. The absolute two best field trial runs I've ever seen and I can still see then in my mind were Stormy's mom and from very long ago MRK's Western Pride, a GSP.

Rod W · Post by **Rod W** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 4:06 pm

Vonzeppelinkennels wrote:GSPS are probably the most popular pointing breed in this country today.

GSP---most popular upland bird dog in the USA, German Wirehaired Pointer ---the most popular in Germany, you gotta have a beard to be loved!!

Vonzeppelinkennels · Post by **Vonzeppelinkennels** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 4:27 pm

Tejas · Post by **Tejas** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 4:43 pm

GSPs are also the fastest growing gundog breed in the country......demand/supply.

campgsp · Post by **campgsp** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 4:49 pm

50 years ago people looked down on the German shorthaired pointer.
Amazing how much the little guy from germany has proved since then.
A once mocked prince in the shadows has become king of the land and water.
And a hunters Nobel friend.

Kstring · Post by **Kstring** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 5:34 pm

I've owned two and both were extremely versatile. We don't have a ton of birds down here so I like the fact I can have the same dog point quail, retrieve a dove, and blood trail a deer. Mine have also been extremely loyal and natural hunters. Doesn't make them any better than any other breed but they are definitely the breed I prefer.

SetterNut · Post by **SetterNut** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 6:12 pm

They are a good compromise for a lot of people. If you are hunting some waterfowl and some upland.

But not my personal favorite.

minigooch · Post by **minigooch** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 6:55 pm

Why do you ask such a question ??? Is there anything else ?

hustonmc · Post by **hustonmc** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 7:31 pm

Plus, if everyone had Pointers and Setters there wouldn't be any birds left. And the fields would be over populated with porcupines, ground hogs and skunks.

deseeker · Post by **deseeker** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 7:33 pm

hustonmc wrote:Plus, if everyone had Pointers and Setters there wouldn't be any birds left. And the fields would be over populated with porcupines, ground hogs and skunks.

DGFavor · Post by **DGFavor** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 8:08 pm

Horses for courses - don't know squat about huntin' in the south but out west (west being any direction turning left from my driveway!

) hard to equal a well bred GSP for getting the job done.

http://www.vimeo.com/48772466

Frankug · Post by **Frankug** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 8:25 pm

My grandfather field trialled EPs and Setters. He did this off of a horse and he wanted his dogs stretching it out. Practically cantering to keep up. Covering ground I suppose. I remember hunting with him and some of his dogs would point and retrieve the bird after the shot not in the trial but on the hunts. I don't see that much any more out of the pointers and setters. Wonder if they bred some of that out? Makes sense to have a more versatile dog. Does a GSP stretch it out? Or more like a setter? My grandfathers setters were big runners though, but most setters didn't have enough gas for him. My parents have 22 English pointers they hunt with and their Cockers do the retrieving. They have a few setters but not enough gas for the horseback hunting, not to say there aren't ones out there with the gas. I have certainly seen them. Do people walk hunt or horseback hunt with their GSPs? I would probably have bird dogs but hard to find quail these days. Not as accessible as they once were. When I hunted with my grandfather there were no deer, turkeys, or coyotes. I have 14 dogs primarily for rabbit hunting. I can find those out my back door.

Frankug · Post by **Frankug** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 8:31 pm

Sweet video by the way! Awesome looking dogs!

campgsp · Post by **campgsp** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 8:38 pm

Frankug,
They normally don't stretch like a pointer would. And majority aren't breed for that.
A gsp is a gentlemans dog and hunts with/for the gentleman. They're by no means a boot licker though. (Majority)
Horseback or walking is up to the person. Either will work.
Obviously they are going bto range father if your ona horse as opposed to being on foot. That also depends on dog too.

The gsp is basically an over the top dog. In that you can use one dog to complete many tasks. As some other breeds are only useful for one or two types of hunting.

I like all the breeds of gundogs.
But why have ten different breeds in my kennel to hunt ten different types of game. When all I need is one breed..
Its just not complicated.

roaniecowpony · Post by **roaniecowpony** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 9:30 pm

Here in the southwest, GSPs dominate the upland pointing breeds. I was in the market for a pointing dog and given the climate here, it had to take the heat well or as well as possible. I narrowed it to EPs or GSPs. For whatever reasons I ended upgoing with a EP. I dont regret my choice. It has been a real thrill to hunt a high level dog. But Im sure I would be a happy hunter with a short hair too. We dont see many English pointers out west with hunters.

Fun dog · Post by **Fun dog** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 9:32 pm

I've heard it said that the GSP is the poor mans dog as it does everything.

DGFavor · Post by **DGFavor** » Wed Jan 29, 2014 11:40 pm

Do people walk hunt or horseback hunt with their GSPs?

Hunt off horse:
http://www.vimeo.com/19285158

Throw 'em in a boat n go:
http://www.vimeo.com/34314846

Do whatever ya' want with 'em!

jack the dog · Post by **jack the dog** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 10:25 am

I think it's a fad, like the Irish Setters and English Setters in their day.

Don't shoot me guys, just stating my opinion.

Ricky Ticky Shorthairs · Post by **Ricky Ticky Shorthairs** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 11:22 am

jack the dog wrote:I think it's a fad, like the Irish Setters and English Setters in their day.

Don't shoot me guys, just stating my opinion.

That's funny.

ChetB · Post by **ChetB** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 12:25 pm

My current GSP is my fourth since the early 70's. I've hunted behind Britts, Labs and Beagles. I like all gundogs, but for me, the GSP is exactly what I want from a dog. I believe a lot of it is simply personal preference and training and there are exceptional dogs of all breeds. Both afield and around the house my GSP's have all been the most versatile and "complete" dogs I've ever wanted.

Elkhunter · Post by **Elkhunter** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 3:45 pm

I love mine, I also have two pointers and love them to.

For a flat out hunting dog, I would take my GSP any day of the week.

Tooling · Post by **Tooling** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 6:15 pm

As a bald faced young man (boy) at 20 and living with my then gf and now bride it was time to get a dog which would be the first dog of my own as an "adult".

Being the adventurous type with a bit of wanderlust my gf and I moved outside of Spokane WA because she has family there. Kind of decided on a German Shepard and picked up a book on dogs to quell the excitement while saving up for our dog which we didn't have enough money for yet.

Paging through the book and reading about the different breeds I turned the page to a GSP and was immediately awe struck at their beauty..reading further it described all of the different talents that they were bred for. Having not grown up in a hunting home I always thought that bird dogs were just freaking cool and that old cartoon bird dog that would just SLAM into a point with his tail going rigid coupled with the audible doooiiing was just always so funny and cool as heck at the same time. The silly dog in the Nintendo duck game always made me laugh. I was smitten by the GSP highlighted in the book I was reading. (I think it was Jigs White Smoke)

Started asking around and was told about a fella' right down the road from me that raised and trained GSP's and that he was pretty good w/them. Gave him a call and he invited me down to have a look. I got there and he had been training but still had a couple dogs he wanted to work and asked me if I'd like to join him.

Dan Hoke lined up two GSP's who just stood there obviously anticipating his next command. These dogs were the most beautiful dogs I had ever seen and they (Dan) pretty much had me at his command..."hunt". These dogs took off and they were working with a purpose which would have been obvious to the greenest audience. One of his dogs absolutely SLAMMED into a point from full speed and the other slammed once it had turned and saw the point...I'm a little fuzzy because I'm old and all but I seem to recall that I was watching Chukar Mountin' Mort. Dan just looked at me and smiled while I picked my jaw up off of the ground and then he proceeded with the sequence all the way through the retrieve.

After all was done his dogs came over in their down time and started playing with one another and they were so happy go lucky / goofy with such spirit and so gently sweet wanting of attention in the GSP sort of way that I now recognize.

I bought a dog from Dan that day and ate Ramen noodles instead of macaroni & cheese for a month so I could save up for a pos single shot 20 ga. As luck should have it we lived on a dead end street that backed up to hundreds of acres FULL of quail and now many years later I hunt over my original dogs great nephew a couple times over chasing those moments when I was flat broke w/out a career skill and no idea how I was ever in my right mind going to ask this girl to marry me w/out a way to make money...alone in those fields with Deputy Dog everything just seemed to slip away and the simplicity of what was going on along with the times that everything would just go "right" between me and Deputy was a calm satisfaction that I had never felt before....ever. That remains true to this day and GSP's are so deeply rooted in that for me that I don't think I can ever be without one...lucky for me my now wife happens to love them too. Life is more complicated now, the guns are better and there's at least a few bucks in the bank along with a home and a business to complicate things not to mention all of the "surprises" the world tends to deliver...it seems no matter what is going on I can always count on that calm simplicity of a day in the field with my dog that just seems to make things "right". We raised three of Deputy's offspring along with his mate (Tess) and now only have our one boy which (for me anyway) is just like Deputy all over again..so there you have it...at least for me that's what's up with and "why" a GSP : )

Vonzeppelinkennels · Post by **Vonzeppelinkennels** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 6:26 pm

I started with a GSP & have never looked back never had any reason to change,I love everything about them!

Cicada · Post by **Cicada** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 6:32 pm

Great post Tooling

Reads like a forward to an epic novel.

Grant

Frankug · Post by **Frankug** » Thu Jan 30, 2014 9:38 pm

Nice Tooling. Great story. I used to run around the woods with dogs as a kid, to escape. Found real peace there. These days when I take the dogs out, I get to feel like a kid again. Ain't it grand! Dogs rule, no matter what breed, just glad there other dog nuts out there.

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