The lack of testing by a lot of breeds will always ensure the DD will be a better dog :-)
The range of what we think and do is limited by what we fail to notice. And because we fail to notice that we fail to notice, there is little we can do to change; until we notice how failing to notice shapes our thoughts and deeds
in reply to ruff.we have crossed swords around this topic in the main on the other forum.it would be tedious to continue.i will offer my opinion on your comments.anyone who has had experience and been around can have their prejudices,to an extent they have earnt them.these are best left resting within,not foisted on the forum,which exists for the contribution of members and the discussions thereof,yes, i draw the line at derisive comments made simply to get a few symphantic hoots from those that can't distinguish facts.you "detest" weimaraners, i think that says more about your mindset than anything to do with weimaraners. i have been around a lot of weimaraners,a lot more than the dozen claimed by you and i have never been bitten. i will say this,for the large part the breed has an 'alpha' dog mentality,they are strong willed,and smart.they are not a dog that suits a typical kiwi hunter,but then the breed doesn't have that to itself.yes there have been opportunities lost to cement working bloodlines,but good dogs exist.as for your comment no serious hunter would have one,well look around,that comment doesn't withstand scrutiny.on a positive note your last comment was concillatory,maybe there was less amps flowing through the circuits?
Thank you Lophortyx for your support of my much loved Weimaraner breed. As for the negative comments, I don't feel rubbishing the working abilities of 'any' breed you do not have a personal interest in on a public chatroom is good social behaviour. Every breed of gundog has been evolved by dedicated hunters for certain traits, and just as all the rest of the gundog breeds today, more and more of them are not being used for their original purpose, but as there are breeders of other gundogs striving to maintain working ability as the main focus there is still a lot of people determined to maintain the Weimaraner as a 'loyal working companion'!
I find these latest comments verging on ludicrous to be frank. You can support whatever the heck you like, there isn't a proper working wei in NZ. End of story. At the shoot I was at today I got time to speak to an English handler of some 50 years experience, someone who has worked versatiles both here and in the UK of several breeds. He recalled looking at a Wei 40 years ago in the UK and when the breeder found out he had children refused to sell him one.
You can put any connotation on my opinion you wish to, I don;t sell Weimeraners, I don;t have a competing breed, I don;t have a dog in the fight, just 40 years of training and working with all manner of gun dogs, but everyone, including me is entitled to an opinion... this is mine... that is the virtue of an internet forum.
As a commercial trainer of gundogs, who gets to work with many breeds on a weekly basis I will reiterate. I have not seen a Weimeraner in NZ that would cause me to recommend them as a working breed to any serious hunter and certainly not to any novice handler... let's face it, an experienced handler is not going to need or even want, an internet opinion to select their breed.
I would be more ashamed if I didn't warn of the dangers to people of selecting such a breed, when there are, in my opinion, so many better options out there than I would be to just shut up to placate people with a blind allegiance to what cannot be described as anything less than a marginal breed, in NZ of primarily show blood, and if all the opinions are canvassed comprehensively, of questionable temperament. I will always post my honest opinion with no other intent than to help people.
And my last comment on this subject.. if you are serious about having a solid working gun dog of properly pre determined genetic predisposition to do the job you want then the Weimeraner should be well down your list of options... even more so if you are not an experienced handler.
"and my last comment on this subject.".....ditto...ruff,ruff. what is ludicrious ruff is your story about ye olde english handler. whats that about? whether it be a WOMAN or a MAN, when it comes to breeding dogs,surely a man of your vast experience would know,there is the odd nutter out there. "i always post my honest opinion with no other intent than to help people" coming from you,it is a little rich,spare me that sanctimonious garbage. what you have established ruffo,is even as a man who is a commercial trainer there are holes in your canine knowledge,alas you are only mortal, and we can all learn from a discussion,which is not the case when you try and dominate it. get in behind. now its the last day of the season down in these parts,so i am off to chase up a few birds.
Last edited by lophortyx; 24-08-2014 at 08:13 AM.
Yes, the last day here too, Lophortyx.
My only experience of the Grey Ghost in the field, was prior to running Falco in the trials when I asked a work colleague if he would bring his Weim bitch up the river so Falco could experience running as a brace with an unknown dog. The Weim bitch is a very dominant dog and made that clear to Falco who ignored her! We worked the ground up the river, Falcs pointed and flushed a hen pheasant...the Weim certainly is a 'handsome' looking bitch. I did appreciate the opportunity. There is a Weim doing well in the South Island in the Pointer and Setter trials (pigeon)...while not every breed is going to be to everyone's liking, it is great to see a diversity in the breeds attending these events. GO THE GUNDOG!!!
Last edited by EeeBees; 24-08-2014 at 12:58 PM.
...amitie, respect mutuel et amour...
...le beau et le bon, cela rime avec Breton!...
If I ever get myself down to NZ I'll have my Weimar boy along. He's not from any special line but has all the natural hunting and tracking ability I'd ever want. He will happily track and kill rats/mice, point, flush birds, retrieve, track game, and has even chased off a charging moose, a trio of black bears, innumerable coyotes. I've also never met a dog that looks "up" as much as he does while out in the bush. He routinely spots game birds in trees before I do.
Smartest dog I've ever met. He's gone out and found lost dog at a set of hiking trails we used to frequent. Grabbed the dog's leash and towed it out of the bush and right into the back seat of my truck. His pain tolerance is legend. The Vet's he's had love him as he will sit perfectly still for anything they do.
One of the best things I love about him is he will never run off. If he loses sight of me, he will backtrack until he knows I've seen him, then turn around and go back on the trail of whatever he's following.
I haven't taught him any of it. It's just what he does and what he enjoys doing. And at 110lbs and 29 inches at the shoulder he's far larger than breed standard. In fact the vet he used to have was a German from the Weimar district, where the breed originates. He said he's never seen a bigger or stronger Weimaraner in Canada and nothing similar since the hunting lines when he was back in Germany.
@Thor762, thank you for sharing your fotos...love the one with the moose!!!!
...amitie, respect mutuel et amour...
...le beau et le bon, cela rime avec Breton!...
. A mate went to Argentina last year and hunted perdiz over a Wei . He said the dog was exceptional . I think was it was 25 birds in a few hours .
Rule 7: Avoid alcohol and drugs when handling firearms
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