Thread: Why mixing headers and pointers?

Hallo everyone! I’m new to the forum and writing from Sweden so excuse my grammar and spelling. Hope you understand me anyway.

If I have understood it correctly there are a lot of people in NZ hunting with crossings between heading/herding dogs and different pointing(?) dogs (gsp, vizla etc.)!?

Why is that? What are the benefits with these crossings?

Because heading dogs are easy trained and got brain. Still light on there feet.

Any other trait they bring to the game?

Wich ones do you prefer? Is it the NZ heading dog thats most popular?

Heading dogs and huntaways have a big work drive and will work until they drop (“run themselves into the ground” is the frequent term), which is good but you have to make sure they don’t overdo it.

I’m usually a big fan if pure breed dogs but in this case I’m considering a mix. The tricky part is that you really never know what you get when you mix. Do the mixes you have encountered still have both breeds quality and traits? Or what traits usually do show in the mixed breeds?

I was very lucky, my heading/staffy cross bitch used to do all the above and then some. As well as pigs (which she was very good at).
Having said that, she came to me as an adult, hard hunting dog(pigs). I just took her along deer hunting and she clicked over to indicator very easily.
As well as home life. Very affible and intelligent.

normally a mix is a lot cheaper as there's no "pedigree" snobbery and associated premium with a piece of paper that proves that it is an acceptable amount of inbred.

The law of genetics /progeny is as follows

25% will be 25/75% mother
50% will be 50/50% mother/father
25% will be 25/75% father

6th Form biology along time ago.

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And us kiwis can't decide what breed of dog we want, so we get one that is a mix of everything

Originally Posted by erniec

The law of genetics /progeny is as follows

25% will be 25/75% mother
50% will be 50/50% mother/father
25% will be 25/75% father

6th Form biology along time ago.

Sent from my SM-J530Y using Tapatalk

100 percent will have 50 percent of each parent.
What changes is the particular combination of genes/alleles that each offspring has. This means while some pups may look a lot like Dad or Mum, they will still have exactly half of their genetics from the other parent.

Originally Posted by Russian 22.

normally a mix is a lot cheaper as there's no "pedigree" snobbery and associated premium with a piece of paper that proves that it is an acceptable amount of inbred.

This is true but i would argue that you are more likely to get a good dog from a breeder specialising in working dogs (pure bred or otherwise) than if you got an "spca special" or a dog from when the neighbors dog got over the other neighbors bitch.

Now i am meaning for a hunting dog not a pet here.

Personally i must be a snob in that when someone asks what breed my pooch is i can tell them with certainty "my dog is a pointer!"

I have a GWP X NZheading and from personal experience i find you get a dog that looks, sounds, scents and points like a pointer but is far more clever and easier to train. They are also slightly smaller frame, faster and far mor attentive and quiet when working. Ive also found they aren't as needy as pointers

Originally Posted by NzHeavyHauler

I have a GWP X NZheading and from personal experience i find you get a dog that looks, sounds, scents and points like a pointer but is far more clever and easier to train. They are also slightly smaller frame, faster and far mor attentive and quiet when working. Ive also found they aren't as needy as pointers

I use to be a pure breed snob, never looked at anything else until I meet my current dog, like yours a %50 GWP x %50 huntaway (strong eyed heading and saw him working when picked up pup). Best god dam dog I have ever had.

Originally Posted by Efalk

Any other trait they bring to the game?

Earlier to mature and calm down.