Happy Birthday Chelsea! Our german shorthair pointer just turned ten years old! She's been our family dog now for over 7 years!
Time has flown by and we couldn't imagine our family without her lovable character. Chelsea is a german shorthair pointer and was a rescue dog. When my then husband brought her home over seven years ago I did NOT like her. She would bolt out the door anytime the door was opened. We sent her away to hunt dog training school and she came back and became our most beloved dog.
German Shorthair Personality
- One of the things we LOVE about our german shorthair pointer is the ability for her to work in the field, be out on a run "working" and flip a switch and turn into a family dog.
- German shorthair pointers are wonderful dogs but they have to be kept active mentally and physically. If not, they will become destructive. Even now at 10 years old she can be that way.
- One thing we noticed about our dog (and in getting stopped by other people who also had our same type of dog) is that german shorthair pointer anxiety is real. I often get stopped on the trail to get asked if my pointer also has anxiety. Yes, yes she does. She loves to leave dishes at the top of the stairs so when I come home she knows that she was anxious or angry.
- Our german shorthair pointer is so sociable and friendly. She never minds getting petted from a total stranger or interacting with another dog. She is not buddy buddy with dogs though, and I'm not sure if this has to do with her training or not. She will greet another dog with a wag of her tail, sniff but then she will want to go on her way back to working.
German Shorthair Pointer Recipes
No, I'm not talking about EATING my dog. Gross.
German shorthair pointers are often bred and trained to hunt feathered or furred animals. They can even trail deers. Unfortunately, they can also see cats as great hunting material too. Our dog loves trailing a deer when we are running on a trail, but she was trained to hunt quail, pheasant and chukker.
While I've never taken her out hunting before, these animals are absolutely amazing to watch in the field. I was really against her hunting when I first got her. Once my then husband went a few times and I was able to taste fresh pheasant, I was able to change my mind a little bit. The quality of meat was so much better than I was able to find in any store.
Because of this, cooking with game birds can be different from cooking with storebought chicken. It can be drier, so our best success when cooking with it has been to cook it in the crockpot or with sauces that have a lot of moisture in them like pies.
Here are some recipes we've made over the years with fresh game:
Pheasant and Wild Rice Pie from Burnt Apple
Three Great Bird Recipes from Chef Trey Zingelmann
Indian Pheasant Curry with Lentils and Wild Rice by Outdoor Life
Pheasant Tacos by Montana Untamed
Parmesan Chukar and Quail Nuggets by Nevada Foodies
Toys to Keep German Shorthair Pointers Active
These are some of our german shorthair pointers favorites toys. We've also found that challenging her by doing something different is important too. So we included some of her other favorite activities:
Dead Fowl Pheasant by Bass Pro Shop
SportDOG Canvas Training Dummy: https://www.chewy.com/sportdog-regular-canvas-dog-training/dp/107753?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=hg&utm_content=SportDOG&utm_term=&gclid=CjwKCAiAyrXiBRAjEiwATI95mWg0eKjdACZqBIfiP-TQReJEftYOxucgHZ1bg2HJm2lL_GsXoCU4qBoC_wAQAvD_BwE
SmellyMatty Snuffle Mat: https://www.amazon.com/SNiFFiz-SmellyMatty-Dog-Puzzle-Toys/dp/B07B2XK9HL/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1548649588&sr=8-5&keywords=snuffle+mat
Indoor Swimming Pool: Our favorite in Utah is Barleys. http://www.swimatbarleys.com/
Hiking!: Since she's past her hunting year prime, she now loves to take hikes. They are a fun alternative to runs on the same trail and allow her to smell and sniff to her hearts content.
Bones!! Rawhide, random deer bones found on hikes, deer antlers, pretty much anything they can chew on.
We've loved sharing stories about our german shorthair pointer throughout the years and hope to for more. Please share what you love or struggle with your german shorthair pointer in the comments below!
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