There aren’t a lot of people who’ve seen a rare Pont-Audemer Spaniel. There are even fewer people who’ve also seen a rare Braque Saint Germain.
Craig Koshyk has seen both breeds, plus dozens of other hard-to-find hunting dogs. So when he writes something about the rare breed, his thoughts are worth checking out. Here’s a piece he just posted to his Pointing Dog Blog:
Rare doesn’t mean good…or bad.
“One of my pet peeves is seeing breeders of less common gundog breeds use the term ‘rare’ as an advertising hook, as if ‘rare’ was a synonym for ‘good’. On the other hand, it also bugs me when I hear people bad-mouth less common breeds by saying “they must be rare for a reason”.
When it comes to gundogs, rare does not mean good, or bad. Breeds become popular or remain rare for many reasons, usually totally unrelated to how good, or bad they actually are. Case in point: the Weimaraner. It is among the most popular gundog breeds in the world. Yet apart from a some superb individuals and a few good lines, as a hunting breed, it is in pretty rough shape overall. Trying to get a decent hunting dog by reaching in and picking a pup from any random Weim litter is like trying to hit a hole-in-one with a nine iron”
BTW: Don’t miss his step-by-step guide to getting a good pup from one of the rarer breeds.