The Portugese Pointer is not a hunting dog you see every day (at least not in the US). Craig Koshyk has written extensively about these dogs in this book Pointing Dogs Volume One: The Continentals. He’s also posted a bit about them here at his Pointing Dog Blog.
Check out this video to see what these dogs look like in action:
When it comes to their dogs, people love believe the craziest stories. And when it comes to Vizslas, these stories get pretty crazy. Some include bits about how the breed appears in ancient European rock paintings and others say these dogs have been pure bred for the last 1,000+ years. One tale even has them as the favorite hunting dog of medieval Magyar barons and warlords.
But as romantic as many of these tales are, there’s no real evidence to confirm them as true. Craig Koshyk points this out in his excellent book Pointing Dogs, Volume One: The Continentals. You can some of the truth about Vizslas here on Craig’s excellent Pointing Dog Blog. While their true story is far from the romance that some people would like to read, it’s still fascinating and worth learning about.
A lot of guys I know love German Shorthair Pointers. Check out this quick video for a good introduction to the breed.
The upland hunting season in Maine started on October 1st. But due to the crummy weather, my first day chasing grouse and woodcock was this past Saturday – 10/8. It was hot out all day – above 80 degrees at the peak – and the leaves were still up and very green. It looked like September. Right now fall’s about 2 weeks behind. I hope colder weather is on the way. I want those leaves down.
The hunting was hard. The thick cover and heat teamed up on us to make the shooting tough and the walking even harder. I went out with Master Maine Guide Bob Foshay. I’ve been hunting with Bob for the past 6 years. He’s 79 now and still going strong. We went out with his GSP Nelly and my girl Puck. In all, we moved 10 woodcock and 2 grouse – not bad. I shot two grouse. From here the season should only get better. Now if only those leaves would turn and drop.
