Dog Breed Guide

Pointer

Profile

Size

Large

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Origin

17th century

Bred for

Bird hunting

Height

male 63 - 69cm (25 - 27in), female 61 - 66cm (24 - 26in)

Weight

male 25 - 34kg (55 - 75lb), female 20 - 30kg (44 - 66lb)

Life span

12 - 14 years

An elegant hunting dog with a lean, sleek body and a short, smooth coat. Most are white with patches of lemon, orange, liver (brown) or black.

When it catches the scent of a game bird, it lifts one front leg, lines up its body in a straight line from nose to tail tip and freezes, pointing toward the bird. This stance is the "point" that gave the breed its name. The behavior is innate; even puppies of about two months old may strike a point.

The Pointer is gentle, friendly and affectionate with its family. However, it needs a great deal of exercise and must have time every day to run freely in a wide-open space. With its short coat, it feels the cold.

Good to know

During World War II, one dog was registered as an official prisoner of war, the only one of her kind: Judy, a Pointer kept by the crew of a Royal Navy gunboat. In 1942, when her ship was sunk by Japanese attack and the survivors washed up on a deserted island, Judy is said to have saved the crew by digging in the sand until she found fresh water. She was later sent with the crew to a prisoner of war camp on Sumatra, where a British airman, Frank Williams, persuaded the camp commandant to register her officially as a prisoner. Judy survived the brutal camp life, and after the war she was awarded the Dickin Medal, known as the animals' Victoria Cross.

The dog in the logo of the Westminster Kennel Club, which runs America's biggest dog show, is also a Pointer: Sensation, imported from England in 1876.