Gun dogs?!?

Are well breed German wire hair dogs supposed to be naturally responsive too hunting and retrieving animals that were shot. I know they have to be trained but do they naturally like it? I am asking this because my friend has one and it fails at almost every category of being a good gun dog. Hes scared of gunshots,loves playing with rabbits and ducks chase him around. Does this mean that he was not bred properly? His parents were supposed to be great gun dogs to.

Gun dogs?!?

Many serious hunters are known to have "returned" their pups to the breeder, because the dog just "didn't have what it takes" to do his job well. That doesn't necessarily mean that the pups weren't bred properly, but sometimes there are puppies in a litter that are slightly "different" than the other pups. Reputable breeders do their best to ensure that the pairing of their sire and dam conforms well to the breed standard. They also do their best to accentuate good qualities, and eliminate faults, but it's still a crapshoot. Not all the dogs they breed turn out as well as they hoped.

Gun dogs?!?

Often, dogs have to be trained not to be gun-shy. Even if his parents were great gundogs, perhaps he didn't get that behavior. Is he a pup or a young dog? Does he point?

http://www.sportingdogsupply.com/classi1...

Does the dog like to play fetch? He might be trying to catch the rabbits and ducks - my retriever mix does this. I think they show a natural TENDENCY toward these things, but definitely have to be trained.

How old is the dog?

Here's a link to the breed standard, in case that helps:

http://www.akc.org/breeds/german_wirehai...

Gun dogs?!?

My lab is a excellent dog for hunting. Guns don't bother her and she just cant wait to get in the boat. She just shakes when she sees the hunting cloths come out. She is also a house pet. Some people believe that a hunting dog should not be a pet. My dog has a impressive pedigree, her grandfather was a grand champion. Not sure if that makes a difference, but she is a great dog either way.

Gun dogs?!?

No it does not mean that he was not bred properly. Different dogs have different personalities. So they react to a gun shot differently.

Gun dogs?!?

Not every "hunting type" of dogs are naturally good at it. you might have overwhelmed the dog as well by piling too many experiences on the dog all at once or too close together.

Take the dog to a trainer for eval. The trainer will be the best source of help and advice.

Gun dogs?!?

It doesn't matter how great the parents were if the person doing the breeding doesn't know what they are doing. Putting two 'great' dogs together doesn't insure anything and rearing of puppies can have a lot to do with their behavior later as well. If the puppy was never exposed to noises, as some people tend to keep them in quiet areas and such, then there would be no way it would be used to loud noises like gunshots and expecting it to automatically think nothing of gunshots when it hasn't even heard a pan drop is a bit much to expect even of the best hunting dog. 'Playing' with rabbits and ducks doesn't indicate much either. Since he chases them around, he obviously has some prey drive though... but basically even the best genetics can be screwed up by a poor breeder and then an even less knowledgeable owner. I have had GWPs and for the most part they are extremely birdy dogs -- they tend to be a bit big in their runnings but are usually very adept at checking back and tend to have a lot of natural tendencies that can be easily worked with but if ignorned or even subdued, they aren't going to automatically be good gun dogs. The answer is yes, they usualy 'naturally' like it but they can be trained through ignorance to not be acceptant of it. Maybe get some books on rearing gun dogs ... it might not be too late but who knows. I can't imagine how anyone can assess that it 'fails at almost every category of being a good gun dog' when one obviously has very little knowledge as to what that entails...

Gun dogs?!?

it means he doesn't give a flying f***! he wants to play!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gun dogs?!?

Wow, what a bunch of crap answers you have so far. I find the one where the person talks about his lab the whole time especially annoying.....was that supposed to be an answer or a rant! I have heard these dogs are pretty good in the field, but as with any pup, if he isn't raised to hunt, he probably won't be any good. I have one hunting dog that had it to begin with and one that didn't and that happens sometimes too, sometimes they just do not have the instincts that others do. I seriously doubt it was the parents to blame, probably just luck of the draw or the pups initial training. Everyone thinks they are an expert trainer if they read a book, and that isn't the case.