It should be made clear that the standard we are discussing is the AKC standard, which may vary in some ways, minor and major, from those of other countries. The Pointer judge, like any other breed judge, must always judge to the standard of the country in which she is judging, regardless of depth of knowledge of that judge's "home" standard. We might suggest that those whose standards differ from that of the AKC should point it out to us for discussion purposes.

Below are some excerpts from articles I have written in the past. There are some very valid points that still apply to today's Pointers. Since these articles were written, we have breeders who have, with their AKC Pointers, gone on to compete in the field and attain dual championships on their dogs. This was a long time in coming, as the first Dual Champion in the history of AKC pointers did not finish his DC until 1987.

Breeding a Pointer to compete in all fields is not impossible. Although we know and understand the Standard and try to adhere to the qualities outlined, it is difficult to adhere to the letter of the written Standard, when it sometimes is opposed to what works. For example; terms such as close, wide, long and sloping are open to individual interpretation. The old English standard states that the shoulders should be close enough to place a pat of butter between them. Today's pat of butter is one inch square. The old pats of butter in the 1800's was four inches square. So what do we want? Therefore, each breeder must observe what actually takes place in practice in producing overall balance and soundness in each litter.

The Pointer is a dog of action. Regardless of the type presented, it must be as sound as it can be. Houndiness in any form must be severely penalized. Pointer type dictates that distinct differences from the Hound should be evident; such as head, tail, coat and motion.

Good reach and drive is essential to take the Pointer over the fields as it was intended. Extremes in angulation must be avoided so the dog can go easily without tiring. Good muscle cover is also essential. You can have proper bone structure, but if the muscles that support this structure are not developed, the dog will also tire too quickly. It is here that we take exception to what many fanciers term smooth. A solid Pointer will have the smooth appearance asked for, when seen from a distance, but to the touch will be hard and muscular, ready to do a day's work, and never overweight or soft and flabby.

An "out of shape" Pointer who wins only on smoothness in the show ring would surely tire after a 30 minute hunt in rough country. This kind of judging does not help the breed. In our opinion, overall balance and soundness are the most important considerations. Individual traits are important, but not particularly in the following order: The coat should be short, not "houndy", and the skin fine to the touch but the hair coat hard, not silky. Smooth with a sheen does not mean soft.

The Pointer is an alert and intelligent companion, he should never tuck tail and if so, should be severely penalized for this. A proper head and tail, to denote the breed, is absolutely essential. Proper Pointer topline (a slight arch over the loin) is also very important for the maneuverability in the field. The Pointer is not supposed to have a level topline, as this would not allow the spring action needed to hours of running and the quick turns often needed to do his job. He is to have a slight rise from croup to withers, with a slight arch over the loin and a moderate croup. These things are quickly forgotten in the show ring as the judges seem to feel all Sporting breeds should have a level or sloping topline that never springs in motion.

The Pointer has been known for his hackney gait for too long. Many times I have been told by judges that this quality reminds them of the lovely Tennessee Walker used in trials and that the Pointers gait is just like their field trails companions. How wrong they are! The Pointer is to be faulted greatly for hackney gait. Not only is it faulted in the standard, but hackney gaited Pointers are either straight or too tight in the shoulder, as this upward motion shows the dog cannot reach out. I've been questioned very heavily on Pointer shoulders, and was specifically asked to mention the front quarter on a Pointer. In my opinion the Pointer standard fails to mention that the upper arm must be in harmony with the scapulae in order to attain the proper movement. Pointers today have shoulder placements that are too far forward, too little angulation between scapulae and upper arm and short upper arms. Watching the dogs in the field, I would say, we want a dog that does not hackney so there is no wasted motion and further reach with less effort. This means there must be room for the shoulders to move. The shoulder blades should be close to the body, but should be well covered with muscle, so the shock of hitting the ground is absorbed by pasterns and shoulder muscle, rather that the blade. Any breed that is meant to work at a gallop, as a Greyhound, rather than a trot, as a Dalmatian, needs this type of structure because a galloping animal takes 70% of the stress in the front quarter.

Judges also seem to look for a rear motion that looks like the dog waddles rather than drives. The Pointer is a single tracking breed (this lessens the amount of ground cover to break a trail for hunting) and should bring his rear legs toward a center line with good push and extension so you should see hock action from the side and the bottom of the foot from behind, not the wide shuffle that so many judges seem to prefer. Remember this is a galloping breed, that at a slow trot should show a tendency to single track. I don't think that you would ever really see a true single track in the show ring, as the dog would never attain the speed needed to do this in that arena.

A Pointer's feet are very important and many times overlooked. They are to be oval with long, closely-set arched toes. Not cat feet! The breed needs the length of toes for gripping the ground when the terrain is rough. I have watched as our Pointers work on hillsides and can definitely notice the dogs that have the longer toes lose less ground when having to maneuver in rough terrain. The most undesirable cat foot is often found on a short, upright pastern, and sometimes is coupled with knuckling over, especially the way some handlers stack their dogs.

The above mentioned points of the Pointer standard have been of special interest to me as so many specimens of the breed seem lacking in them.

We have more written on the head of the Pointer than any other part of the standard, so therefore, this is also quite an issue in breeding. The headpiece should be distinct. The AKC standard calls for a dish (meaning you could set a saucer on the muzzle and it would follow the curve of the muzzle).No other Pointing breeds call for this, and it separates the Pointer from the other breeds. Parallel planes are equally acceptable, as long as the chiseling, full stop, large nose, round eye, proper ear leather and occiput (rather than topskull, which means nothing in this context) are evident. The occiput should be visible, but not pronounced. There is so much houndiness (downfaced, roman nosed, snipiness, and round eared) in evidence in the breed today that if the judges don't start to consider this a true fault, our breed can be a Shorthair, Vizsla, Weimaraner, Foxhound, Bloodhound, Coonhound, Greyhound and lose it's true identity.

The Pointer is a naked breed, all virtues and faults may be easily seen. No grooming can hide a low tail set or poor topline, so when the Pointer presents itself, it is with pride when an owner comes into the ring and says to the judge by his actions, "Here is my Pointer, all that he is. He is the Cadillac of the Sporting Breeds, the foundation for many, and most of all he is an intelligent, powerful, graceful and trusting companion in the field, at the shows, and best, at home."

Achieving awards such as "Top Breeder", "Top Producer" and 'Top Winning" is a great thrill to us. We've been able to accomplish this, but that doesn't mean that the final results have been achieved. There is not a perfect Pointer. The challenge to breed for perfection is still there. There are ups and downs with every litter born, and hopefully a little improvement with each generation. The joy of breeding comes when you have succeeded in producing puppies that have grown to be what the owners expect of them, whether it be a companion-pet, field companion or trial dog, a high scoring obedience dog or winning show dog. The Pointer is truly a versatile breed.

While the consummate specialist in Pointing, the Pointer also excels in its versatility, a fact too often overlooked in breed descriptions. Always wanting to please, whatever you ask, and never wanting more then love in return.