notes on the weimaraner

The Weimaraner is a sleek, moderately large, athletic dog with beautiful lines and a short, fine, smooth gray coat. All shades of gray are accepted. The head and ears are a bit lighter in color than the rest of the body. The head is long and aristocratic and the muzzle is strong. The eyes are amber, blue-gray or gray - with an intelligent expression, and the nose is gray. The ears are moderately long and pendant. The topline slopes gently downward from the withers. The forelegs should be straight with dewclaws removed. The tail is docked to 1½ inches (4cm) when the dog is two days old. The limbs are long and muscular. The Weimaraner has webbed feet for swimming.

Happy, loving cheerful, affectionate and very rambunctious. Intelligent, but can be highly opinionated and willful, therefore this breed should have firm, experienced training from the start. Quick to learn, but resistant to repetitive training. Reserved with strangers and sometimes combative with other dogs. Socialize them well at an early age. Protective on his own territory. Very brave and loyal, it has a strong prey instinct. Do not trust with small non-canine animals. This is definitely not a herding or farm dog. The Weimaraner needs to live indoors as a member of the family. He needs attention and companionship. If relegated to a kennel life or if left alone too much, he can become very destructive and restless. He is a natural protector.

The breed is several centuries old. A Weimaraner appeared in a Van Dyck painting of the early 1600's. There are various theories as to its origin. Some feel it is the result of albinism that overtook some ancient German pointing dogs. Others feel it is descended from the German hound, the Braken. And still others feel it is the fruit of crossings overseen by Grand Duke Karl August of Weimar between a regular pointer and a certain yellow pointer. The Weimaraner is a pointer and an all-around personal hunting dog. He was originally used to hunt, track and bring down big game. As big game became scarce, he was adapted to smaller game and upland birds. He also has a reputation as a fine water retriever, though he may need to be taught to swim. Weimaraners have been used as rescue dogs, service dogs for the disabled, and as police dogs in England and Germany.