What to do with our GSP?

When you adopt adult German Shorthaired Pointers who’ve been in and out of the pound a few times, you’ve definitely got to be prepared for some stressful moments 🤣.

My only goal at first is just to make sure they don't end up back at the rescue! Then, bit by bit, they bond with me, settle down, and learn not to just charge head-first into everything.

My latest one has been with me since April 2019, and things have really improved over the last few months 🤞

We'll skip the walk on the way back.

The bike ride went really well; we did about 15-20 minutes. He eventually realised he was on the lead... 🤣 those first few minutes weren't easy. Our other Pointer followed along quietly next to the bike (at about 6 stone 4 lbs, he was completely knackered). There was no one around, so I let the German one off the lead to play ball. The other one was more interested in rolling around in the grass. We got back home an hour later and they were straight to "bed".

His recall is still fine as long as you only have to call him once and there are no distractions. This morning a doggy friend appeared in front of us. Of course, he was off like a rocket. I called, he came back, I gave him a fuss and threw the ball, but once he’d fetched it, he ran straight back to join his mate! Ouch!! It’s that second dash that is uncontrollable every time! Despite the command to walk at heel, he’s off.

We’re going to start using the whistle again... (the walking bag is getting heavy lol).

We’ve got a bell as well! We used to put it on him for forest walks, just so we could keep track of him if he wandered off—something he wasn't doing just before lockdown! So we'd taken it off.

😲 You’ve got nerves of steel! We tend to immediately imagine the worst! "What if he runs across a road and causes an accident? Or what if someone nabs him thinking he’s lost? Or even worse!?" 😔

The walk before you leave is a great idea.

But try to avoid taking him for a walk the second you get home... otherwise, he’ll obviously be expecting his walk as well as your return, which just leads to extra excitement...

Right, so about the cycling... yeah, that's fine, but keep the sessions short and let him off the lead as soon as you're able to.

Lots of people think gundogs aren't affectionate 😂! And yet, they are absolute velcro dogs indoors!

Younger dogs are often less food-motivated than older ones. But if he loves his ball, you can pair the whistle with the ball to make it more appealing to him. That should help with the recall.

I forgot to mention, but I also use a bell in open spaces and a smaller jingle bell in more built-up areas. It helps me hear him if he wanders off (and it also warns any wildlife that he's coming). You really need to work on the whistle recall again, as it won't get any easier in the coming months—he's moving from puppyhood to his adult temperament, so he's going to get more and more confident.

The GPS is really just for peace of mind, to see where he is and make sure he hasn't fallen down a hole or is lying injured somewhere. But you're right, it's best to have a quick check on Google Maps to spot any roads... mine (a bit bigger, around 55 lbs) can hit 22 mph, but he’s usually between 15 and 18 mph, which means he can cover over half a mile in 3 minutes... so in 20 minutes... 😥

To give you an idea, here’s my schedule for this week with two Pointers that are older than yours (3.5 and 8 years old).

Monday: morning – 30 mins off-lead; evening – 1 hour off-lead with a ball and a walking buddy, our usual walk.

Tuesday: morning – 30 mins; evening – 1.5 hours Canicross in the countryside

Wednesday: morning – 30 mins; evening – 1 hour off-lead with a ball and a walking buddy, our usual walk.

Thursday (today): morning – 30 mins; this evening a walk is planned out in the sticks with some mates (approx. 1.5 hours)

Friday: morning – 30 mins; usually there’s also a walk on Friday evening

Saturday and Sunday: usually it’s a run or a bike session on one of the mornings, followed by a 2 to 3-hour walk with mates in the afternoon.

So, every other day, I’m not doing any more than you, but that 1-hour outing is essential. With three 30-minute sessions, there’s no way they’re getting their fill. The minimum they need is at least an hour in one go.

And every other day, I take them somewhere else to do something different.

Here I am again... the German Shorthaired Pointer... my absolute favourite 😅.

One of the key traits of this breed is that they aren't afraid to bolt off fast and far... so being gone for 20 minutes isn't actually that surprising... sadly...

I rescue mine as adults with zero recall, which means they can be gone for an hour or two. In their minds, they aren't "running away" as such; they're just following one scent after another until they’ve ended up over a mile away 😅.

Then there’s the issue of how athletic these dogs are; they have incredible stamina and need a huge amount of exercise. But that’s where the vicious cycle starts... they need to burn energy, so they run off, they have no recall, so we keep them on the lead, they don't get enough exercise, and then they become increasingly unmanageable and behavioural issues (especially barking) start to crop up.

You’ve got to break that cycle.

1 - Get him out enough. He’s still too young for proper bikejoring, so just take your bike to a quiet spot with no roads or walkers and go for it. The faster you go, the more likely he is to keep up and follow you rather than getting distracted by smells. Do watch out for the heat at this time of year, though. A GSP won't stop on its own and will literally run until it drops.

2 - Work on the recall. Use a silent whistle and, while at home, blow it = treat. Do this several times a day for a few days (don't blow too hard, or the neighbours will wonder what's going on! 😅). Once he’s got it, try it in the garden—whistle then reward with some dry food when he comes. Then try it out on walks; whistle and reward.

3 - Always keep in mind that a Pointer’s attention span for training is quite short. By nature, they can't stand "drills"—sit, lie down, give paw, it's just not their thing. However, it's necessary so they have a basic level of focus and listening skills. Just keep sessions to 2 or 3 minutes max, even if you do it several small times a day. Same goes for recall work—don't overdo it. Practice a couple of times for no reason, then let him wander off again. As the recall gets better, only use it when necessary so the dog doesn't get fed up.

4 - A Pointer won't work for free. They're very sweet, but they don't enjoy following orders for the sake of it, so without a reward, you're wasting your time.

5 - To help you out, there are GPS trackers available. They cost about £35 to buy plus a £45 yearly subscription. They run on the mobile network, so you'll need a decent signal 😉.

That’s the bare minimum.

To really build your bond, there’s Canicross (you can start at 1 year old) or bikejoring later on (around 2 years old), though you’ll need to be reasonably good on a mountain bike for that! And of course, there’s tracking—that’s what they’re built for (there’s a thread at the moment about a hound called "Pistage, Padja").

Thanks for your reply.

I did specify: 30 mins minimum.

The midday and evening walks are between 45 mins and an hour.

Going for a run with them is a bit of a disaster, and as for the bikes, we’ve bought an attachment for him because he runs too far ahead and scares people and other cyclists; the other one stays nicely behind the bike (we haven't tried it yet).

I completely agree, you aren't meeting his actual need to burn off all that excess energy.

To help him behave better at home, is there any way he could spend some time with a much older, calmer dog? A younger dog won't be able to teach him how to settle down.

Hi there,

It’s getting a bit late, so I’ll be back with a more detailed reply tomorrow.

But unfortunately, three 30-minute walks for a one-year-old German Shorthaired Pointer is clearly not enough...

He needs at least one more lasting over an hour every day—running, going out with the bike...

He’s a very athletic dog that needs to burn off a lot of energy.

I’ll be back tomorrow to talk about recall and him running off.