Other names/Nicknames:
- Hungarian Vizsla
Country/Date of origin:
- Hungary
- 9th century
Height:
- Females: 21 to 23 inches
- Males: 22 to 24 inches
Weight:
- 48-1/2 to 66 pounds
Personality:
- Affectionate with family and easygoing.
- Alert and watchful.
- Barks if aroused.
- Boundless energy.
- Not happy confined indoors.
- Intelligent but extremely headstrong.
- Can be difficult to housebreak.
- Very reserved with strangers.
History:
On the steppes of Hungary, where game was plentiful, this superb hunting dog flourished for centuries. Thought to have been brought by the Magyar people when they conquered the land, this dog is an excellent pointer, retriever and tracker. It was especially suited to tracking partridges and rabbits in the tall grass steppes. The numbers of Vizsla dropped dramatically as its homeland was ravaged amidst World War I and II. In the Russian occupation that followed, families fleeing to western European countries brought the dogs with them and extended the breed’s popularity. Vizslas were admitted to the American Kennel Club (AKC) in 1960.
Body Type:
- A medium-sized, athletic, pointer-type of gun dog with a distinctive golden-russet coat.
- Low set tail is docked to a medium length.
- Long, thin ears with a rounded tip are not altered.
Coat:
- Short, smooth, close lying coat.
- Permissible colors are golden russet from a rusty gold to a dark, sandy yellow.
- Eyes must harmonize with the coat color and the nose must be brown rather than black.
- Minimal grooming.
Health and Wellness:
- Calcinosis circumscripta.
- Hemophilia.
- Sebaceous adenitis.
What you should know:
- Vizslas come in a wirehaired variety, although this is rarely seen in the United States.
- The dog is named after a town in Hungary.
- Clean and easy to live with.
- Does not do well in an apartment, and really is not all that suited to the suburbs either. This is a country dog.
