Top 5 Tips to Survive the Puppy Years with a German Shorthaired Pointer
The Story of River
365 days ago today (Aug 29, 2017), James called me and said, “I’m going to get the 10-week old puppy”. It was a Tuesday, I was working. We had visited a litter of puppies only a week or so old the day before. I’d never met a german shorthaired pointer (GSP) prior to that. We were considering adopting one of these littles in a few months time… but then we saw a leggy pup about 10-weeks old. And when James held him, the pup nibbled his chin. Looking back, it was all over from here. We went home to talk it over, and the next morning James called me to tell me he was going to get the 10-week old puppy.
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So, we brought home the sweetest GSP puppy, with the cutest face. Totally unprepared. We didn’t have a dog dish, a leash, or a crate. We learned quickly as River turned our lives upside down. We’ve come out stronger as a couple, and with the happiest dog around.
River is full of life and always puts a smile on our face. Here are our Top 5 Tips for surviving the first 12-months with a GSP.
PSST: If you love GSPs like us, make sure you check out some of our fun favorite GSP products at the end of this post!
#1. Physical Exercise
German shorthaired pointers are high energy. I mean HIGH energy. There is a reason this is numero uno. River needs AT LEAST an hour of exercise a day, and he will always take more if he can get it. River NEVER says no to an adventure. You’ll need to have a large yard or access to a dog park where he can run off-leash (safely, of course!).
When we bought River, we were living in town with a tiny fenced-in back yard. We had to take River to the local parks at least once a day to get his hour in to stretch his legs. Though we enjoyed taking him, there were many days when it definitely added stress to our already busy schedules.
Now that we have moved and have 5-acres of land, it has beenSO. MUCH. EASIER. River can run around all day, while we take care of things around the house. But also, River never fails at getting us out of our daily routines and into the outdoors.
James says: It was really important to get River “off-leash” as much as possible when he was young. Now, he has learned to stay near me and is quick to respond in the field.
It was just as important to intentionally stimulate River’s brain when he was young. German shorthaired pointers are so eager to learn.We did the basic commands – come, sit, stay, shake – and then other fun ones like “where’s mummy?” in which River would have to search the house for me. James would also hide scent around the house or yard and have River sniff it out.
When River doesn’t get enough physical or mental exercise, he can get rowdy and destructive.We’ve been lucky he usually takes it out on his dog toys. Which brings me to my next point…
River LOVES his Kong* toy. I stuff it with peanut butter and give it to him which entertains him for as long as it takes to lick every scrape of peanut butter out of the Kong. Sometimes I’d put his food in it, or a non-rawhide chew to really entertain him for awhile. River loved the ones by SmartBones*. They even had a “calming” chew stick *which I liked to think worked… if only for awhile. River at least loves them.
Update: We have recently discovered that lacrosse balls are the best for playing and chewing!! (when River stole one out of the neighbor’s yard, sorry kid). River loves hard rubber, and he has yet to destroy it. Tennis balls usually only last a few days in the house, but the lacrosse ball hardly has a dent!
They also have a ton of bounce, so they really go the distance especially when paired with the medium sized Chuck It! Seriously, do your dog and arm a favor and get a Chuck It! These things effortlessly launch the ball, without strain on your shoulder. Less hurt for you, and more run for your pup.
“Where’s the peanut butter, mum?” Here River is with his favorite Kong toy!
#4. Containing the River Monster
When River was young, we crated him when we were gone during the day and to sleep at night. When I just couldn’t deal with his rambunctiousness and needed to cook dinner or fold laundry without him obsessing over stealing socks, we put in him what we called “puppy jail“. Basically, just an exercise pen* similar to this one (though not the exact one we used) that gave him a bit of room to walk around and play with toys, but not get into (too much) trouble.We have got so much use of this silly exercise pen! We used it block of stairs, or rooms he couldn’t go in, and now we use it around the small oil heater in his indoor-outdoor kennel.
We hated keeping River in the crate all day while we were at work. We discovered doggie-day care which was AWESOME for tiring out our little monster, and I think helped River so much with socialization. But expensive. When we moved to the country, we built River an indoor-outdoor kennel which he enjoys. Our dog trainer said he can “sit and watch the birds – it’s like doggie TV!”
UPDATE:We recently discovered Rover! Rover.com is a website where you can search dog sitters or walkers in your area! We have found that it is SO much cheaper and more convenient than a typical doggy-day care. We found a woman near us, who also has a german shorthair pointer. She will pick up River in the morning FROM OUR HOUSE, take him on her other dog walks or to the dog park, then DROP HIM OFF AT OUR HOUSE. I mean, we love her. And River loves her. We think you’ll love Rover, too. Use our referral code: www.rover.com/refer/brookh19754/ for $20 off your first stay!
This is the the biggest thing I wish we would have done differentlywith River. As I said earlier, we spent a lot of time with River off-leash when he was young. Which was great… except now he is not good at leash walking. We’ve tried so many different types of techniques, leashes, collars, and we just couldn’t get him to walk nicely on the leash! We now use a slip-lead by Remingtonnow (sold here, pack of 2*), and I wish we would have discovered this when he was young! River is 58-lbs of muscle, and when he sees a critter he’ll about pull you off your feet (which my mother in law and mother can attest too!) It’s a work in progress.
Owning River has helped us grow as a couple both in patience and communication. He has also certainly encouraged us to get outside in all types of weather- more than ever. River is the happiest when he is outside, which gets us out exploring our own backyard every single day.
So, are you thinking about adopting a German Shorthaired Pointer? Well, buckle up! GSPs are high energy, smart, and always eager for an adventure (this is an adventure blog, after all).
Love GSPs? As promised, here are some of our favorite GSP products!
GSP socks – cozy grey socks with GSP scenes on them!
*This post contains affiliate links. That means, I may receive a commission for some of the links in this post- at no cost to you. See our Disclaimer page for details*
