Talk to me about Hungarian Vizslas!

[Andy_mr2sc]

We're going to look at a Vizsla next week. Could anyone here pass on their first hand experiences of the breed and give me the pros and cons, habits, training etc. Having met a couple now and from what I have read online I think they will be the ideal breed for us but I would like to go in with as much knowledge on them as possible.

Thanks in advance,
Andy

[MonkeyBusiness]

No personal experience apart from regularly meeting a couple on my daily walk.
Very friendly to other dogs. As puppies they are completely bonkers with endless energy and daft as a brush - I think you'd have your work cut out unless you train them early.

Appear very loyal.

[juice]

Wire or smooth ?

We've got an 18 month-old WHV. He's crazy (in a good way).



The WHVs are a separate breed from the smooths, slightly larger/thickset (due to the GWP bloodline). They are also a little more balanced in temperament than the smooths. On the Viz-Whizzs we go on the WHVs seem to lope around with the smooths going batst mental ! .
It's not a bad thing, but they are hard work and need constant entertainment/brain work otherwise they quickly become bored/frustrated and then get up to all sorts of mischief.


They are velcro dogs, be warned. You will never go to the loo alone again !

[Andy_mr2sc]

Haha it's a smooth we are looking at. I've heard about the massive energy reserves and need for attention! I'm hoping this will be a good thing for us so we get out of the house and go walking/running a bit more. The idea this time to get a puppy (instead of the numerous rescues of different ages I've had in the past) so we can start training early hopefully before it learns any bad ideas!

[eybic]

Somebody I know has one and didn't keep up with puppy classes, he's a bloody nightmare for jumping up and basically doing what the hell he wants. Same for most dogs though I guess.

[So]

juice said:

Wire or smooth ?

We've got an 18 month-old WHV. He's crazy (in a good way).



The WHVs are a separate breed from the smooths, slightly larger/thickset (due to the GWP bloodline). They are also a little more balanced in temperament than the smooths. On the Viz-Whizzs we go on the WHVs seem to lope around with the smooths going batst mental ! .
It's not a bad thing, but they are hard work and need constant entertainment/brain work otherwise they quickly become bored/frustrated and then get up to all sorts of mischief.


They are velcro dogs, be warned. You will never go to the loo alone again !

Crazy? You're not kidding, he is celebrating Christmas in August.

[juice]

Andy_mr2sc said:

Haha it's a smooth we are looking at. I've heard about the massive energy reserves and need for attention! I'm hoping this will be a good thing for us so we get out of the house and go walking/running a bit more. The idea this time to get a puppy (instead of the numerous rescues of different ages I've had in the past) so we can start training early hopefully before it learns any bad ideas!

They need at least an hours exercise a day. They are HPRs so anything you can do on the walk to play to their strengths (fetching a ball), scent training, Fetch and release - will lead to a happy dog. They are low maintenance though, they generally sleep a lot of the day.

Highly recommend gun dog training, there should be graded schemes near you for when pup is a little older even if you're not planning on working the dog it's still a very good thing to do as it teaches them discipline.

They are highly intelligent and very sensitive so negative training will not work and you'll end up with a reactive dog. Positive training is the way to go with these. They are bright and quick learners. Oscar will speak on command, through legs to sit, walk to heel (that was a saga in of itself due to Viszla's in built 'stubborn' streak), roll over, play dead etc. They're great fun to train and the dog enjoys doing it if it's met with LOADS of praise for getting it right.

Be careful of their tails, due to their exuberant nature a lot of them end up with split tails due to them wagging constantly (they are very happy dogs by nature) and they end up injuring themselves on door frames/furniture.

Oh and sorry - they don;t mature until about 3 years old. So you have a large dog that thinks it's a puppy for quite a long time.

[Andy_mr2sc]

I used clicker/reward training for my last dog which worked really well. I've read these are really trainable so I think it would be fun and very rewarding to improve both on my skills and have a loyal, obedient dog from this. Exercise time isn't an issue. It will be with me all day at work so I can take it out before, during and after work.
Out of interest are they generally ok in cars or does this vary from dog to dog?

[juice]

Andy_mr2sc said:

Out of interest are they generally ok in cars or does this vary from dog to dog?

Oscar was occasionally car sick. We learnt not to feed him before long journeys. Also - due to the 'velcro' nature, he didn't like being shut in the boot.
So we got a rear seat hammock and a harness. As he's 'with' us in the car he's much happier and now generally curls up and goes to sleep.

Sorry - one last thing. Ears !
They seem to suffer as a breed from ear infections. So get your pup used to you handling/inspecting their ears as you'll need to clean them regularly (esp if they have been swimming). Oh and Canaural will always be kept in the fridge.

Edited by juice on Friday 24th August 09:59

[Andy_mr2sc]

juice said:

Oscar was occasionally car sick. We learnt not to feed him before long journeys. Also - due to the 'velcro' nature, he didn't like being shut in the boot.
So we got a rear seat hammock and a harness. As he's 'with' us in the car he's much happier and now generally curls up and goes to sleep.

Sorry - one last thing. Ears !
They seem to suffer as a breed from ear infections. So get your pup used to you handling/inspecting their ears as you'll need to clean them regularly (esp if they have been swimming). Oh and Canaural will always be kept in the fridge.

Edited by juice on Friday 24th August 09:59

I'm hoping I can crate him/her in the back of my defender. It is open with no bulkhead so hopefully that is still close enough to us. He won't be in the car much anyway as our local parks and beach are walking distance.

Thanks for the heads up on the ears. I'll keep an eye on that.

[Nightmare]

Best dogs ever I reckon

They are both very energetic but not remotely ‘silly’, very loyal and spend a lot of their energy playing with each other and attempting to hunt pigeons together. They definitely need a lot of exercise - but brain training stuff seems to do a better job of tiring them out than just long walks. Don’t shed or smell much, get on well with all the horses and other dogs. Nicest characters of any dogs I’ve known I think.

[Andy_mr2sc]

Dare I ask if they're better off in pairs rather than on their own?

[Nightmare]

I wouldn’t say better or worse - but a bit different. These two are full brother and sister but 3 years apart I believe. Broadly speaking you go from having one Velcro dog (love that expression!) to having two......but actually they do entertain each other a lot and use each other for comfort. I wouldn’t say they are nervy at all but quite ‘emotional’ compared to other dogs (also think that’s partly why you get the velcroness). In some respects it’s easier having the two than just one I reckon. On the other side you get double the idiocy

[r6blacky]

Our Vizsla was 3 a few weeks ago - he has been the most amazing addition to our family - 2 kids who are now 9 and 12.

He gets a good 1 hour walk in the morning and then generally another 40+ minutes in the evening and is perfectly happy with that.

They are known as velcro dogs for very good reason - why sit near you when they can sit right on top of you eh - they will also follow you around the house constantly.

One of our neighbours loved our dog so much that they now have a 6 month old pup who is actually a half brother to ours - they get along fantastically.

From some conversations I've had with other owners from our litter I've got the impression that bhes can be a little more highly strung that the boys - although this could just be down to the owners.

[Fermit The Krog and Sexy Sarah]

juice said:

Oh and sorry - they don;t mature until about 3 years old. So you have a large dog that thinks it's a puppy for quite a long time.

You're wrong. We have a Viz x Dobe, he's 6, and still as mad as a box of frogs!

[P700DEE]

Love them, I have three registered with my dog boarding service and they are popular fun dogs. All of the above is true but they are rewarding to own and great fun to host . Pictured Brandy on Her Barking Mad holiday going on the Romney and Hythe train.

[Andy_mr2sc]

P700DEE said:

Love them, I have three registered with my dog boarding service and they are popular fun dogs. All of the above is true but they are rewarding to own and great fun to host . Pictured Brandy on Her Barking Mad holiday going on the Romney and Hythe train.

I'm guessing you are based near the RHDR then?
That is worth knowing as we are just down the road in Dover.

[Billyray911]

I’ve had two short haired Vizslas and we have a wirehaired in the family as well.
Absolutely fantastic dogs and i don’t think that ever i’ll ever change breeds.They are extremely loyal,quite sensitive and are great in a family environment.
They do need a lot of exercise and stimulation and can be hard work if you’re not ready for their quirks,but if you’re up for it, the effort is worth it!
Do your research on the breed and try and meet up with some owners to get a ‘feel’ for them.
A good breeder will hopefully temperament test the litter and try and match a dog to the individuals circumstances (as much as possible)
Couple of articles https://www.shootinguk.co.uk/gundogs/gundog-breeds...
https://www.shootinguk.co.uk/gundogs/gundog-breeds...
A good book to start with is The Hungarian Vizsla by Gay Gottlieb
My latest...

[Mobile Chicane]

Fantastic dogs, but be warned they never calm down. Like all ginger animals - and wimmins - they can be a handful.

[Andy_mr2sc]

I'm guessing they're as lively as a working cocker? Should keep me on my toes then.
The book mentioned above is ordered thanks.

Thanks all for the above input. Discounting the 'lively' nature, it's quite rare to read about a breed that really does have no negative feedback. I am sure it will be a great addition to our household. I have a feeling I'll be posting back on here soon with new puppy pics!