08/14/2024
Let's talk black German Shorthaired Pointers. “Few people outside Germany may be aware that early GSPs came in colours, with or without white. These were brown or liver, black and red. The brown dogs were preferred, so the genetically dominant blacks and reds were simply discarded until by the turn of the century, only liver remained.”
“Many of the early liver dogs were rather pale in colour and had light eyes. In addition, there was a perceived weakness in air-scenting ability in the breed. In the early 1900s a number of concerned breeders, prominent amongst whom were Christian Bode, the breeder of the “”Altenau”” GSPs and his friend and associate, Max Waechter “”Wach”” GSPs, re introduced black in the form of a solid black “”Arkwright”” Pointers.”
“The black Pointer included Killian von Kanatshe, listed in the stucbook as “”schwarzer Pointer or Arkwright Stamm a.c. Zwinger des Grafen v Starzenski” “A black Arkwright bred Pointer from Count Starzenski's kennel. In addition an article printed in the studbook mentions several gods from the East Prussian Kanoten line. And Beechgrove bess KC Studbok No. 6. Dr. Waechter's Bess was a seventh Generation Black”
“Bess was mated to the GSP Treu Schmarsow 5G. From this mating Dr. Waechter kept the solid black Wach-Luna. Luna was mated to the well performed Trey II v.d. Maylust 5B and produced Wach Freya. These dogs and their offspring were of sufficient quality and performed so well in the field that a mumber of other prominent breeders of the time were incourage to include them in their breeding Programmes.”
“The black Wach Tell pr.K.6 was owned by Herr Bode. Tell's pedigree contained some of the finest specimens and producers up to that time. His fifth generation, whick inluded Beechgrove Bess, also included such dogs as Bessie Altenau, Hektor v. Pirna, Hertha v.d. Maylust, Ilka Waldheim, Nidung, Trumff Otto and Tellus v. Freudenthal. Wach Tell was the grandsire of an imprtant black performer and prodcer, Arko Kothenwald.”
“Another family of blacks, Trey, Treff, Coralle and Sentala Kanoten, Pr.K. ,43,44,45 and 46 respectively, were sired by Grinn v. Lemgo, a son of the importand sire, Tell aus der Wolfsschlucht. They were out of the granddaughter of another significant sire, Blitz v.d. Maylust.”
“In the blacks having reached sufficient numbers to justify stud book entries were classified as “”Preussisch”” or Prussian shorthairs, becoming an official breed within a breed.”
“Ten years later an article in the 1934 shorthair studbook declared that: “”Due to the performance of such dogs as Angus v. Schwarzaetal Pr. K who is eight generations distant from Beechgrove Bess and in**ed to the great Mars Altenau, and Tim Altenau, who is said to be “””only one part Pointer to 512 parts GSP””” and to others even further removed from the Pointer outcross, it is time they are recognised as true shorthairs.”
“Shortly after the 1934 article the system of separate registration was abondoned. Black were incorporated into the breed studbooks on an equal footing with the livers and have remained so ever since.”
“The current increase in numbers and Popularity of black and whites in Germany is due partly to the success of the first black and white Champion, KS Quell Pottmes. KS Quell the Kleeman-Sieger and a “”V”” rated dog, came from several generations of blacks. His sire was the solid black Amboss v.d. Konigszinne, and his dam the black and white Biene v. Oppenheim. Paul Saalbach, in his 1979 article on the Pottmes kennel, “”work Loving””an interesting decription, since the great majority of British blacks are in working homes.”
“KS Quell was a very influential stud, but his record has been surpassed by his prepotent grandson WS Ciro V Bichtelwald. WS Ciro was also black ticked.” “WS Ciro v Bictelwald's influence has been compared to and some believe has surpassed that of Axel v. Wasserschling.” “ WS Ciro v. Bichtelwald son KS and Ch. Ciro v. Carolinenhof was judged V1 dog, best in Conformation at both the 185 IKP and the 1986 Kleeman events.”
The before quotes were from Georgina Byrne's book the Der Deutsch Kurzhaar – The German Shorthaired Pointer.
Georgian Byrne goes on to write about the Pottmes Kennel. “Apotheker Meyerheim began work as a young man, in a pharmacy in Pottmes, a little town in Oberbayern. In at the age of he started training his first bitch. She was a daughter of Rino II Deutenkofen 623H and Hertha v. Stein 138K. Herr Meyerheim named his bitch Hertha Pottmes, and she became the foundation of a very successful kennel, which persist today under the direction of Frau Franzi Heinen, Herr Meyerheim's daughter.”
Let's see what Herr H. F. Seiger say's in his 1951 book “The Complete German Shorthaired Pointer.” H. F Seiger was not only a very successful breeder, using the Seiger's prefix, but was also the coauthor of The German Shorthired Pointer published in the USA in 5. Herr Seiger bred seven Kleeman Dogs KS. The kennel was established in 1925 so he was there in mush of the early development, or when the breed was fully established.
“I suspect that Chr. Bode the ingenuous “”Altenauer”” breeder carried out another incross with a black Pointer. Thus were created the black and mildew colored Shorthair. Nearly at the same time we could ascertain another Shorthair fancier breeding along the same line. Dr. Washter, Berlin, owner of the Wach Shorthair Kennels, who is known to us by his good dogs Wach Wille, Wach Woge, etc. These dogs gained special merits in the extablishment of the Kauffungen Kennels, whose blood was expecially aline in Artus Sand. We would not neglect that. Ot is even remarkable, that just these two brown and mildew fanciers now tended to breed a novum, the black and mildew Shorthair.”
There was was concern against a new incross of Pointer blood Seiger points out but he goes on to say: “Dr. Kleemann smoothed and reconciled, so that a subdivision in the Studbook Shorthair was finally conceded for the registration of black and mildew coloured Shorthair. And as an appreciation of the “”Altenauer””, Dr. Kleemann wished to their breeder Bode, that he might be successful in breeding another “”Mars Altenau”” this time a blackand mildew coloured one.”
As we can clearly see the most influential President in GSP history Dr. Kleemann who's name is recognized in honor to his day and the K in the KS championship title.
Seiger goes on in his book to write: Evidence has been supplied in this book, that Dr. Kleemann was always right in his predictions. However, as to the black and mildew colured Shorthair, which he has likewise taken under his protection, he has been less fortunate. Or did he yet attain his final purpose? When judging over a dog, he has always been very indulgent as to a lighter colour of eye.... The disadvantages of the pointer in a variety of purposes have been bred out completely.... It has been made possible to improve the rather frequent lighter eye of our dog through the pigment saturated black and mildew coloured Shorthair. I presume with certainty, that Dr. Kleemann had been thinking of suck possibility when he made his concessions t the black and mildew coloured Shorthair.”
There was a time when brown and black shorthairs were breed together and the browns of the litter could be registered in the Shorthair Stud book and the blacks of such matings had to be entered as so called “Prussian Shorthair”, Seiger's words: “which is the original name of the black Shorthair.”
Timeline, The Franco Prussian was ended and Germany unitedat lastinto one nation and it's this time many consider breed development of a truly German breed. There were many factions and development was slow at best. 1897 the first Stub book registry for the Shorthair. 1907 Tell aus der Wolfsschluct whelped and represented a distinct improvement in physique. Same year 1907 the blackArkwright Pointer Beechgrove Bess was brought to Germany with the object of improving both pigment and air scenting ability, such as high nose. The Arkwright Pointers were famous in England and from my research were a versatile dog that both retrieved from land or water. Herr Bode who developed an appreciation for the best working Pointers and upon his return to Germany, set about producing German Shorthairs which could hold their own with the Points whilst retaining their versatiliy in other spheres. Info from Georgina Byrne's book The German Shorthaired Pointer, page 11.
Byrne goes on in great detail parsing Bode's breeding program and the great influence his dogs had on the breed. It should be noted at this very same timeline and early development that he was also breeding the black pointer into these lines to where after a number of years into the thirties the black pointer Bess was only 512 parts. So the black was bred in, and then bred out to where only the color remained and the working genes were GSP.
Now remember what I said about the Pottmes Kennel that was started by Apotheker Meyerheim in at the age of 24. This Kennel would go on to produce the first Black German KS, and the kennel remains today. Making it the one of the oldest and longest lasting Kennels in German Shorthair History.
So as you can see the blacks have been a part of German Shorthair History for 120 years. It's been a long time coming but black Shorthairs have earned there right to full status in the American Kennel Club, and the German Shorthair Club of America, only taking 89 years longer than the rest of the world.
In closing I find it ironic that black Shorthairs have been denied a home in the German Shorthair Club of America while the white genetic Pointer crossed GSP has been welcomed with open arms. The Black GSP is Genetically the exact same dog as and pure bred GSP, while a large number of white GSP field trial dogs are Genetically Pointer GSP hybrid crosses.
