The Best Breed?

On August 6, 1892, an article calling for a massive public confrontation of English and French pointing breeds appeared in “Le Sport et Sportsman Réunis” a popular French sporting journal. The author, a well-known member of the canine establishment, issued a challenge to breeders of all the various breeds of pointing dog to put up or shut up. Clearly frustrated with endless debates over which breed of pointing dog was best, and fed up with fast buck operators selling worthless dogs to naive hunters, he proposed a massive competition in with breeders and owners could prove their dogs’s worth in the field. His goal was to determine which breed of pointing dog was the best choice for French hunters who preferred ‘practical hunting dogs’; medium-paced pointing dogs that retrieve shot game and adjusted their range to the terrain.

And while the event he called for never did take place — even though he was willing to put up the money and provide suitable grounds for it — all-breed trials were eventually organized in France. And they only hastened the decline of the native French breeds as hunter across much of Europe more or less abandoned native breeds in favour of English Setters and Pointers . And while most of the French breeds mentioned in the article did manage to hang on — barely, the Boulet Griffon completely disappeared.

The Best Breed of Pointing Dog.

The question of which pointing breed is best was answered a long time ago by hunters who have experience with various breeds and who can appreciate them all without bias. I mean, of course, serious hunters who know how to train a dog and hunt over it, and I leave aside those who have only had few dogs, and those who have dogs of uncertain or mixed parentage. Those people form opinions which are too often based on the qualities or faults of exceptional individuals only.

Nowadays, everyone who loves pointing dogs and able to see the different breeds in action, either while hunting or in field-trials, and who pay attention to more than just their own dogs, know very well which qualities and abilities are most important for all breeds of pointing dogs. The number of these open-minded people is still very limited in France, but knowing which breed is best, or rather which breed is best suited to satisfy the needs and hunting style of French hunters, is extremely important.

Gallons of ink have been spilled on this subject, in vain, due to the fact that most of the writers writing about dogs in France only hunt with their pens or are simply dog merchants disguised as hunters.

It is high time that we shed some light on this question and that French hunters and the general public, learn, once and for all, what to look for so that they will no longer be duped by hucksters. We must put an end to the uncertainty faced by hunters and prevent naive men from being ripped off as they have been for too long. 

In order to achieve this, we can’t depend on men. Only dogs are honest enough to reveal their true qualities and shortcomings. Men are far too biased and the influence of their own personal interests is too strong for us to trust their opinions. Haven’t we just seen an example of this in an article by Mr. Léon Verrier, the gifted dog trainer employed by Mr. Boulet? He said that the griffon is the best breed of pointing dog. And he has every right to say that. He also said that the Boulet Griffon, his boss’s breed is best of all. And he is fulfilling his duty in saying that. But he is wrong to write that “Our field trial results prove it”. We proved that our griffons have excellent noses and a strong pointing instinct. The proof is in the fact that they win almost every trial”. 

To edify the reader completely and to avoid giving the impression that Boulet Griffons won in all-breed competitions, he should have added that all the victories he claims were in quête courte* trials designed for close working dogs, where they were only running against other Boulet Griffons and a few other French dogs. 

It seems to me that there is only one way to settle the question in a definitive, indisputable, absolute manner, so that we can say once and for all to the hunters of the world: This is the dog that must be bred, encouraged and popularized, this is the best breed for our game, terrain and hunting traditions.

Here is my proposal. We should organize, with the assistance of all the clubs for English dogs and French dogs, private individuals and enthusiasts of all the various pointing breeds, a contest run under the following conditions and rules: 

• Ten English dogs against ten Griffons

• Ten English dogs against ten Pont-Audemer Spaniels

• Ten English dogs against ten Braques du Bourbonnais

• Ten English dogs against ten Braques Dupuy

• Ten English dogs against ten Braques du Midi (Braques de l’Ariège)

• Finally ten English dogs against any dog that is not a Pointer or Setter 

A sum of Five thousand francs** for each category of dogs could be set aside for the winners. The tests would take place during an actual hunt, conducted in the French style, dogs will maintain a practical range, hunt at a moderate pace and must retrieve shot game. The hunt will last two or three hours and take place in open fields, in the woods and in the marsh. One round would take place during the first half of September and a second round would be run in December. Three judges chosen by mutual agreement would accompany the competitors. Under these conditions, the truly practical hunting abilities that French hunters need in their dogs will be tested indisputably.

I am convinced that all hunters who breed dogs for the love of sport will be delighted to lend their support to this contest, and breeders who only want to sell pups will be very interested in taking advantage of the opportunity to publicize the quality of their goods — unless of course this contest is likely to reveal their poor quality. The only serious difficulty to overcome would be finding hunting grounds with fields, woods and marshes as well as enough game to ensure the success of the contest.

First French field trial ever was held on the grounds of Chateau Esclimont, south west of Paris in 1888.

But let me reassure hunters on this point. If they are interested in this project, I will personally guarantee a hunt under the most favourable conditions and make such terrain available to them when we need it. It would be necessary, in the interest of fairness that the greatest number of people possible participate in this contest, that is to say, the contests should be attended by the greatest possible number of enthusiasts of all the various breeds.

In addition to individuals, it seems to me that the various breed clubs, such as the Griffon club, the Gordon club, the Setter and Pointer clubs, would fulfill their mission to popularize their breeds by contributing dogs and members to make up the stakes. Until now, we have only run trials confined to specific breeds, or at least confined to breeds that are similar to each other, so that we determine which Griffons are the best among Griffons etc.; but that does not prove anything relative to the other breeds. The question we need to answer is which breeds are best for us, French, hunters. And that answer can never be found in newspaper articles, advertisements or books written by dog dealers. 

So I repeat, it is absolutely necessary to run different breeds against each other, under the conditions I propose. When we have seen which breed is best for hunting in open fields, in the woods and in the marshes, and is the easiest to handle, most likely to search at a practical range, listens the best and especially has a good nose and firm point; the breed that combines all those qualities, and can hunt just as well on opening day as in December, is obviously the one we need. 

And that is the breed upon which all efforts and all rewards will need to be focused. And we will finally be rid of all the annoying controversies, all the claims and counter claims on both sides: the gullible will no longer be exploited by conmen who sell them four-legged lies. Hunters will be enlightened and the dignity of sport for the sake of sport and the love of art will increase. There is no time to lose if we want to organize this match this year; we are absolutely at the disposal of all those who want to take part in our project.

 PAUL GÉRUZEZ.

Winners of the first field trial held in France, 1888. Sacquine, a Boulet Griffon, won the ‘quête courte’ (close working) stake.

* When field trials were first organized in France, there were two categories. The Concours à longue quête (literally ‘wide search stake’) was for faster, wider running dogs, typically English Setters and Pointers, although some French dogs also ran in that category. The Concours à quête restreinte, pour chiens nés et dressés en France (stake for close working dogs bred and trained in France) was for dogs that stayed within gun range, and typically worked at a trot.

Including a close working category was an attempt to accommodate French hunters who, for generations, used pointing dogs mainly for mixed bag shooting in regions were game was abundant. They didn’t want or need a dog to range out at speed, but preferred dogs that stayed close and pointed or even flushed game since the main goal was to put meat on the table. Huge debates raged at the time between supporters of the close search category who wanted to maintain their traditional breeds and ways of hunting and others who felt that close working stakes would only encourage the breeding of slow, lazy, poor-quality dogs of dubious parentage.

** ** Equivalent of approximately $20.000 USD today.

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