The is a German

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...

hunting dog A hunting dog is a Dog, canine that hunts with or for hunters. There are several different Dog type, types of hunting dog developed for various tasks and purposes. The major categories of hunting dog include hounds, terriers, cur type dogs, and ...

of medium to large size, with history going back at least to the nineteenth century. It originated in the area of the city of

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

(then in Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, now in the state of

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

), for which it is named. It was recognised as a breed in 1891. It is an all-purpose

gun dog Gun dogs (gundogs) or bird dogs are types of hunting dogs developed to assist hunters in finding and retrieving game, typically various fowls that are shot down on the wing (in flight). The term hunting dog is broad and includes all breeds and s ...

, characterised by its speed and stamina, its good nose and eye, and its courage and intelligence; in Germany it is not considered suitable for keeping as a companion dog.

History

Many theories of the origin of the Weimaraner have been advanced, but there are few documented historical facts; silver-grey dogs are shown in paintings by Antoon van Dyck in the seventeenth century and by Jean-Baptiste Oudry in the eighteenth. The breed is believed to have originated in the area of the city of

(then in Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, now in the state of

) – the city from which its name derives. It is sometimes claimed that the dogs were kept at the court of Karl August, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, in the early nineteenth century. From 1879 the dogs were considered to be a blue variant of the German Short-haired Pointer, and were eligible for registration in the

stud-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders w ...

of the . They first appeared at a dog show in 1880, when fourteen examples were presented in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. These were of three differing types, from three different kennels: the traditional Thüringer Hund; the Weißenfelser Hund, which was rather more elegant; and the Sanderslebener, which was intermediate between the two. The Weimaraner was recognised as a distinct breed in 1891. A

breed standard In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include phenotype, physical or morphology (biology), morphological detail, genotype, g ...

was drawn up in 1896, and in 1897 a breed association was established in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

with the name ; this was soon changed to . In the early years of the twentieth century – the time of the Great War – the Weimaraner came close to extinction; it was reconstituted from the few surviving examples of the breed. It was definitively accepted by the

Fédération Cynologique Internationale The (; FCI; ) is the largest international federation of national kennel clubs and purebred registries. The FCI is based in Thuin, Belgium and has 98 members and contract partners (one from each country). History The FCI was founded in 1911 un ...

in 1954. In the fifteen years from 2007 to 2021, the annual number of new registrations in Germany averaged about 485, with a low of 390 and a high of 607.

Characteristics

The Weimaraner is of medium to large size: dogs stand some at the

withers Withers are the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, this ridge is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, catt ...

, bitches about ; weights are in the range for dogs, for bitches. The coat may be either short or long; a double coat of intermediate length is sometimes seen. The coat may be mouse-grey, roe-grey or silver-grey in various shades, or of a colour intermediate between these; minor white markings to the feet and chest are tolerated. The eyes are amber, ranging from pale to dark; the ears are pendent, with rounded tips. Among the neurological diseases associated with the Weimaraner are

cerebellar hypoplasia Cerebellar hypoplasia is characterized by reduced cerebellar volume, even though cerebellar shape is (near) normal. It consists of a heterogeneous group of disorders of cerebellum, cerebellar maldevelopment presenting as early-onset Non-progress ...

, hypomyelinogenesis and

spinal dysraphism Neural tube defects (NTDs) are a group of birth defects in which an opening in the Vertebral column, spine or cranium remains from early in human development. In the third week of pregnancy called gastrulation, specialized cells on the dorsal si ...

. Other diseases or defects to which it has some genetic or statistical predisposition include corneal dystrophy, distichiasis, entropion, eversion of the cartilage of the

nictitating membrane The nictitating membrane (from Latin '' nictare'', to blink) is a transparent or translucent third eyelid present in some animals that can be drawn across the eye from the medial canthus to protect and moisten it while maintaining vision. Most ...

, generalised demodicosis, medial canthal pocket syndrome, refractory corneal ulceration and XX sex reversal, and also – in dogs only – Weimaraner neutrophil dysfunction, pododermatitis and tricuspid dysplasia. A 2024 UK study found a median lifespan of 12.8 years for the breed compared to an average of 12.7 for purebreeds and 12 for crossbreeds.

Use

The Weimaraner is a versatile hunting dog, and may be used to track, point to, flush or

retrieve RETRIEVE is a database management system (DBMS) offered on Tymshare's systems starting in August 1971. It was written in Tymshare's own FORTRAN, SUPER FORTRAN on the SDS 940. It offered basic single-file, non-relational database, relational databas ...

birds or other game. Registration is subject to successful completion of a working trial. In Germany it is not considered to be suitable for keeping as a companion dog. According to the breed club, it "... basically belongs in the hands of hunters due to its development and its characteristics ... It is not a companion dog, but a hunting dog through and through. As such, it needs work in practical hunting in order to preserve its balanced nature"; whelps are placed mainly with hunters.

Notes

References

Dog breeds originating in Germany FCI breeds Gundogs Pointers {{bots, deny=Citation bot