Ben Westhoff
If she came from a breeder, that would imply Pippi's a purebred, right? But a purebred what?
When I walk her down the street, children point at her and yell, "Dalmatian!" But even though that breed can have brown spots (here's one that does), Pippi doesn't quite fit the mold of a purebred Dalmatian. Anna notes that Pippi's spots are not "breed standard," i.e. evenly distributed and about the size of dimes or half dollars. Pippi's look, rather, is more like the "ticking" of a pointer, sparse on her sides and clustered on her face and back.
Pippi also has large patches of color on her ears, side and tail, which are similarly not standard for Dalmatians. (At the very least, they would disqualify her from showing in a competition.) Then there's the shape of her muzzle. Anna says she associates Dalmatians with slightly tapered muzzles (when viewed from the front), rather than those that are more squared, like Pippi's. But she wonders if that might just be a faulty association on her part, which some Web sites indicate.
It also seems possible that Pippi is mostly German shorthaired pointer, a breed that is thought to have been bred originally from a wide range of dogs, including Dalmatians. However, German shorthaired pointers are more likely to be liver with white spots instead of white with liver spots like Pippi, and their ears seem to be longer. Still, Pippi bears a striking resemblance to a standard German shorthaired pointer. Anna's sister Alicia, for one, is convinced that she is of that breed.
Pippi also sports webbed feet, which is a characteristic of German shorthaired pointers, who were bred to retrieve game in water. As for a hunter's instinct? I've seen Pippi do that Heisman-style pointing pose only once, and I still don't know at what she was pointing. Sure, she loves to chase birds and watch them scatter, but don't all dogs like to do that? Then there's her tail, which is long like a Dalmatian's.
For now, we can only guess at her ancestry. How about you? Tell us what breed(s) you think Pippi is.
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There is no doubt that if Pippi isn't a purebred German Shorthair Pointer - then at least one of her parents were. What a beautiful girl she is!
She could be prue breed German Shorthair Pointer who just didn't have her tail cropped.
I have shown in the conformation ring for years and have seen this breed, thus, I believe she is a German Shorthair Pointer but if you want to know for sure, AKC now has a DNA test whereby you establish the breed or breed mixes of a dog. Check out our website for tons of great information from training to titles on pedigress and what to ask breeders when purchasing a dog. www.katzenblut.com
Is this a trick question? It seems obvious that she is a GSP. The bigger question is why there seems to be much confusion over it.
It wasn't originally clear, but the pic in this post is NOT of Pippi, it is of a random GSHP. For a pic of Pippi look here: http://www.pawnation.com/2009/12/24/the-doggie-diaries-we-have-a-puppy/
OHHHHHHHHHHH Thank you Ben....that makes a big difference. I can see in the other photo how it could be questionable. I didn't realize the picture in this article wasn't of the dog in question. Which begs the question, why did they run a picture of a different dog when asking the question, "what breed is Pippi"? I mean, if the picture isn't of Pippi, then what's the point of the question? lol
Okay, the picture in the post NOW is of Pippi.
i knew as soon as i saw the picture she was a gsp... who would even question it?
All you have to do is read to see they are not talking about the same dog. The real Pippi is a sooner.
I have a dog similar. She is black and white with the same type of spot formation. I thought she could be pointer mix, since she has web feet, then thought Catahoula/lab mix...I recently sent off a sample of her blood with a test kit to find out and according to the lab results (which tested her blood for DNA-breed type) she is a Springer Spaniel/Fox Hound and unknown. I really don't see the Springer or Foxhound in her - and still think she has some other hunting type mix. But this dog looks to have pointer or some form of setter mix? She has the pointer head, but does seem to have markings that are more white than spots.
it is a red tick copper nose beagle my do gigi's dad looks just like him
This pup is the spitting image of the dog I grew up with. Minky was a cross between a Dalmation and a German Shorthaired Pointer.
Marivi, can you send a picture of Minky to ben.westhoff@gmail.com, by any chance?
I think she is a lab/German shorthaired pointer mix. Her coloration is that of a GSP but her head shape is more like a lab.
Pippi looks like a Shorthaired Pointer mixed with a Class B Rat Terrier. She is a beautiful dog.
Pippi looks very similar to my dog. Mine is solid black on his back but underside white with spots. Face is similar to Pippi's. I've been told he's GSP/Dalmatian mix from the people I got him from. Has a lot of strong characteristics of both breeds, which makes him a bit odd at times. Other people have argued he has to be GSP/Border Collie. I don't know for sure, but he's a great dog! Smart as a whip and goofy as all get out!! Thought about doing a DNA test, but my friend did one and the results came back DEFINITELY wrong for her dog!! Waiting to find a more reliable source for testing.
I don't know a lot about how dog DNA works...but I have two German Shorthair Pointers crossed with Dalmation and they look quite different to Pippi, they have the very definate pointer head, and black and white spots, but not in the dalmation formation, more like a cross between the dalmation spots and pointer spots.
We have a look alike to your Pippi. Our dog is the love of our lives. Her name is Delilah. I am an Animal control warden and also have a dog rescue. Been involved with dogs all my life....it appears that our dogs are Liver coated Dalmation Beagle mix. We took her in from a rescue in North east Indiana. Thank you for sharing your beautiful family member. Colleen 4kicks@rr1.net. Now to get a pix on here!