# Drahthaar coats and burrs



## Jimmy Lipper (Sep 4, 2017)

I’ve ran a Springer Spaniel for the last few years but am strongly considering getting a Drahthaar. I love the Springer but am getting sick of picking burrs out of her coat after every hunt. In addition, my kids are getting to the age where they will be hunting behind this dog and a pointing dog would be nice. I’ve also began hunting a lot more Chukar and it’s hard to chase the Springer uphill.

I need a dog with good retrieving instincts so that is why I’m considering a Drahthaar. I’m also considering a wirehair but they are harder to find in the Ogden area.

I was curious if any owners of Drahthaars can tell me how they do with burrs. 

How hard is it to take care of their coats? Do I need to strip their coats and how much do they typically shed? 

Thanks for your help.


----------



## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

It all depends on the coat of the particular dog and they all shed a fair amount.


----------



## toasty (May 15, 2008)

I had a german wirehair pointer and it was absolutely awful for picking up burs. I spent more than 2 hours after one pheasant hunt pulling out the prickly balls. The outer coat was OK, but that inner soft coat picked up everything. Despite having an insanely good nose, that is one of the couple reasons I sold this dog.


----------



## Dexter (Sep 23, 2018)

I currently own a wire hair and love the breed. I've always owned mostly labs and Brittany spaniels. Hated the Burr's in the spaniels, loved the breed. I have never had a burr that was hard to remove from my GWP(yet), sometimes he will pick up the small hitch hikers but they pull right out. Now his coat is not long and curly, only his beard. I have a friend that has a GWP that is the sister to mine that is ready to have pups anytime here soon(great nose). The male is Drahthaar out of South Dakota I believe. The owner of the female lives in Ogden.


----------



## Drew (Jun 9, 2021)

Jimmy Lipper said:


> I’ve ran a Springer Spaniel for the last few years but am strongly considering getting a Drahthaar. I love the Springer but am getting sick of picking burrs out of her coat after every hunt. In addition, my kids are getting to the age where they will be hunting behind this dog and a pointing dog would be nice. I’ve also began hunting a lot more Chukar and it’s hard to chase the Springer uphill.
> 
> I need a dog with good retrieving instincts so that is why I’m considering a Drahthaar. I’m also considering a wirehair but they are harder to find in the Ogden area.
> 
> ...


I have a 4 year old Pointing Griffon that I've been hunting everywhere in the Western US for upland in some of the nastiest burr covered country that you have ever seen and she picks some up when she's wet and after her coat dries they just come off on their own. A funny story, I am getting older and slowed down somewhat so after many years of chasing my Lab and hunting behind a really good Drahthaar, is googled "slow" "pointing dog" and "thorough" and up this dog breed popped up. So, not only is she burr resistant but she hunts at a speed that I appreciate and she is a fantastic pointing dog and lastly she is a great retriever with a soft mount.....even on quail!!


----------



## Corey (Aug 26, 2021)

Drew said:


> I have a 4 year old Pointing Griffon that I've been hunting everywhere in the Western US for upland in some of the nastiest burr covered country that you have ever seen and she picks some up when she's wet and after her coat dries they just come off on their own. A funny story, I am getting older and slowed down somewhat so after many years of chasing my Lab and hunting behind a really good Drahthaar, is googled "slow" "pointing dog" and "thorough" and up this dog breed popped up. So, not only is she burr resistant but she hunts at a speed that I appreciate and she is a fantastic pointing dog and lastly she is a great retriever with a soft mount.....even on quail!!


I was looking at the drahthaar hard after my lab passed since I do upland and waterfowl and stumbled onto the Pudelpointer. We’ve had ours for 5 years and am very happy with the decision. Ours happens to have a longer coat like the drahthaar so she picks up burrs like crazy but if I keep her stripped it’s not too bad. However they also can be a much shorter hair with a beard and are much easier on the burrs. Super cool family dog but is always and I mean always hunting everything. She points and retrieves pheasant and quail , retrieves ducks, doves and rabbits, loves the water and kayak fishes with me and has blood tracked wounded deer. The selling point for the wife was that she doesn’t shed and my wife doesn’t have allergies with her like she did with other dogs. Not as hardcore as the draht so I’ve heard, but that can be good and bad if it’s also a house dog like ours. That being said I’m still considering a drahthaar in the future since the kids are older now, but it’s another breed for you to consider…


----------



## bwood (Jan 5, 2011)

Absolutely depends on the individual dog. I've had several GWP's (AKC registered draaht) and most only get burrs in their beard. Some have the coat of a GSP. The only time I ever have to do anything is when they get between their toes. A good GWP/DD can hunt anything and be zero maintainance.


----------



## SCS_Bg_Hunter (Oct 27, 2019)

I'll second the Pudelpointer. I've had Brittany's for years, great dogs but the burrs were an issue. My Pudelpointer doesn't shed at all, she has a slightly longer coat and it does pick up burrs but they come out pretty easy. Plus, with her temperament she'll just sit or stand by me and let me brush them out of her with a stiff metal comb. Like Corey says above she will hunt anything and everything. Started pointing my cats at 8 weeks.


----------

