Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla

[Grimmz]

Is anyone able to share experiences of this breed?

We are planning to get our first family dog within the next year and still researching breeds, but we're really interested in wirehaired vizslas for various reasons. Any personal insights or advice would be much appreciated

Do you plan on sitting down anytime in the next 10 years? If so it's probably not the dog for you 😀

We got a Vizsla (not wire haired) as our first dog 4 years ago.

Vizslas are hard work😁! They're very loving and family focused but very highly strung and emotionally needy!

Our Vizsla ended up being a lockdown dog and she is not good with people:-(.

If you go for it I would suggest booking up a good trainer straight away and focus on training as if they are under your control it will be a lot easier!!!

They are the most beautiful puppies and adult dogs but not for the faint hearted!

Thank you!

Are there any notable differences between males and females within the breed?

And do you think it's the sort of dog that would need/benefit from a doggie companion at home, or would it be happy with just their humans?

And what does your exercise regime look like (dare I ask)

My DS and his GF have a beautiful copper coloured smooth haired Vizsla they bring round if they are staying. Absolutely stunning dog . But o my it seems to trot around constantly - I can't relax when it's about. I dare say its more settled in its own home but this one is very highly strung -tbf it was a lockdown dog . We have a labrador and a rescue and they sleep most of the day other than when exercising !

Viszlas are part of the HPR family of gundog. They are a working breed and imo not suitable for first time owners. They definitely need a job to do and breed specific training especially around recall etc. Sadly see so many permanently on leads because the owners couldn't be arsed to put the very many hours of training in that a Viszla needs.
Working dogs quickly become destructive and develp unwanted behaviours if they aren't mentally stimulated sufficiently.

Honestly I wouldn’t recommend a vizsla if it’s your first family dog. They are gorgeous dogs but do need an experienced owner due to their working lines. Doesn’t matter if they’re male or female! They are very driven, and without proper work they can be a bit bonkers.

They are Velcro dogs and don’t cope well with being left for any length of time, and need a ton of exercise both physical and mental.

What is drawing you to this breed? And how old are your children?

When deciding a breed you need to look at:

• your lifestyle. Are you genuinely outdoorsy people who are out and about all day/weekend or do you prefer lounging around at home?
• work. Does 1 member of family wfh or are you all out from 8-5.30? If so then sorry but a dog isn't for you anyway
• location. Are you near lots of fields/woodlands or in a more urban area?
• time for training. Are you prepared to put in a significant amount of time over months/years to train the dog or would you prefer a 6-9 week training course at the local village hall?
• holidays. Do you like going abroad or would you be happy having more holidays in UK where you can bring the dog?
• facilities at home. Do you have a room where you can get a muddy and wet dog dry every day from Oct-April or would the thought of mud and hair everywhere drive you mad?

Why do you look into adoption?

Ah they’re brilliant! I know a few.
My own dog’s dad was a Vizsla and my boy’s got a lot of vizsla traits. He’s older now, going in 9, but still has his bounce. You will be leaned into a lot. They need at least two hour walk a day (with space to run and shake the bugs off). They get very depressed if you even skip a day (which happens sometimes. It’s life). Mine’s off lead but I’ve trained and trained and trained. The training doesn’t stop with any dog.

I’m very active and love getting outside every day in every weather. If you’re not active yourself and walking in the freezing cold for two hours isn’t your cup of tea, don’t get a vizsla. They’re lovely but they’re high maintenance.

I've got a working gundog breed, and honestly, it was a baptism of fire. Their prey drive is all consuming, and the first 2 years were really tough going and involved constant training/long lines/recall work. He really is adorable, and thankfully calm at home but outdoors on a walk with scents overwhelming him, he's a lunatic. He's nearly 11 now and even arthritis isn't slowing down his "cray cray" as my grandkids call it. In pheasant season, he's still on a long line most of the time.

As a first dog, I would be wary. Mine was my 3rd after an extremely stubborn tiberan terrier and the worlds most biddable gentle labrador. Neither prepared me remotely for a gun dog!

@FruitBat53 agree 100%. Gundogs are the best but only once you've got past the first 2 years 😁.
I've put 400+ hours of training into my 2 Yr old WCS and she still isn't the finished article but spaniels are easier than any of the HPR breeds. I'm an experienced spaniel trainer/handler but I wouldn't touch a HPR even though I love them.

Friend of mine has one and it's on par with a border collie for energy levels. It needs a very energetic owner. The dog will need lots of mental and physical stimulation.

Hers is an escape artist and will often will take its self off for a run for a few hours. Luckily they live in a remote location and the local farmer will often inform them the dog has escaped again.

IMO a dog like this needs to be on a farm or small holding where it has lots and lots of land to explore. Keeping it in a house with a family and typical back garden isn't enough. I very often see one taking its owner for a drag around our village. Doesn't seem fair for a dog like that to be cooped up.

We have had 4 vizslas over the years and as others say, they are high energy, can be very sensitive/needy and can have an incredible prey drive.

They are intelligent and can be trained to be safe round stock/small animals/chickens etc but you need to be prepared to put in a lot of hours of training, be very consistent and focussed yourself and have experience of training quick, active dogs.

There are a lot of easier dogs for a first time owner - personally I would find a rescue non-working dog which is at least 2 years old as a first dog.

Agreed!

This.

Also consider your experience with dogs. If you’ve never owned a dog before as an adult (having a dog as a child does not count!!) and you cannot devote several hours a day, then a HWV isn’t for you.

For reference: I wouldn’t touch a Vizsla and I am a big dog person who devotes a hell of a lot of training and outdoor exercise time to my dogs (2-3hours a day exercise + inside training) and Vizslas are up there with Collies under ‘dogs I’d love but quite frankly have no bloody business owning’

I’d strongly recommend you consider another breed

Vizslas are not your average family pet and they're certainly not for first time owners.

They are incredibly high energy, intelligent and sensitive - they're also prone to separation anxiety and commonly known as "velcro dogs". They don't like being alone and will easily destroy your house if they're not adequately exercised and stimulated.

I say all of this as someone who owns a beagle, lol. Honestly, don't do it to yourself - they are bloody hard work.

'dogs I’d love but quite frankly have no bloody business owning’

I have a <very> long list of these dogs!

They are fucking bonkers. Unless you have hours (2+ a day, every day) to exercise them and also are able to provide mental stimulation, don't do it. There's a couple near me that I see out and about - whilst they're glorious, happy and generally very personable dogs, they're usually getting a sprint on, dragging their owners behind them. Well bred working dogs NEED to work or at least be exercised to the same level as a days work. They're not for the faint hearted, and certainly not a suitable first dog. What is it that attracts you to them?

If you want a gundog that's energetic when you're out but is quite happy to snooze, I'd go for a working labrador type. Maybe I just got lucky but mine will happily run with me for miles but is also content to curl up with his elderly fox terrier brother.

Sadly, the only vizlas I know are a pair that will attack my lab for no reason at all and I have to leash mine and walk away. That's said, it's the owner who is a bit of a b@tch, so if you do go vizla, please get them trained up. My lab had his basic training with a gundog trainer so I hope that's helped make him more biddable than he might have been.

Good luck and there's some good advice on this thread from others.