Hungarian Vizsla
A Young Vizsla
Alternative names
Vizsla Hungarian Pointer Magyar Vizsla
Country of origin
Hungary
Classification
FCI: Group 7 Section 1 #57, #239 AKC: Sporting ANKC: Group 3 (Gundogs) CKC: Group 1 - Sporting Dogs KC(UK): Gundog NZKC: Gundog UKC: Gun Dog Breeds
Breed standards (external links)
FCI: Hungarian Short-haired Pointer Hungarian Wire-haired Pointer AKC: Vizsla ANKC: Hungarian Vizsla CKC: Vizsla (Smooth) Vizsla (Wire-haired) KC(UK): Hungarian Vizsla Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla NZKC: Hungarian Vizsla UKC: Vizsla

The Hungarian Vizsla, pronounced VEEZH-la (zh as in vision), is a dog breed originating in Hungary. Vizslas are known as excellent game bird hunting dogs, and also have a level personality making them suited for families.

Appearance

Vizslas are often mistaken for ridgeless Rhodesian Ridgebacks, and are physically likened to Weimaraners, their German cousins.

The breed comes in either of two coat types: smooth or wire-haired. The FCI, CKC, and the KC(UK) consider the smooth-haired and wire-haired as separate breeds. Male Vizslas typically weigh between 55 and 65 lb (25 to 29 kg), females 45 to 55 lb (20 to 25 kg).

Temperament

Like all sporting breeds , Vizslas require a good deal of exercise to remain healthy and happy. A bored Viszla is a destructive Vizsla who is likely to engage in unwanted behavior, including chewing anything and everything in your home. Thirty minutes to an hour of exercise daily in a large off-leash area is optimal.

History

There are two prevailing theories pertaining to the Vizsla's history. The first, and most prevalent theory traces the Vizsla back to very early times in Hungarian history. Ancestors of todays's Vizsla were the hunting dogs used by the Magyar tribes living in the Carpathian Basin in the Eighth Century. Primitive stone etchings seem to validate this theory.

The other theory holds that the Vizsla is a product of the nineteenth century, having been the product of Weimaraners and other pointer breeds.