The Vizsla is a dog breed from Hungary and belongs to the Pointer group. The Hungarian or Magyar Vizsla are sporting dogs and loyal companions.
the Vizsla is a muscular dog with incredible stamina and endurance. Medium in size, this dog has a short, silky coat that ranges from light golden to a deep auburn. The Vizsla’s medium size is one of the breed’s most appealing characteristics. As a hunter of fowl and upland game, the Vizsla has held a prominent position among sporting dogs that of household companion and the family dog.
The Vizsla is a natural hunter endowed with an excellent nose and outstanding trainability. It was bred to work in fields, forests or bodies of water. Although they are lively, gentle-mannered, demonstrably affectionate and sensitive, they are also fearless and possess a well-developed protective instinct.
History
The first written reference to the Vizsla dog breed has been recorded in the Illustrated Vienna Chronicle prepared on order of King Louis I of Hungary by the Carmelite Friars in 1357.
As companions of the early warlords and barons, Vizsla blood was preserved pure for centuries by the land-owning aristocracy who guarded them jealously and continued to develop the hunting ability of these “yellow-pointers”. Records of letters and writings show the high esteem in which the Vizsla was held.
The Vizsla has survived the Turkish occupation (1526–1696), the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, World War I, World War II and the Hungarian People’s Republic. However, Vizslas faced and survived several near-extinction in their history, including being overrun by English Pointers and German Shorthaired Pointers in the 1800s (Boggs, 2000:19) and again to near-extinction after World War II. A careful search of Hungary and a poll of Hungarian sportsmen revealed only about a dozen Vizslas of the true type still alive in the country. From that minimum stock, the breed rose to prominence once again. The various “strains” of the Vizsla have become somewhat distinctive as individuals bred stock that suited their hunting style. Outside Hungary, vizslas are commonly bred in Romania, Austria, Slovakia, and Serbia.
The Vizsla started arriving in the United States at the close of World War II. As interest in and devotion to the breed began to increase, owners formed the Vizsla Club of America to gain AKC recognition. As a result of registering foundation stock with the AKC, Vizsla owners were able to obtain official recognition on 25 November 1960, as the Vizsla became the 115th breed recognized by the American Kennel Club.
The Vizsla was used in the development of other breeds, most notably the Weimaraner, Wirehaired Vizsla and German Shorthaired Pointer breeds. There is much conjecture about those same breeds, along with other pointer breeds, being used to reestablish the Vizsla breed at the end of the 19th century.