Braque Français (Pyrenees Type)
One old French pointer, two breeds on paper — this is the small, quick one from the Pyrenees.
Vital stats
| Size | Medium · 51–58 cm (dogs), 49–56 cm (bitches) |
| Weight | 18–25 kg — breed literature; the standard sets none |
| Life expectancy | 12–14 years — breed literature, not survey data |
| Energy | High — an all-day hunting pointer |
| Shedding | Low to moderate — short coat, light year-round drop |
| Coat | Short, fine hair · chestnut brown, solid or with white, speckling or tan |
| Group | Sporting · Continental Pointing Dogs (FCI №134, Group 7) |
| Origin | South-west France and the Central Pyrenees |
Breed traits
Friendliness
Care
Mind
Temperament
Neither French Pointing Dog standard carries a behaviour clause; the only temperament rule in the text is that an aggressive or overly shy dog is disqualified. The character here therefore comes from the French breed club and hunting literature, and it is remarkably consistent: gentle, biddable, strongly attached to its handler, and soft — French sources call the breed sensitive, some say timid, and agree that a harsh correction sets it back further than it teaches. The same literature describes a close-to-medium worker with a fine nose that adapts its range to the ground, which is part of why French rough-shooters kept it through two centuries of fashionable foreign pointers. At home expect a dog that leans, follows and settles once it has been run, and an eye for birds that no amount of suburbia removes.
Habits & quirks
Defined by its differences
The whole Pyrenean standard is a list of departures from the Gascogne type: the same dog at reduced dimensions and lighter shapes, with tighter skin, less pendent lips, little or no dewlap and finer, shorter hair. For everything it does not mention, the Gascogne standard is the reference.
Ears that stop two centimetres short
Set on above the eye line and barely folded, the ear tips must end 2 cm from the nose leather — the Gascogne's must reach it. An ear that touches the nose is a listed fault, which makes ear length the quickest way to tell the two types apart.
Brown, four ways
The colour clause reads across from the Gascogne standard: chestnut brown; chestnut brown and white; chestnut brown and white strongly speckled; or chestnut brown with tan markings above the eyes, at the lips and on the legs. The nose is chestnut-brown, and pronounced depigmentation of it disqualifies.
A short tail, never no tail
The tail is fine, and the standard allows it docked or naturally short — but a dog born with no tail at all (anury) is disqualified. The Gascogne text excuses a well-carried long natural tail; the Pyrenean text simply does not mention one.
Care
| Exercise | This is an all-day hunting pointer, and a walk round the block is not the point. Plan on an hour or two of real running plus work for the nose — hunting, field-trial training, dummy searches or scent games. It suits people who run, hike or shoot; under-exercised, it turns restless and vocal. |
| Grooming | A weekly once-over with a hound glove keeps the coat done — the standard asks for hair finer and shorter than the Gascogne's. Check the drop ears weekly and after every outing in cover, because a folded ear over a warm canal is where trouble starts. Baths are rarely needed. |
| Training | French sources describe a sensitive dog, some say timid, and advise gentle, early education with early exposure to town noise. It wants to cooperate — the club literature's word is docile — so reward-based training moves fast and harsh corrections move backwards. Start recall and steadiness around birds young. |
| Health | A rustic breed by its own standard's wording, with no breed-wide health survey to cite. Ask breeders for hip results and keep an eye on the ears, the standing risks of medium pointing breeds; outside France the population is small, so pedigree depth deserves real attention. The 12–14 years in breed literature is a habit of the type, not study data. |
Common questions
What is the difference between the Pyrenees and Gascogne types?
Since 18 January 1955 the FCI has counted them as two breeds: No. 133 for the Gascogne, No. 134 for the Pyrenean. The Gascogne is the old, big braque — 60–69 cm for males, looser skin, longer ears, a slight dewlap, thicker hair; the Pyrenean is the smaller, lighter version at 51–58 cm, with tighter skin, higher-set shorter ears and a finer coat. Head type and colours are the same, and by reputation the Pyrenean is the more commonly seen of the two in the field in France.
Are they good family dogs?
French breed literature is consistent on this: a gentle, people-attached dog that does well with children and gets along with other dogs, among the softest-tempered breeds in Group 7. The honest caveats are the exercise bill of a working pointer, a sensitivity that suits loud households badly, and a nose and pointing instinct that never clock off around birds. Nothing in the FCI standard speaks to temperament, so this rests on club and hunting sources.
Is it the same as a German Shorthaired Pointer?
No — a separate French breed, though both are continental pointers in FCI Group 7 that hunt, point and retrieve. The visible differences: the Pyrenean braque stays a size smaller, wears only chestnut brown and its combinations with white or tan where GSPs commonly carry black, and by reputation works closer to the gun. French fanciers count the braque français among the oldest of the continental pointers; treat lineage claims in either direction with care.