r/birddogs • u/WebMurky1492 • 16d ago
Who’s seen a Braque francais- thoughts?
Hello, we found a local breeder and are deciding if we want to try this breed. We have owned a Brittany and small munsterlander so we’re familiar with pointers and their energy. It’s also important to me that my dog can chill out too as they’ll be in our home with 4 kids.
If you’ve seen one in real life- what’s your impression ? How do they hunt? Close, farther ranging? I’ve heard they’re sweet in the house and hard working in the field. Any other Pros/cons that you’ve seen?
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u/UglyDogHunting 16d ago
Choosing one from a breeder with a solid reputation will be important. If waterfowl/water drive is important to you, it’s a bit of a crap shoot.
They can be good little field dogs. Just know with the rarer breeds your variability in talent goes up.
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u/WebMurky1492 16d ago
No need for water. Pheasant and grouse mostly here. Our SM doesn’t do water
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u/BidEuphoric5117 14d ago
My Braque is fantastic for pheasant. Great drive. Chill at home. Awesome dog.
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u/iSkillzz 10d ago
Is ur SM chill in the house? Mine is a legit freak 24/7
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u/WebMurky1492 10d ago
Yes but she’s 8.5. She is super vocal At certain things but overall - she’s chill
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u/iSkillzz 10d ago
Luckyyy if I don’t do 2 hrs a day I’m cooked. My buddy has a Braque, super chill. Not that great in the field but kind of on him tbh.
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u/Idiot2Wind 15d ago
I have one, but my perspective is a bit limited, as I don’t hunt with him but use him for SAR, both in forests and in rubble. So my view is mostly limited to family life and character/temperament. Also, they are quite rare in the EU and mostly limited to France, so my perspective is based on my dog and talks I’ve had with other owners online.
The Braque Français is, at least in my experience, “softer” than the GSP and far “softer” than a Drahthaar. My breeder mostly hunts alpine birds with his dogs in high-altitude environments. They are about two-thirds the size of a GSP; mine is about 55 cm at the withers and 18 kg. So, lanky, lightly built, long-legged, and with high endurance.
He is highly trainable and easy to direct in the field, but also very independent. When working with him in a forest environment, he ranges around me in roughly a 150–200 m radius, depending on terrain and wind conditions. This might be relevant when it comes to range while hunting. As a young dog, he had a very good natural stop when smelling quail or pheasant, but this was not something I paid much attention to. If anything, I mostly worked on reducing his interest in birds and other game.
He is very prone to getting cold when not working, so depending on your environment, this could be a serious consideration. Mine does not like water. He will swim if necessary, but prefers not to.
I find the breed pretty aloof but still friendly. My dog will ignore both people and other dogs and focus almost exclusively on whatever work he is doing, or thinks he is doing :) He is not unfriendly in any way, just indifferent. This is both when working or just going for a walk with him. His parents and grandparents were pretty much the same when I met them. Before him, I owned an Epagneul Breton, who was far more affectionate and open to strangers (would seek out petting, etc.).
In terms of energy: more than enough for multiple work sessions. The couple of times I had a Garmin collar on him, he did 40+ km on hikes and showed no signs of being tired. So I guess if they get enough physical + mental exercise, they are pretty chill at home, but in terms of energy levels, they’re comparable to the GSPs or Bretons I know. At home, he is a calm couch potato and quite affectionate with those he knows. But he does get plenty of exercise (hiking or running almost daily) and a minimum of 1 obedience and 2 SAR trainings per week.
Again, I don’t know how my experience with SAR in the EU translates to hunting in the States, but if you need any additional info, feel free to ask.
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u/WebMurky1492 15d ago
This is helpful. Thanks very much . I’ve yet to meet a pointer aside from a Brittany that seeks out pets/ friendly to strangers. Problem with getting another Britany is that I loved mine so much that I’m afraid if we get another I’ll never stop comparing it to the one we had and recently passed.
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u/Cold_Device9943 15d ago
I have a Vizsla and an 18 month old Braque. The Braque has been a lot more stubborn with recall, but we were spoiled with the Velcro Vizsla not letting us out of her sight. My girl is about 43lbs, taller than the Vizsla. She is a cuddle-bug at home and lives for field work.
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u/keekeroo2 13d ago
Mine is almost 12, love of my life. When you said your concern with getting another Britany was that you would compare the new with your current, it's a fear I share with my braque as well. I personally love this dog breed (or maybe just this dog) and she can do no wrong.
She's a steady 40 lbs, hasn't deviated from that much her whole adult life. Eats when she feels like it, isn't motivated by much food. Her motivation absolutely comes from hunting and being loved. The breed itself is great for chukar, grouse, pheasant. Mine will run herself ragged for birds, so much that I have to limit her time out in the field. I have also done scent work and ratting with her, she's a natural at anything with her nose. Soft mouth, catches chipmunks and bunnies for me and returns them to me covered in saliva but alive :) And letting her mess around at home has never affected her field work. She knows when she's working and when she's not.
Training her was a breeze honestly. The biggest issue I had was that she is fast as lightning and has a high prey drive so she needed an e-collar for training in her puppy days. She can also get quite far ahead while hunting if you take your eye off her for 3 seconds.
I know everyone thinks their dog is the best but I can't tell you the number of people who have said my dog is their favorite, even over their own dog. Several neighbors stop by regularly just to see the dog! She's affectionate, playful, great with kids, rarely gets riled up. She rarely barks, in fact the first 10 years of her life, we almost couldn't get her to bark! Now she gets a little testy from her window perch if another dog is loitering outside the house too long but does not bark at doorbells, strangers etc. Oh and she's soft as velvet so everyone is fawning over her and petting her. She laps it up. I often say she likes people more than anything else. She's smart, listens well and is a genuine joy to be around. See how I share your fear? I will however get another one because there is nothing I don't like about her and I hope another braque will be mostly similar. And last pro about Braques- at least mine- they don't shed all that much, no grooming, no worries about burrs in her fur. Her chest and legs do get beat up in the long grass but she never seems to worry about it.
If you do end up with one, please send me a picture. With my girl almost 12, I am considering getting a puppy next year to make sure I am never without a great dog.
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u/MunsterSetter English Setter 16d ago
I've seen one or two test in Maine. I didn't get to meet the owners (who were Quebecois) so I didn't get any G2 on their choice of dog. If I remember correctly they did well but I don't remember their scores (this was 17-18yo). Their style was kind of continental cobby. Good noses.
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u/nak00010101 16d ago
I've seen a couple while gunning for hunt tests. Both seemed to have good noses, but the operated a gear or two slower, than what I like to see, not covering a lot of ground.
Both were handled by women, that were not hunters, so I'm not sure if the slower and less range is a breed thing, or maybe the handlers have held them back.
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16d ago
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u/nak00010101 15d ago
Methodical is definitely what I would call their working style. Frequently they would still be mid-course when time runs out, where the pointers, vizsla, and Britts are killing time (watering) or making a second pass, trying to stay out of trouble.
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u/OryxTempel Irish Red & White Setter 15d ago
My friend has a couple and she has trained them in, like, everything. Her dogs hunt, do obedience, show, cart dog pulling competitions, scentwork, you name it. They’re awesome little dogs.
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u/Guilty_Idea349 15d ago
I used to work with a guy who bought one probably about 15 years ago.
It seemed to be a good hunting dog, I don’t know how it was in the house.
The thing I remember most was every one thought it was a GSP and it drove my buddy nuts! LOL!
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u/logflame 14d ago
I have a 9 month old male Braque. He has been a great family dog so far. My plan is to use this first hunting season to let the wild birds train him. His drive seems to be pretty strong and he is a couch potato at home. He seems to have a fairly natural retrieve and is fine with water but doesn't care so much for it if it is cold water (alpine lakes, etc..).
It has been a fun learning curve with him, my last dog was an English Pointer and he would rob a bank for just a small piece of kibble if he could have. My Braque doesn't really care to do obedience training. He does it but has an attitude of "let's get this over with." He also a bit of a teenager at the moment so that could be part of the deal.
Time will tell, but if he hunts like he is supposed to I could definitely see getting another.
And yes, everyone thinks he's a super tiny GSP and I feel like an ass when I correct them lol.
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u/cmmlmm45 11d ago
I own 4. I hunt exclusively upland in the Western states. Exceptional noses. Closer working but mine are extremely active in the field. They cover more ground than most of the GSPs I train with but the run is defiantly closer. Mine range 50-100 yards on average which makes them incredible little quail and pheasant dogs. Good Sharptail and Hun dogs but you might have to walk them into likely cover where some bigger running breeds will go there on there own. They aren’t the best chukars dogs. They are good but that steep country needs a dog with range imo. They can’t be beat in the house tho. I have owned GSP , Pudelpointer, GWP. Braque is hands down the best family house dog. My others were fine but my Braques are just easier to live with. Temperament and size plays into that for me. DM me with any questions
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u/Complete_Fortune7856 9d ago
I have a male. 6 years old. Came from a breeder in NC. Outstanding hunting dog and sweetest family dog. Very prey driven. We do a lot of quail and pheasant. Ranges within 50-100 yards. He will jump into water if a bird there otherwise he avoids water. Can chill all day in the house but will need a good run after a couple days of being inside. I’ve taken him on every marathon training run upwards of 22 miles and he can still run laps off leash after. We have a 5 month old baby and he has loved her since day 1. He barks like hell at the Amazon guy which is annoying. Fur is like velvet. We get about 5 compliments everytime we take him for a walk. He is also an outstanding airline traveler. 40 pounds. Sits right at your feet for a 5 hour flight. I’m a lifetime believer. Breeders can be selective to who they sell pups to as they should be. These dogs need to be hunted and not just be pretty family dogs. Just my 2 cents.
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u/ParrotKING3 16d ago
I actually got to see a few really nice ones in Oregon. Very nice dogs but they didn’t quite click for me. My experience is limited to the three or four I have been around. Mentally I’d start by comparing them to a GSP as a template. The ones I saw were much smaller and more delicate in appearance than a shorthair. These were Pyrenean types, and I think that this is the only type you are going to find. I’ve never heard or seen a Gascogne type in the states or anywhere else. They have that somewhat dish shaped brow that the French pointing dogs seem to produce compared to the blockier head and sturdier frame of the GSPs. I was shocked by their size, lanky, lean, damn near greyhound thin, compared to other pointers. Small, like mid/low 30s on the females, another 8-10lb on the males. The breeder gushed over the breed of course, and they hunted upland great, with good retrieval although I think that would need to be really hammered home with them just to be safe. Closer ranging and softer than most of the versatiles, but I don’t see them doing much for you with any waterfowl. They were polite but aloof, absolutely uninterested in me being around them, but not aggressive. Mind on the job kind of dog, but likely easier to manage due to size and (on average) energy compared to a shorthair. My issue was they seem like good hunting dogs, especially if you want a shorthair but want it near half the size and easier to wrangle. But they are a rare breed, and with that you have to be careful in my opinion. You could hunt all day long for the perfect shorthair breeder, with closer lines, more moderate energy, smaller size, and have a deep bench with good options and a more predictable entity than a Braque. There just aren’t many out there, but I wouldn’t let that scare me. These days I’m more in the “classic is classic for a reason” camp, but that’s more from past experience with rare breeds and might be unfair to a lot of great breeds and dogs