The Hungarian Vizsla — also known as the Magyar Vizsla or Hungarian Pointer — is one of the oldest hunting breeds in Europe, with origins tracing back to the Magyar tribes who settled the Carpathian Basin in the 9th century. Hunting dogs of this type appear in manuscripts and stone engravings dating to the 14th century.
The breed nearly disappeared during and after World War II, but dedicated breeders preserved the bloodlines. Today the Vizsla is recognized worldwide as an outstanding versatile hunting dog and beloved companion, prized equally for field performance and its affectionate, gentle nature.
FCI Classification: Group 7 (Pointing Dogs), Section 1 (Continental Pointing Dogs). With working trial (Field and Water Trial).
Medium sized, elegant gun dog of noble appearance with short russet gold coat. His rather light, dry, lean structure embodies the harmony of beauty and strength.
Important proportions: The body length slightly exceeds the height at the withers. The depth of the brisket is slightly less than half the height at the withers. The muzzle is slightly shorter than half the length of the head.
Lively, friendly, evenly tempered, easy to train. His outstanding willingness to keep contact with his master while working is one of his essential qualities. He cannot bear rough treatment and must be neither aggressive nor shy.
A versatile gun dog, able to work in field, forest and water. He has an excellent nose, firmness on the point, excellent retrieving ability and determination to remain on the scent even when swimming. He copes with difficult terrain and extreme weather conditions. Because of his easy-going nature and adaptability, he can easily be kept as a companion dog in the house.
Skull
Moderately wide, slightly domed. A slightly pronounced groove runs from the moderately developed occiput towards the stop. The superciliary ridges are moderately developed. Stop moderate.
Muzzle
Blunt, not pointed, with strong, well-muscled jaws. The bridge of the nose is straight. Nose well developed and broad, with nostrils as wide as possible. The colour of the nose harmonises with the coat colour in a darker shade.
Eyes
Slightly oval, of medium size. Well-fitting eyelids. Intelligent and lively expression. Brown, harmonising with the coat colour — as dark as possible preferred.
Ears
Leathers set on at medium height, a little backwards. Fine leathers hanging closely to the cheeks, ending in a rounded V shape. Length approximately three quarters of the head length.
Teeth
Powerful jaws with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth, set square to the jaws. 42 healthy teeth according to the dentition formula.
Neck
Of medium length, harmonising with the overall appearance. The nape very muscular and slightly arched. Skin tightly fitting at the throat.
Back
Solid, strong, well muscled, taut and straight; vertebral spines hidden by muscles. Loin short, broad, tight, muscular, straight or slightly arched; well coupled to the back. Croup broad, of sufficient length, not cut off short; sloping slightly to the tail, well muscled.
Chest
Deep and broad with well developed, well muscled, moderately arched forechest. Sternum extending as far back as possible, at the same level as the elbows. Ribs moderately arched; last ribs carried well back.
Belly
Elegant, tight, arching line towards the rear; slightly tucked up.
Forequarters
Viewed from the front, straight and parallel; from the side, vertical and placed well under the body. Shoulders long, sloping, flat and flexible; well angulated with upper arm. Upper arm as long as possible, well muscled. Elbows close to the body, turning neither in nor out. Forearms long, straight, sufficiently muscled. Pasterns short, only very slightly sloping.
Hindquarters
Viewed from behind, straight and parallel. Well angulated, strong bone. Upper thigh long and muscular, good angulation with pelvis. Stifle well angulated. Lower thigh long, well muscled and sinewy, nearly equal in length to upper thigh. Hock joint strong, dry, sinewy and well let down. Metatarsus vertical, short and dry.
Feet
Slightly oval, with well-knit, sufficiently arched, strong toes. Strong brown nails. Tough, resistant, slate-grey pads. Feet parallel when standing or moving.
Set on slightly low, strong at the base, tapering towards the tip. In countries where tail docking is not prohibited by law, the tail may be shortened by one quarter to avoid hunting hazards. Where docking is prohibited, the tail reaches down to the hock joint, carried straight or slightly sabre-like. On the move, it is raised up to the horizontal. Well covered by dense coat.
Short and dense, coarse and hard to the touch. On the head and leathers, the hair is thinner, silkier and shorter. The hair underneath the tail is slightly longer, but not noticeably so. Covers all of the body; the underside of the belly is a little lighter coated. No undercoat.
Various shades of russet gold and dark sandy gold (semmelgelb). The leathers may be a little darker; otherwise uniform in colour. Red, brownish or lightened colour is undesirable.
A small white patch on the chest or throat, not more than 5 cm in diameter, and white markings on the toes are not considered faulty. The colour of the lips and eye rims corresponds to the colour of the nose.
Males
58–64 cm
20–30 kg
Females
54–60 cm
18–25 kg
Heights follow the FCI standard. Weight is not specified in the FCI standard. Several registries that register many Vizslas do not use the FCI standard (e.g. AKC, KC, NZKC, CKC), so their accepted limits — and the "under/above standard" labels used elsewhere on the site — may differ.
Minor
Serious
Disqualifying
Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified. Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.