KENAI
Drentsche Patrijshond

The breeds · gun dog · versatile

AKC Foundation Stock Service · UKC Gun Dog · FCI standard 224

Drentsche Patrijshond.

Continental pointing dog of spaniel type (FCI Group 7, Section 1.2, with working trial): 'an ideal dog for hunting in varying fields', pointing, retrieving from land and water and finding lost game; historically the one dog of the Drenthe farmer, hunting feather and fur, keeping the yard clear of vermin and carting. A NAVHDA recognized versatile breed.

Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.

24 / 23INHeightdogs 23.8, bitches 22.6. An ideal from the standard, not a range.
55–77LBWeight, all linesbreed dogs 71.7 lb (66.1 to 77.2); breed bitches 61.7 lb (55.1 to 68.3).

The body

What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.

Height at the shoulder

dogs 23.8 in (22.8 to 24.8) · bitches 22.6 in (21.7 to 23.6)

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Center is the midpoint (57.5 cm). The UKC standard and the AKC page print 21.5 to 23.5 inches.

Weight

dogs 71.7 lb (66.1 to 77.2) · bitches 61.7 lb (55.1 to 68.3)

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Center is the midpoint (28 kg). The AKC page prints 55-60 lb for females, the lower part of the standard's range; the standard is used.

Coat

Dense, well covering the body, 'not curly-haired, but more a straight coat with water resistance undercoat'; not really long but longer on neck and forechest, long preferably wavy hair on the ears, a richly coated tail, feathering on the backs of the legs and trousers, hair between the toes. White with brown markings, with or without spots or ticking; roan not permitted; mantle less desired

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

The AKC page (club-supplied text) calls the coat 'half-long' and single, 'similar to a field-line setter or Brittany', shedding twice a year; the standard names a water-resistant undercoat. The standard is used for the coat description.

Shedding

Shedding 3 of 5 (AKC breed page trait score)

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.

Heat tolerance

3 of 5 · Medium-length straight coat with a water-resistant undercoat and feathering

DerivedFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Derived from the standard's coat description: a medium coat with undercoat = 3 (the medium band).

The dog at home

What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.

Exercise need

'Intelligent hunting dogs in need of mental stimulation and regular exercise, regardless of the weather'; 'regular walks or runs are a must', with safe off-lead running when possible; 'not suitable for sedentary lifestyles'

Breed clubAKC

Club-supplied text on the AKC page; qualitative, no minutes band.

Energy

AKC Energy Level 3 of 5 ('Moderate'); Mental Stimulation Needs 5 of 5 ('Needs a Job or Activity'); Trainability 5 of 5; the standard: a body that 'shows power and also the ability to develop the necessary speed for a gundog'

Breed clubAKC

No RKC exercise band exists; exercise_need_min not recorded.

Grooming load

2 of 5 · AKC Coat Grooming Frequency 3 of 5 ('Weekly'); Shedding Level 3 of 5; club text on the page: 'usually, a weekly grooming session will handle everything well', ears need stripping of overgrowth, seasonal coat change handled with a coat rake, comb, pin brush and bristle brush

Breed clubAKC

No Royal Kennel Club page exists (the breed is not KC-recognised). AKC band used as the fallback; weekly brush = 2 on the KENAI scale. Fewer than three sources.

Grooming

Weekly (AKC band 3 of 5): a weekly brushing keeps the fine, non-oily coat clean without bathing; ears are the hardest part and need overgrowth stripped; nails and ears checked weekly; sheds twice a year

Breed clubAKC

The work

What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.

Role

Continental pointing dog of spaniel type (FCI Group 7, Section 1.2, with working trial): 'an ideal dog for hunting in varying fields', pointing, retrieving from land and water and finding lost game; historically the one dog of the Drenthe farmer, hunting feather and fur, keeping the yard clear of vermin and carting. A NAVHDA recognized versatile breed

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

The UKC standard: 'adaptable to all sorts of game on land and in the water, and is a good retriever and finder of lost game'.

Primary game

Upland birds pointed within gun range: the partridge of its name in the Netherlands; in North America the club names birds 'as varied as sage grouse and chukars' and 'all manner of upland game and waterfowl'

Breed clubDrentsche Patrijshond Club of North America (DPCA

The club names no single bird; versatile breeds are judged on birds, water and track together.

Also used on

Waterfowl; furred game ('the Drent was expected to hunt all game, and even varmints'); lost game after the shot, 'a determined and efficient finder of lost game'

Breed clubDrentsche Patrijshond Club of North America (DPCA

Range

Close: 'the dog hunts within range of the gun'; the club: 'searches the game without going too far away from the hunter'

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Stated by the standard and the North American club; no editorial source was opened.

Search pattern

'The dog hunts within range of the gun. Keeping in touch with the hunter is apparently an innate quality.' The tail moves in a circular motion when searching, especially on scent; the dog 'points the game as solid as a rock and impeccably waits for the hunter to come near; when this takes a long time, the dog will look back for its master'. 'These characteristics are innate, therefore need little training.'

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

The standard's own behaviour section; the DPCA page repeats it: 'searches the game without going too far away from the hunter'.

Field trial standard

A NAVHDA recognized breed: tested in Natural Ability, Utility Preparatory and Utility tests on field search and pointing, water retrieving and duck search, and tracking. The DPCA Code of Ethics asks no hunt test of breeding stock; it requires OFA hips and elbows, an eye certificate, vWD status, a CHIC number and an AKC Canine Good Citizen title as the temperament check; the club states its aim as 'a field ready, and family oriented versatile pointing dog' with emphasis on 'nose, pointing, cooperation, temperament, and water work'

Breed clubNAVHDA

The 'nose, pointing, cooperation, temperament, and water work' line is the club's own statement of purpose on its About page. The Dutch parent club's regulation names health examinations, not field qualifications, on the page read; whether a Dutch hunting diploma affects breeding there was not confirmed.

Water work

The standard: 'capable of hunting all sorts of game in the field and in water' with a water-resistant undercoat; the club: 'after the shot, he retrieves from land and water'; NAVHDA judges retrieving from water and tracking wounded game on water

Breed clubFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Cold water

3 of 5 · Water-resistant undercoat under a dense medium coat; the standard: 'capable of hunting all sorts of game in the field and in water' and 'good retriever'; NAVHDA water work is part of the breed's test life

DerivedFédération Cynologique Internationale, 2016

Derived from coat (fci_std) and water work (dpca_drent, navhda_breeds). A versatile dog that retrieves from water, not a specialist cold-water retriever.

How common the problems are

Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.

Hip dysplasia

No Drentsche Patrijshond row in the OFA hip or elbow tables (too few evaluations to publish). The OFA eye table carries the breed: 71 evaluations, 98.6% normal, 1.4% abnormal; the eye-finding tables record persistent pupillary membranes (2.8% iris-to-iris, 4.2% lens pigment foci), cataracts of unknown significance (5.6%) and retinal dysplasia folds (1.4%) among those 71 dogs

MeasuredOrthopedic Foundation for Animals

Recorded so the absence of a hip figure is visible; no hip percentage is claimed. The American Drent Association says hip dysplasia 'is uncommon in Drents' and elbow dysplasia 'slightly more common than hip dysplasia', without numbers. The DPCA requires OFA hips and elbows for breeding (dpca_ethics).

Most common disorders

Epilepsy is the breed's named concern ('considered to be the greatest current health threat' per the club text on the AKC page; the type undetermined, no genetic test; the American Drent Association counts three documented seizure cases among North American Drents in 20 years, idiopathic epilepsy usually presenting by age 3). Hip dysplasia uncommon; elbow dysplasia uncommon but slightly more common than hips. Eyes: PRA 'has largely disappeared from the population', persistent pupillary membranes occasionally seen; distichiasis, entropion and ectropion, retinal dysplasia monitored. von Willebrand disease type I markers common but 'no Drents have shown clinical sign'; DM and hyperuricosuria markers appear without documented clinical cases

Breed clubAmerican Drent Association

Two North American club statements (ada_health and the DPCNA-supplied health text on akc_page) agree; no VetCompass, UK survey, insurer or OFA hip prevalence exists for this breed.

More

akc bands

AKC breed page trait scores (1-5): Energy Level 3; Mental Stimulation Needs 5; Trainability Level 5; Barking Level 1; Watchdog/Protective Nature 1; Good With Young Children 5; Openness To Strangers 3; Good With Other Dogs 5; Shedding Level 3; Coat Grooming Frequency 3; Drooling Level 1; Affectionate With Family 3; Playfulness Level 3; Adaptability Level 3.

Breed clubAKC

Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.

What to ask a breeder for

The health clearances the breed’s own club and registry name. Reference only: what to ask for, never a statement about any dog’s health.

No KENAI kennel lists the Drentsche Patrijshond yet. If you breed them, list your kennel free: it shows on this page and in the hunting dog breed finder, under every handler whose answers land on the breed.

How to read this page

Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.

Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 8 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.

Also called
Drent, Drentse Patrijshond, Dutch Partridge Dog, Drentsche Partridge Dog, DP

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