IDAHO HUNTING DOGS - Idaho German Shorthaired Pointer Breeders

Cheryl has been an amazing breeder to work with and I still speak with her to this day! We got our Black Roan boy, Goose, 2 yrs ago (Liesel & Roscoe litter 5/30/2022) We originally applied for a pup back in 2021 but weren't ready due to personal reasons. Cheryl was extremely understanding and put us to the next year's litter list & kept us updated the whole time up to Liesal becoming pregnant!

Throughout the entire process from submitting our application to puppy pick up: we received a ton of useful resources about the breed & puppy care, information on supplements, pet care recommendations, she provided live streams of the pups playing around inside & outside, we got pics of the litters day of birth, all of her dogs are apart of an emergency system where all contacts are notified including Cheryl & I'm sure there is much more I'm not remembering but she does everything for this breed, for her dogs & pups.

My favorite thing about Cheryl is how much she cares for all the pups & helping owners be good owners! Any time I have a question Goose related I know I can reach out to her and she is always so helpful & reassuring in our journey with him.

I don't think I've seen any other breeder put as much love, thought and effort into a breed as she does and this is why I'd recommend her 10 times over every time.

In time we hope to get another puppy from her and trust the experience will be just as amazing as the first time.

I waited just over a year to write this review to really see what we had in our dog. Its hard not to rate any puppy with their cute faces a 5/5 in the first six months haha. Our dog Diesel is from Roscoe and Liesel. First I will start with family life, then field life, the breeder, then training and how we have found to keep him happy.

Diesel is a fantastic animal. At home he is gentle and kind with our children, he is obedient and a great family dog. He is not food or toy territorial with our children and other dog. He is outside a lot as he has access to our yard at all times, and is a pleasure in the yard. We have neighbors that have dogs that constantly bark, Diesel is not a barker. He does have a bark, and it a big deep bark, but he does not use it often. He will use it as a protector, which is perfect, because that is a dogs roll in my mind. He was quick to potty train, is crate trained, and continues to be in his crate for sleeping. We walks on a leash great and most of the time I have him off leash but in the heel command and he stay with me throughout the neighborhood. He is also trained to release from heel so when we get to the field he doesn't just take off. He has to be released from heel. Once you do, he is a rocket and its neat to see how fast he is. Place trained so when need him to calm, or when we are eating, he is in his place. He loves other dogs, and other people, and does well meeting new people/dogs. He still gets excited but for the most part able to contain it. Again he is just barely one. He loves to play fetch with the kids, chase dragon flies in the back yard, play hide and seek, and just sniff the air if out by himself, etc. Just a great family animal.

In the field, he shines. Again he is just over a year, so he isn't fully polished yet, but he is ready for his first bird season come fall. Where he is in his training given his age, he is right on track for where were expect him to be. He whoa's on command, hold whoa, points, holds point, honors other dogs point and retrieve, he retrieves very well, is confident and bold, has no issues going into thick brush/water and is just at home in the working field. He has a strong nose, and has learned old vs new sent. He has a great range gauge and does not go to far and consistently checks where you are moving and moves with you in the field. We do use a dog colar with tracking just in case, but when toned (not vibrate or shock) he comes right to you. He has zero gun shyness, and once we pick up that shotgun, he is all business. He loves to be in the field working and hunting.

Training Diesel has been a pleasure. He really tries to please. He is a quick learner, he is smart and gets things in a few reps, then just needs reinforcement to drive it home. Once he realizes what the expectation is and what it is you want him to do, he is quick to adapt. We have trained him diligently, and we moved when he was about eight months old, so during our move we didn't want to lose any ground so we did send him for training during our move. When we picked him up to quote our trainer, "thats a lot of dog, its been a while since i have had a good one like that." Now I didn't know if he was being kind and says that to all his clients, but when he asked if I would be interested in breeding Diesel (not that that is my intention at all) because he "has all the right stuff" I believe he truly meant it. He has been a gun dog trainer for greater than 20 years and came highly recommended.

Idaho Hunting Dogs: The Breeder
It is obvious that Cherly lovers her dogs. She has high character, and expects her dogs to go to great homes. You can tell she cares about the sire and dam, and also the puppies born. She has full body examinations completed on the parents, and guarantees a clean bill of health for the pups. With that there is the expectation of proper nutrition and vitamins given to the dog by the new owners. She is a responsible breeder, and in the contract it outlines expectations of care for your new pup. She was great to communicate with and it was fun watching the dogs grow up on camera while we waited to take ours home. She has been doing this for a long time, and it shows.

Overall, Diesel has been an amazing dog. We love him to death. he is a great family/house dog and a workhorse in the field. His only limitation in performance is really our limitation as trainers. We are very excited to have him in our home and working fields with him for as long as we can have him. He is just the best.

This next part is for those who are new to GSPs as we were and we did a lot of research before buying the breed. We did so with the intention of having a great family dog that is also a great hunter. Diesel fits the bill on both accounts. He needs his exercise, and a good dog is a tired dog. So with any GSP, make sure you have the time to exercise and train you pup because they have all the potential in the world. We typically take Diesel out in the morning for about an hour (escalated to this as he tolerated while growing. First we had him it was 10-15 min). Half training, half just having fun (training should be fun too). He has our second dog to wrestle with and five kids to keep him busy the rest of the day. Usually after work I will also play fetch with him for 20-30 min. I have been told you are not supposed to wrestle with your gun dogs, but I can't help it and we typically have a wrestling match at some point during the day. (We do not play tug of war as that can lead to bird delivery issues). These dogs have energy for days. Not only do they need the physical stimulation, but the need the mind stimulation as well. This breed is absolutely amazing, and we plan on getting another GSP from Idaho Hunting Dog Kennel in about a year when Diesel is fine tuned. They are amazing dogs, and we are so happy we got Diesel and a GSP breed, but they have taken more time (not slow learning, but need the exercise, thus extra time) than other breeds we have had. Please consider this when selecting the breed. They will reward you with tons of love, joy and performance but it takes time and investment on your part as the dog owner.

Cherly does an amazing job with her dogs and it really shows how much she loves them and the energy she puts into them. I bought my puppy doc in November of 2021 and he’s turned out to be a great hunter. He has a great personality and lots of drive.

Lovely dogs! I have purchased two pups from Idaho Hunting Dogs. My first pup will be 14 this year. My young pup is 18 months. Both dogs extremely healthy and arrived to the Seattle area via Alaska Airlines. Both pups arrived in crates with food, bedding and a toy ??. The older dog titled as a AKC Master Hunter and loves to hunt. The young dog has been hunting on pheasants at 12 months and pointed, flushed and retrieved two pheasants on natural ability.
All around great dogs.

We have acquired 3 German Shorthair puppies from Cheryl Stephenson of Idaho Hunting Dogs. The first was Chesapeake in 2008; the second was Cappitola in 2020; and Sierra in 2022. Our beloved "Chessie" passed away in 2021,but we are loving and enjoying "Cappi" and Sierra ages 2 and 6 months. All 3 of our dogs have been healthy, beautiful and lots of fun. Cheryl Stephenson is an excellent and caring breeder.

Cheryl seems to be very dedicated to advancing the breed. The shorthair pup I purchased from her is very birdy and is everything that she advertises. She also makes sure that her owners are conscientious dog owners.

I bought my puppy from Cheryl over 6 years ago. She was money well spent. She is wonderful around the house and awesome in the field. She had a litter last year and I kept 3 of the puppies to raise and plan on keeping one. Can’t decide which to keep. They are all like their mother. 6 years after buying my puppy from Cheryl she still helps me if I have any questions. I would not hesitate to buy a puppy form Idaho hunting dogs.

Just the best of the best! We had our Dakota for just shy of 16 years. Our Lexi is just turned 10 and both are/were the most loving sweet dogs! It is a reflection on their breeder, who by the way stays in contact with you forever.

Cheryl was fantastic. Her willingness to communicate to answer questions, give great suggestions, and work with me on a timeline to pick up my new puppy was above and beyond what I could have asked for. Cheryl takes the extra time to video from birth through puppy pickup. Her expertise and knowledge were evident from our first conversation. I would highly recommend getting one of her puppies.

Cheryl is an amazing breeder and truly loves all her dogs. We have had several GSPs and our newest puppy Jax from Cheryl is the sweetest puppy and a great retriever already. Cheryl stays in touch and makes sure every puppy has a great forever home. Highly recommend!!