Hungarian Wire-haired Pointing Dogs or Vizslas, sometimes called "Hungarian Vizsla" or "Magyar Vizsla," are an ancient breed of pointers. Thousand-year old Magyar depictions of hunting include these medium-sized, lean, graceful dogs as hunting companions.
Once the prized dogs of Hungarian royalty, the Vizsla's natural ability as hunter, pointer and retriever was protected by careful breeding, until the the line became nearly extinct several times in the upheaval of the World Wars.
Eager to please and quick on the pick-up, well-trained Vizslas in the field have few equals. Able to both air-scent and ground-scent, a Vizsla can flush out quarry as well as point and retrieve, although its thin single coat would not offer much protection in cold water. More attached than most hunting dogs to their owners, Vizslas tend to hunt within short ranges.