“Honey, find me one of them pointing dogs with a beard. I’m tired of losing birds!” That was what Joe said back in 2016 while hunting grouse up in Northern Minnesota. So began our adventure with German Wirehaired Pointers.”—Erin Yanish
We are an avid hunting family. From mammals to birds to everything in between. Each year when we would go to the Superior National Forest to hunt bear, we would also hit the old logging trails and find some grouse. In 2016, my husband, Joe, was trying to find one bird that fell in thick brush. It was then that he realized we needed a dog. Most anything from the Sporting Group would be a good fit for this activity, but Joe had hunted behind a German Wirehaired Pointer (GWP) and really liked how they are one of the versatile hunting breeds that can hunt most anything from birds to small game. It just so happened that one of my friends was a breeder of GWPs. So, I gave Rose Point Kennels a call and she had a male available from her latest litter.
We brought Mick home on September 24, 2016, and so began our life with GWPs. With much organization and help from our families, we have anywhere from 8 to 10 dogs living in the house at any given time and we have been involved in most everything this talented breed may participate in. Since my husband is a farrier (horse hoof trimmer and shoer) we incorporated it into our name and are known as Anvil Wires.
We originally got into the breed for hunting, but I am a firm believer in Obedience. So, we signed up for classes right away. When Mick turned nine months, he was looking mighty nice and someone at class mentioned we should try showing him in Conformation. Conformation was totally new to us. I had dabbled in Showmanship as a kid in 4-H, but had no comprehension of what Conformation showing consisted of. The instructor and breeder took us under their wings and suddenly we were entered in a show. Joe took Mick to their first-ever Conformation show and ended up winning a UKC (United Kennel Club) Best in Show at nine months old! That began our newfound love for Conformation showing! The following year (2017) we added two more GWPs to our pack. With the hunting we do, and now showing, we were looking for breeding prospects. We purchased an eight-week-old female (Chex) from Reece Kennels, Ripsnorter Kennel and Buffalo Creek Kennels in Oklahoma, and an 18-month-old male (Ripley) from Double D GWPs out of Florida, and added more mentors to our support team! From there our GWP pack continued to grow, adding Livi and Luna in 2020, Kevin in 2022, and now Prada and Clark in 2025. We also co-own other GWPs who visit throughout the year for training and/or handling.
The question is always asked, “Why so many?” The answer is simple: because we work with and use every single dog almost daily and they all have their place and role in our family. Occasionally, we will have an extra dog or two to work with on hunting or showing that we co-own or bred. We occasionally foster a GWP or two for rescue as well.
All of our dogs participate first and foremost in hunting. It is not uncommon during hunting seasons for my son, Gabe, to take off with a couple of dogs to hit the fields and jump some ponds, and my husband will leave for work with a couple of the dogs to hunt between appointments. At some point during the day, or even the next day, they will switch up dogs. Every dog will hit the fields, forests, and water four to six days a week during hunting seasons.
So, what do we do when hunting season is over? We participate in the Hunt Tests or play in the show rings. Every dog in this house has a Hunt title, Conformation title, and either a Rally or Obedience title, and if they are pups, they are working toward those titles. We have also been known to participate in Barn Hunt, Dock Diving, Agility, Shed Hunting, Fast CAT, Scent Work, Tracking, and other fun events. For us, it’s about the bond and positive relationship with our dogs! Participating in all of these things has earned us some high honors at national levels. Some of the more memorable ones are Ripley, handled by me, who won High in Trial at the GWPCA (German Wirehaired Pointer Club of America) National (2020) and received the coveted invite to participate in the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA) Invitational (2025)! Luna, handled by Joe, won the National Best in Specialty Show in 2022! Each year, someone in the house gets a Westminster invite as well as invites to the AKC (American Kennel Club) National Rally and Owner-Handled competitions. We are truly humbled and honored to be recognized in these ways. We believe you need to be as versatile as the breed; in other words, this breed is capable and loves to do a variety of things, so it is wonderful to showcase that. There is something about watching the NBISS (National Best in Specialty Show) on a solid point in the field that speaks volumes, knowing that she was put up for the right reasons. Her ability to stay sound and be able to perform all day swimming in ponds and running through thick, brush-filled fields with ease and then glide while going around a show ring and stack beautifully every time is because she is built correctly and can represent the purpose of the breed.
There are times when we have shown in the Breed ring in the morning, then taken off to do a little hunting and come back to place in the Group ring! One fall morning before a show, the kids couldn’t find a duck they downed. Ripley was loaded to go show, but Joe took him to the mud lake behind our place to perform a duck search. Sure enough, Ripley found it! Joe hosed him down in the shop and loaded him up to dry on the way. Ripley ended up with a Group placement that day! It is easy to show a dog that is correct in structure and coat, so he didn’t need any serious grooming before entering the ring.
We are so very thankful to the breeders listed above as well as the breeders previous to them who put consideration and thought into creating such correct, functioning animals! We have traveled from coast to coast to get our hands on different GWPs and learn from different kennels about the Breed Standard and techniques used in training, grooming, and handling. We do all of our own training, grooming, and handling, with the guidance of mentors. We appreciate everyone who has shared their insight and information! Because of this we are able to be a part of all the different areas in the dog world.
Our goal as breeders is to match passing CHIC (Canine Health Information Center) dogs that offset each other’s faults to produce the most correct litter according to the GWPCA Standard. We then select the best home for each pup and mentor those owners. We have some of the best families (who turn into great friends) for owners, as they have their pups participating in the field, tests, and shows as well as obtaining their own titles. Our female, Livi, was just honored at the 2025 GWPCA National Banquet for being the 2024 National Top Producing Bitch! To earn this the offspring need to achieve different titles that are rated on a point system. Out of all AKC Registered GWP females Livi held the highest amount of points giving her such a prestigious honor! In her litter of 10 pups, 9 achieved hunt titles, 5 received their Champion titles and 3 have rally/obedience titles with a fair number holding additional performance and companion titles. A huge thank you from Joe and I to all of the owners of these pups and co-breeders, Deanna Donohue and Billie Bennett as well as the GWPCA for acknowledging the different accomplishments of the top dogs in their respective categories of a breed we all love. Things like this don’t just happen, it takes an actively involved group and we are so very appreciative for everyone’s help and support along the way! Some people have said that the GWP is a dividing breed. I am here to say it will only seem divided to the people who do not participate in the versatile events. There are many of us dedicated GWP people fanciers out there being active in the field and rings. We thank God for our wonderful circle of friends and family as well as our dogs. We have hunting dogs that do well in all aspects of the performance and show world (Conformation, Rally, Obedience, Agility, etc.) and this is why our motto here at Anvil Wires is: Hunt.Show.Play.Repeat.
God has blessed us with some amazing dogs and our current pack consists of:
