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While it is obvious that we are going to disagree on some points here, the big difference in the dogs is the breeding. AKC has no minimum standards while the German registry sets some high standards to make sure the dogs are what they are meant to be. While I am quite sure that there are some very good AKC wire hair dogs out there and a few bad DDs, I think that you will find far more AKC dogs that have nothing more in common with the breed standards than a vague resemblance.
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As I said in another dog thread here, indiscriminate breeding has ruined more than one breed, and it is not just here in the U.S. AKC breeding is done more for physical appearance and a more docile temperament, which is why many times the hunting instincts have been bred out of the hunting breeds. But there are many dog breeders here in the U.S. that are as discriminate in their choices of Studs and Dams as their Continental counterparts. They too breed for instincts and temperaments for hunting. I was not saying your dog was not bred to a higher standard than most U.S. bred dogs, I was just saying that DNA wise, it is the same breed. Only difference is the name. Just as Setters in Germany are referred to as "Vorstehhunds". Same dog, just different name. As markj said, all the breeding in the world does not a difference make if the dog is not trained correctly and allowed to hunt in the manner it was bred for. Some of the things your Drahthaar was bred to do will frustrate you...believe me. The first time it takes off after a cold deer trail and is gone for a half hour while you and your bird hunting buddies wait for it to come back will not only frustrate you, but embarrass you. But this is what the breed is bred for in Germany. If your dog has truly been bred to be versatile, this is what you need to expect. The dog will have to be trained against it's breeding not to do this. Same goes for anything else that walks in the woods. If this is your first Wirehair, and he is as good as you believe, odds are he will teach you more than you will ever teach him. This is not a cut to you, but a compliment to your dog.
Here's my female "Wilbur" as a pup, eight months ago.
And just this week while on vacation up north in the UP.
