For example our Grace is a german shorthair. They are often trained to point various species of game bird, to retrieve ducks from boat/blind, and to run as hounds on various furry prey. Often the same dog can be trained to do all of the above. In Norway the breed has also been raised to world championship level in skijoring competition. But in spite of bloodlines etc, it is still necessary to work with the dog's personality and natural desire in order to achieve its full potential. For example, with Grace we've realized her innate love of dog biscuits, her strong instinct to immediately adopt any sort of stuffed animal as her own, and an incredible stamina to stay on point for hours if necessary until we recover any ball that may have rolled out of her reach under a piece of furniture.
We realize of course that not everyone can/should aspire to reach this level of performance from their canines