Lurchers as Pets E-Book

Carol Baby

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

A beautifully illustrated guide to keeping lurchers as pets, whether owning your dog from a puppy or adopting through a rescue charity. With detailed information on all aspects of care and practical advice on ownership throughout, Lurchers as Pets is essential reading for anyone considering owning a lurcher, or wanting to better understand and care for their dog. Further topics covered include puppy care and rescue lurchers; diet, grooming and health; socialization and play; training - recall, retrieve, muzzle training and basic commands; problem solving and behavioural issues and finally, responsible lurcher ownership including legal requirements. Comprehensively illustrated with 116 colour photographs by Liz Rodgers.

Leseprobe

LURCHERS AS PETS

A Guide to Care and Understanding

Carol Babywith photos by Liz Rodgers

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2015

by The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2015

© Carol Baby 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 912 4

CONTENTS

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Foreword

Preface

1 What is a Lurcher?

2 Lurcher Origins and History

3 Is a Lurcher the Dog for Me?

4 Choosing and Preparing for your Lurcher

5 Owning a Lurcher from a Puppy

6 Adopting a Lurcher through a Rescue Charity

7 The First Few Days

8 Children and Dogs

9 Caring for a Lurcher

10 Health Care

11 Play

12 Basic Training

13 Problem Solving

14 Sporting Fun

15 Responsible Lurcher Ownership

16 Finally

Further Information

Index

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to Ash, my rough diamond.

Ash is my present lurcher. Like most lurchers he is sweet, clever, loyal, bold, obedient, robust, adaptable, loving, fast, agile, brave and fun, and he is a great rat catcher. Now he is thirteen years old, but he is still fit and well and full of fun. What more could anyone want in a dog? A good lurcher will be your faithful companion and your best pal; he will entertain you and make you feel as if you are the most important person in the whole world. more could anyone want in a dog? A good lurcher will be your faithful companion and your best pal; he will entertain you and make you feel as if you are the most important person in the whole world.

If you think this is the dog for you, read on: you are in the right place.

Ash, my present lurcher.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My thanks to Liz Rodgers who produced beautiful photographs for my previous book, Retired Greyhounds – A Guide to Care and Understanding, and has surpassed even those with the photographs she has produced for this book.

Thank you to Alex Thompson who helped me with the background to a working lurcher’s life, and who allowed us to photograph his beautiful lurchers at work. Thanks also to Westfield Vets, Wells, and to Sarah Cooke of Dogaffinity Dog Training, for their help and support.

Finally many thanks to each and every one of the volunteers who work for Greyhound Rescue West of England. They work tirelessly to improve the lives of homeless lurchers and Greyhounds and to find them ‘for ever’ homes. Each of them gives up hours of their time on a regular basis and they are inspirational people.

GREYHOUND RESCUE WEST OF ENGLAND

My lurchers came from Greyhound Rescue West of England (GRWE), the leading Greyhound rescue charity in England and Wales. Although GRWE originally developed in the West of England, the charity now rehomes dogs across most of England and Wales.

GRWE is independent of the Greyhound racing industry and is dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and rehoming of abused, abandoned and unwanted Greyhounds and lurchers. GRWE takes in Greyhounds and lurchers from members of the public, veterinary surgeries, pounds and the police. They also help trainers and owners rehome their racing Greyhounds, and some dogs come in from general rescue centres; some come from as far afield as Ireland and Scotland if resources allow.

GRWE rescues hounds of all ages, from puppies to golden oldies! Some dogs are cruelty cases, physically and emotionally scarred and damaged. GRWE nurses them back to health and helps them learn to trust humans again.

Working for the last twelve years as a volunteer for GRWE has been an unpaid employment I thoroughly enjoy. I work with wonderful people who donate their time and expertise to help the charity. I meet stunningly beautiful and affectionate dogs on a daily basis, and I know that what I do makes a difference for them. GRWE represents all that is good in rescue charities working with integrity and professionalism.

FOREWORD

It was some years ago that we welcomed a terrified, long-legged, pointed-nosed pup into our home. Although we are passionate ambassadors for all breed types and have shared our lives with many incredible dogs over the years, we are forever indebted to our lurcher, Archie, who introduced us to the delights of being guardians of these unique and joyful hounds.

Archie possessed every wonderful characteristic of these incredible dogs in bucketloads. He was graceful, at times a little shy, loving, tenacious, smart, and utterly hilarious. Of course, every breed and breed type has its own distinct characteristics, but the lurcher has inherent qualities that set them apart from any other dog.

Education and welfare walk hand in hand and as with all dogs, it is vital that lurchers learn important life skills through fun and games to keep them happy, safe and healthy. Carol is a passionate advocate for all sighthounds; her book guides the lurcher guardian through every developmental stage and includes teaching exercises that will help build a harmonious and rewarding partnership between humans and dog.

This book is more than a superb instructive publication. It is a celebration of this exceptional breed type. Beautifully written, and filled with fascinating facts, management and problem solving tips, Carol Baby shares her wealth of experience on every page and gives sound, practical and respectful advice on all aspects of lurcher care.

This book is a must, not just for lurcher owners but for anyone who cares for, or interacts with these glorious, noble dogs.

Sarah Fisher and Anthony Head

PREFACE

Throughout this book I will sometimes refer to ‘lurchers’ and sometimes to ‘dogs’. This is because some of the information refers to all dogs, and some of it is specific to lurchers. So even if you are not a lurcher owner or a prospective lurcher owner, you will find much useful information relevant to dogs of all types within these pages.

I make no apologies for using the word ‘she’ when referring to lurchers. I have no personal preference for males or females, but in my previous book (Retired Greyhounds – A Guide to Care and Understanding) I used the pronoun ‘he’, so I feel the need to redress the balance, and I certainly don’t want to use the word ‘it’. Lurchers have great personalities, and using the word ‘it’ would seem inadequate.

Lurchers are the rough diamonds and the handsome rogues of the dog world. Their history proves that. Understanding the lives they led in mediaeval times will open your eyes as to why they needed to develop the skills they possess, and I hope you will enjoy finding out about that when you read this book. Lurchers are special. They are the dogs that get under your skin and that you remember forever.

A lurcher – the dog that gets under your skin.

1 WHAT IS A LURCHER?

A lurcher is a type of dog rather than a specific breed. It is bred from a sighthound crossed with another working breed. Sighthounds are Greyhounds, Salukis, Afghans, Deerhounds, Whippets, and any breed that uses its speed and sight for hunting, rather than tracking more by smell as a Foxhound does. Sighthounds tend to scan the horizon whilst walking, which makes them easier to train to walk beside you, unlike scenthounds, which tend to steam along with their noses glued to the ground.

A young longdog with Saluki breeding.

TYPE DESCRIPTION

In some books the definition of a lurcher states that it should stand no more than 24in (60cm) at the shoulder; however, with modern breeding many do stand much taller than that. A lurcher should be long-legged and deep-chested, with a small head and ears and an undocked tail. It varies in size and can be as small as a Bedlington Terrier to as large as a Deerhound. It may be rough-, smooth- or broken-coated, and appears in a wide variety of colours.

Collies and terriers are very popular in lurcher breeding to add trainability and endurance to the speed already provided by their sighthound ancestry. Many lurchers are owned and bred by the travelling community, some are bred in private homes, and there are also some well known breeders such as David Hancock and David Platt who breed from carefully chosen stock to produce a clear type within the lurcher identity. David Hancock produces Hancock lurchers, which are Collie cross Greyhound, and David Platt produces Greyhound, Deerhound, Collie crosses.

Longdogs

Within the lurcher group is the subgroup of longdogs, which are the result of breeding different sighthounds together – for example, Saluki × Greyhound or Whippet × Greyhound. Although sighthounds share a reputation for being mild-mannered couch potatoes happy to spend the day sleeping once they have had a blast of exercise, there are subtle differences within the group. Greyhounds are possibly the laziest as adults, and Salukis possibly the most energetic. So a Greyhound or Deerhound cross is likely to be calmer than a Saluki or Whippet cross, with other sighthounds coming somewhere between.

Longdogs have an excellent temperament, and make good family pets. They excel in speed and mobility, whereas lurchers have additional assets depending on what other breeds of dog appear in their bloodlines. Sighthounds and longdogs are the sprinters of the world, like Usain Bolt, while lurchers are more like Jessica Ennis, heptathlon athletes. Because longdogs are a subgroup I will refer to both longdogs and lurchers as ‘lurchers’ in this book.

A longdog with Deerhound breeding.

BREED CHARACTERISTICS

If you are having a lurcher as a pet the breed characteristics for working may not be important to you. But it is interesting to consider what sort of dog you may get from different crosses from the point of view of it being a member of your family – so let’s consider some of the factors involved in the way your dog may be bred.

Sighthound Characteristics

A lurcher will definitely have some sighthound in it, and the main characteristics of sighthound are speed, a strong chase instinct, loyalty, affection, and laziness and silence. Yes, surprisingly, once most sighthounds, and especially Greyhound crosses, have had a blast around a paddock they are perfectly happy to curl up on a nice soft bed and relax for a large part of the day, and they rarely bark even when visitors come to the door. These characteristics will be apparent in most lurchers and longdogs.

Whippet Crosses

Whippets, and therefore to some extent Whippet crosses, are enchanting, affectionate little dogs, but they can be quite self-centered and demanding if you let them. Many of them know what they want, and they want it now. They love their creature comforts. They are extremely mobile and great for agility. They are usually very deep-chested and thin-coated.

A Whippet lurcher.

Saluki Crosses

Saluki crosses are often distinguishable by their almond-shaped eyes, folded, often feathery ears, and their noble, aristocratic-looking nose, which is slightly raised in the middle, curving down and tapering at the tip. They have tight lips, which makes them look as though they are smiling gently. They are elegant and thin-coated, and often have beautiful soft tail and leg feather. They, too, are fast and mobile so are good for agility, but they can be slightly wilful about recall during their adolescence. They are very loving.

Saluki lurchers may be smooth-haired or feathered.

Complex Cross-Breeds

Frequently lurchers are bred from more than two different breeds as the parents may already be lurchers so they are also cross-breeds. For example, if the mother was a Greyhound and the father a Deerhound cross collie, the puppies would have three-quarter sighthound and one-quarter collie in their make-up. With more complex breed lines it is sometimes difficult to accurately predict parentage from looks. Some years ago we had a pair from the same litter in the rescue centre I work for. Their parentage, we were told, was a mix of Bearded Collie, Greyhound and Labrador. One looked exactly like a lightweight working black Labrador, and the other like a small Bearded Collie but completely black. Without knowing their history you would never have thought they were litter mates.

An interesting mixed-breed Lurcher.