Lurchers and stalking

[landkeeper]

Aye whatever.
Spoken like someone who know hee haw about lurchers.

Just put my last Hancock done the other month.
Was a great dog , regardless of the ribbing for having a Hancock lurcher

Nothing wrong with Hancock bred dogs two of the best lurchers I've ever seen came from his kennels
One a 7/8ths bred greyhound collie was an amazing dog he could follow a fox unseen out of cover at full tilt and 90% of the time come back with it

 

[GBR66]

That has occurred to me already. Work is too busy with travel to get a pup at the moment so there’s no rush. Teckels have an appeal, but
I have a hankering for a running dag.

 

[GBR66]

Irish Terrier - ginger idiot is your answer! Tall long and sleek - mine spots deer for me and goes on point, doesn’t bark, we’ve only just started. Early trial with blood gone well. Great character.

 

[spannulman]

That’s why we’ve fixed on discussing the aesthetics of the Lurcher, or rather how those willowy legs and pinched waist is viewed by many country folk!

K

Are we still talking about long dogs here?

 

[spannulman]

Irish Terrier - ginger idiot is your answer! Tall long and sleek - mine spots deer for me and goes on point, doesn’t bark, we’ve only just started. Early trial with blood gone well. Great character.View attachment 356736

Your ginger idiot looks perfect. But I seriously underestimated the long haired general’s firm dislike of wire coated hounds. And as it will be a live-in servant i must be willing to compromise. Or change partners.

The responses here have been a great read, thank you all. The search continues. Small. Smooth coat. Good nose. I’ve seen rescue Segugios needing new homes on a german website which rehomes italian dogs. They seem to fit the new ideal. But italian, and already dumped by their owner?

I think i’ll end up with another brown spaniel at this rate. That’s not the worst thing, is it?

 

[GBR66]

Your ginger idiot looks perfect. But I seriously underestimated the long haired general’s firm dislike of wire coated hounds. And as it will be a live-in servant i must be willing to compromise. Or change partners.

The responses here have been a great read, thank you all. The search continues. Small. Smooth coat. Good nose. I’ve seen rescue Segugios needing new homes on a german website which rehomes italian dogs. They seem to fit the new ideal. But italian, and already dumped by their owner?

I think i’ll end up with another brown spaniel at this rate. That’s not the worst thing, is it?

I'm sure you can rehome your girlfriend!

 

[John Gryphon]

Irish Terrier - ginger idiot is your answer! Tall long and sleek - mine spots deer for me and goes on point, doesn’t bark, we’ve only just started. Early trial with blood gone well. Great character.View attachment 356736

An old one of mine, mid to late 70`s.


87 lb`s weighed on the wool scales thats fit too and they ran lean my dogs in working nick. He was a 95lb dog in the slow season. **** me he was a ****ing true champion, handled any and everything from big boars big roos foxes loved feral cat sarnies....

btw the blood all over my strides is boar blood from sticking them.. they are a bit like some sheilas....squirters lol.

 

[Brno2e]

I really do not know what the stigma is with lurchers.
As a part time keeper I work 2 greyhound collie Bedlington deerhound crosses.
They both are really friendly easy to get on with dogs. There is nothing wrong with their scenting ability and they work as well as purebred dogs costing 4 times as much.
The big issue with lurchers is the wrong type of owner, not the dog.
Oh and getting called Greengrass and hello Alfie sometimes.

 

[Rake Aboot]

spent years getting called Greengrass hahaha.

I know a couple of keepers with big lurchers as well.

 

[Bowland blades]

I had Border terriers for 30 years and every one would do their job above and below ground. They all tracked deer well and would train easily to track deer. Some were steady some not, running in to shot was common.
Now my Teckel is somewhat different with a much better nose, unfortunately if she sees deer close up she thinks she should go grab em. If they run she will hunt them for miles., But as the saying goes at present " I wouldn't swap her for a gold pig."

And the border is said to be the most tractable of the working terrier group eh? LOL . The only true terrier i have ever had ( a cross on cross , actual pedigree unknown ) He only ever bit Adult humans who tried to pick a fight with him nothing random just if they started it mind LOL , Only dog i ever saw crunch down on hedge pigs .

 

[AlexD]

A Lurcher will track deer without doubt but what you’ll need to watch out for is that he/she doesn’t get there before the bullet! Especially if it has Saluki in it.

K

Had a lurcher (half greyhound, ½ Saluki), beautiful dog with lovely character. Exposed her to a sheep pen when she was a puppy so would not touch sheep, accustomed her to deer and she would never chase unless told, but she got bitten by a grey squirrel once and hated them with a vengeance. Pointed great, and was incredibly fast. Lived to 16 years of age.

Thinking of doing something crazy, and getting a Scottish deer hound or two just because I like them, and try to teach them not to go after every deer it sees ... looked up on some web sites which recommended them as stalking dogs - I assume those owners don't stalk.

 

[John Gryphon]

I assume those owners don't stalk.

Or have any idea.

 

[kalibrgun]

Can't beat a well bred lurcher type. I've a saluki type line bred from old coursing stock because I need a dog that has the stamina for full days ferreting then lamp the same night and a generation bred rillington line beddy whippet Grey. Both Mark and find stock broken obedient animals. The beddy tracked a fallow cull buck for a pal last season whilst his dog was off with injury 4 1/2 hour old scent she found it no problem. That's them marking a Warren up

 

[Heym SR20]

My grandfather had an Irish wolfhound lurcher. A gentle highly intelligent giant of a dog. He took down a few red deer in his life.

 

[Greenmist]

I'm sure it could be trained to do the job, but its previous generations have been bred to chase things, wouldn't be my first choice, but if you have an itch to scratch, go for it. Worse case, you end up with a good rabbiting dog

 

[mudman]

Not read the thread but I have one lurcher anecdote.

A few years back I found the holy grail (or TBH it found me), a local Yorkshire stalking syndicate. Short lived but good whilst it lasted.

one morning after arriving home from a successful stalk I got a quite irate phone call from the chap who ran the syndicate, wanting to know why I was running a lurcher on the place and catching deer. The woodsman had seen me carrying a roe past his cottage, (in the woods), with a lurcher at heal that was covered in blood…...and could I explain myself?!?

I had to explain that it was not a lurcher,, it was a wire haired Viszla, I doubt it was at heal, yes I had a deer, but had he failed to see the rifle over my shoulder!? And any blood on the dog was because he gets the heart when I do the gralloch.

It is amazing how some people interpret what they see!

 

[Overlay]

I had a second cross bedlington / whippet used as a bolt hole coverer over ferrets it was phenomenally fast and didn’t mind cover in the least very quiet dog with a broken coat, I did from memory spend a lot of time with him showing him the ropes and ferreting took to it like a duck on water worth his weight in gold where you couldn’t net up

Very fast dog with character and 30 yard sprint was the norm for catchment, he walked to heel nicely, tracked up foxes, never got him on any deer but I would have thought he would track on a blood trail ok he just liked tracking up.

As said already getting one with the right temperament and drive may be a challenge

 

[Tyla]

If I could make her young again I would in a heart beat

 

[bowji john]

A real regret and screw up of mine was sending my lurcher home when, out on the rabbits, I found that he had escaped and was one pace behind me

I still think of that day 8 years ago

What a prat I was !!

The old plod occasionally stopped when out with him and our jack

I don’t dress too well and look like I’m up to no good most of the time

Jack is no longer with us and lurcher is permanently on the settee

J

 

[W1LL]

Pre ban I had a bedlington whippet. I’d never attempt to have take him stalking, his prey drive was insane. Stock breaking was hard work, and when he was onto something recall was out the window. Never even trained him to go on anything, he was naturally like that from 6 months old and hard mouthed. I like a Collie Whippet now, a lot more bidable, stock breaking was fairly easy, and has good recall, and retrieves game. Good luck with whatever you choose