Lurcher? What on earth is a lurcher?!

Given the the subtitle of my blog is “life with whippets and lurchers” I thought it about time that I show some love to the lurcher in my life and shine a spotlight on this awesome category of canines.

Mad Millie

I didn’t know a thing about lurchers until suddenly I had one. Then I wondered why everyone the world didn’t know about them and love them! Mad Millie came into my life and changed it forever just over 6 years ago. My whippet Lawson was not coping with being an only dog and had taken to eating my wicker furniture, wooden blinds and eventually even a window frame to express his dissatisfaction with having a whippet mama  who worked full time.

Now, I’m not too precious about my furniture but the window was another story – firstly because this whippet mama was renting the place; and secondly because Lawson made such a mess of the window frame that he was able to escape! ( I suspect some passerby felt sorry for him and decided to aid and abet the crime…) Fortunately Lawson was found soon after but his mama was not taking any more chances.

The solution had to be company. Whippets are pack animals- they love the company of humans or other animals – so I decided a whippet friend would be just the thing. Months looking on Pet Rescue were unfruitful so the decision was made to look at whippet crosses.

A month later a whippet cross came up at Pets Haven in Woodend, a 12 month old female called Minnie. This was her tinder pic:

You may notice that Minnie (as she was known then) was totally short haired so this whippet mama never suspected that a lurcher lurked within. Minnie bounced out of the cage area keen to walk and showed none of the shyness exhibited by the quiet man Lawson. Turns out she had been dumped at only a couple of months old but not abused like Lawson so her confidence was still in full effect. Lawson seemed interested but not frightened so home Minnie came. Turns out she was only 5 months old  even though she looked a year old – that should have been the first warning sign that she was going to be a bit different!

The people at Pets Haven had no idea what Millie was crossed with so the next few months were a bit like being on a mystery tour, trying to work out just what this pup would turn out to be. Like any whippet mama worth her salt, I did some research, eventually finding a picture of Millie’s doppelgänger. Success!

If the term lurcher sounds a bit ungainly it is probably because these dogs can be a bit lacking in the coordination and grace departments at times. Gangly legs tend to lend themselves to such characteristics. However, this is not the real reason for the name.

Lurchers were mixed breed dogs created by common folk for hunting at a time when purebreds (i.e. greyhounds) were only allowed to be owned by royalty and their ilk.  If a commoner was found with a purebred hunting dog then there was hell to pay – mainly for the dog who would be maimed or killed. The peasant could have his hands cut off as well, not a risk he was keen on taking! So lurchers (also known as gypsy dogs or poaching dogs) were created to get around this problem. The shagginess of their fur meant that their sleek shapes were hidden from view. I know, that kind of makes lurchers seem like a peasant version but let me tell you lurchers can be very regal looking indeed. Here is a picture of Millie looking like the queen that she is:

Not only that, but greyhounds are not always as graceful as they appear…….

So what exactly goes into making a lurcher?

Generally speaking, lurchers are a cross between a running dog (greyhound, whippet, saluki, deerhound, Irish wolfhound, or borzoi) and a working dog (border collie, bearded collie, kelpie, Bedlington terrier, Labrador, German shepherd, German wirehaired pointer, Staffordshire bull terrier etc). Sometimes they are a cross between two running dogs (also known as “longdogs”) and there may be more than two breeds in the mix (but only ever a cross between running dogs/hounds and working dogs).

The particular mix of breeds used to create a lurcher could be decided by chance or availability but often breeds were chosen for their particular strengths or characteristics.

SALUKI

Saluki’s were originally desert dogs, and they are still used across the Middle East for hunting. Benefits of including a saluki in the mix are: all terrain feet, lot of stamina, can cope with extreme heat and cold, has a strong guarding instinct and very loving. Purebred saluki’s are not usually used for hunting because they are apparently super difficult to train, being very sensitive and stubborn (sounds like my fur babies!), and they are not as fast as a greyhound or whippet.

You can tell if a saluki is in the mix by the ears (very distinctive!), large almond shaped eyes, a black mask and a coat that is black and tan, tricolour or brindle.

BORZOI

Often confused with Saluki’s because of their long faces and large eyes, Borzoi’s are actually very different. For a start, they originate from Russia and so are have very heavy, weatherproof coats. Traditionally they were kept in large groups in kennels and so not used to dealing with humans. Of course, times change and now there are Borzoi’s lucky enough to live indoors with their human slaves.

DEERHOUND

Deerhounds and wolfhounds are most commonly mistaken for each other. They are both big, furry and awesome, so the confusion is understandable. Deerhounds are usually called Scottish Deerhounds (as opposed to Irish Wolfhounds) and they are fast and strong enough to kill deer that are bigger than them. Of course, killing Bambi is not a pastime we want to encourage so lets look at the other benefits of this wonderful hound: they are very easy to train, have a weatherproof coat and all terrain feet (likely a furry 4WD!) and live to their early teens.

WOLFHOUND

Purebred wolfhounds are very large, and I mean really, REALLY large. They are so large that they often can’t run fast enough to catch prey. For this reason, they don’t tend to be included much in the mix of lurchers if hunting is the aim. Unfortunately these beautiful hounds don’t live very long, most being lucky to make it to six 😦  Benefits of wolfhounds? They are are easy to train and live with and they have a coat that can deal with the worst that weather can throw at it. Did I mention that they are beautiful?…….

GREYHOUND

Probably the best known of the sighthounds and increasingly becoming beloved pets – now that people have realised that they DON’T need a lot of exercise and are actually the biggest couch potatoes in the world.  Greyhounds were included in the lurcher mix to bring incredible speed, a low maintenance coat, and loving natures. Their drawbacks are a dislike of cold weather (due to their lack of body fat and fur) but they make excellent TV companions; not only that, greyhound mamas and papas can indulge their passion for fashion by purchasing a wardrobe of coats  that will humiliate their fur babies in front of their hound peers. Win, win!

AND NOT LEAST…..

There are other hounds that can be included in a lurcher mix such as Azawakh, Sloughi, pharaoh hounds, and Afghan hounds.  However, these are less common so not discussed in detail here. But let’s look at pictures of these exotic hounds!

Azawakh hound (in need of a good meal in my opinion!)

Pharaoh hounds (very sensitive about their ears, so please don’t mention them)

Sloughi (check out the floppy ears…)

Afghan hounds (this mama has some serious hair envy!)

Oh, and whippets. See previous posts for info on these weird and awesome beings.

So what have we learned about lurchers?

• they are a houndy bitsa’s (bits o’ this, bits o’ that)
• they love to run (but not for money because they aren’t materialistic like that)
• they love to sleep, preferably on your couch or Doona or carpet in front of the fire
• they live a long time and are pretty easy to look after
• they can bring down deer and other large animals (but mamas don’t encourage that sort of behaviour at all, we are all for cuddling not killing)
• they are original; having a lurcher is like buying designer instead of on the high street – no one else will have one like it!

Hope that makes sense and that you are as impressed by lurchers as this mama. Millie says bye…x