Greyhound, Whippet or Lurcher owner? Here's another pointy hounds cushion!

[EasterBunnyFuntStoleAllTheEggs]

Pointy hounds include-
Greyhounds (Grunds)
Whippets (Whippys)
Lurchers
Italian Greyhounds (Iggys)
Salukis
Afghans
If you are a new pointy hound owner, an old and experienced owner or looking into getting one of these fabulous creatures, come and have a seat (that's not taken up with a hound :o ).

Share stories, advice and shopping tips!
AK Creations
Dog O Nine Tails
Doggy Bags Bakery
Kitsch Collars
Meggie Moo
Milgi Coats
Silver Peacock

Come The Day
Come the day I take that final bend,
Can I count on you to be my friend?
To see I’m treated just and fair,
It means so much to know you care.

For, what the future holds in store,
Now that I can race no more,
Should be addressed for every hound,
Who parts the punter from his pound.

Tell them I don’t ask for much,
A kindly word, a gentle touch,
Somewhere warm to lay my head,
A meal each day to keep me fed,
Not just life- but quality,
This is how it ought to be.

Do not see me swept away,
I long to live another day,
With peace of mind, tranquillity,
And those who care surrounding me,
So tell them all- you have that choice,
I beg of you to be my voice.

By Denise Dubarbier.

Sorry, I missed your posts, as dh arrived home and interrupted my mnetting.

Thank you, I think so, but I may be a touch biased.

They don't fit in a bed together anymore. Pip's up to 28" these days and still growing!

Pip will be 1 on 1st June and Lurcherboy will be 9 at the end of November.

I'm veggie too. Our dogs were on raw for years, but now we have no room for a freezer and no friendly butcher nearby (at our old house we used to get bin bags full of offcuts and bones for free as long as we bought a certain amount from the local butcher). I wish we could, because Lurcherboy has dreadful teeth. I have to brush and descale them myself in the hope of avoiding a dental when he's older. Dh used to do the worst meat-handling bits for me, bless him. I could handle chicken wings and ribs etc, but have a real problem with offal. [green]

I have to admit I'm a bit raw-lite, mostly green tripe with mixer, salmon oil, pureed veg and Dorwest keepers mix. Occasionally other meats, very occasionally wings (I have to hold them for him, or he won't eat them ) sometimes eggs, yogurt, tinned fish. He has complete for breakfast as sometimes he can't be bothered and I hate wasting food.

Apparently there is an enzyme in green tripe, (something to do with it being stomach lining, something digestive) that helps to clean their teeth, do even though he had few bones, they are very white.

The whippets birthday is 1st of June too, :) I will have to make one up for new dog.

I can't do green tripe. The smell makes me want to throw up on the spot. I know it's really good for them, but I really can't cope with it.

Someone told me they use dried green tripe as chews to keep their dogs' teeth clean, so I thought I might look into that and let them have some in the garden over the summer.

Lurcherboy didn't actually enjoy eating raw - strange dog. He used to run away from meaty bones and spend ages circling them with his tail between his legs and a terrified look on his face, until eventually Oldgirl (who we sadly lost this time last year) nipped in and stole them from under his nose.

On Lurcher Link people celebrate their dogs' 'Gotcha Day', (the day they brought them home). I think that's a lovely idea.

Mistlehound has a 'gotcha' day at the end of October - but she has a 'theoretical' birthday on the 1st of August... She's had a big meaty bone in the garden for 2 weeks now. Now that its slightly off she seems much more inclined to chew on it than when it was fresh but I suppose we are talking lurchers here.. and her favourite breakfast is apparently rabbit droppings (unless there's any cat poo available)

Pooch adores rummaging and munching cat poo. Such a classy mutt.

.. in good company!

Hi GobblersKnob, they're both gorgeous. I think it's a lovely time with a new dog but also apprehensive. I'm sure within a few weeks/months it'll seem like you've always had two and the disruption (if any) will be worth it!

Thread dropped off my I'm on threads and then today I suddenly realised I hadn't been here!!

We're good, loving the light evenings for some longer ambles in the forest. Ds2 will pretty much walk anywhere now without a pushchair or whinging so we can all go and just walk until we've had enough usually with a quick stop at the park on the way home :)

We had a run in with our friendly following ridgeback on Tuesday and after I let them off when he'd gone peanut was very excited. As he ran last Lola she squealed, as far as I could see he didn't touch her but I guess he could have caught her with his foot. The rest of the time we were out she stayed behind us and ended up stopping sitting on the path :( we went Thursday and this morning and she's still not her usual bouncy self, not quite sure what to do as she's her normal self when walking and at home. I don't want her to associate a run with something bad as she loved it so much until now.

Am v excited, as have just seen cmotdogs new collar (which has a matching fleece/webbing lead) on MeggieMoos FB page

We went cycling in the forest yesterday, and cmotdog was having a lovely time bouncing through the little streams when he leapt into a puddle which was rather deeper than he thought - over his ears in fact. A big shake and he was fine though.

Well new dog is here, and she has been amazing so far, I thought she might be quite anxious but she seems fine.

I just wanted some reassurance really about pointy play, whippet has never really played with a lot of pointy dogs as there arnt any around here. When he has it has just benn lots of zoomies in a big area, he is very well socialised with other dogs generally, but again just chasing games.

However he and new dog have engaged in a couple of very rough looking (what I hope are) play fights. They start with new dog play bowing and nipping at whippets legs and neck until he retaliates and there is a big blurry growly thing happening in the living room.

When it starts to look a bit much I can tell them to stop and they do, both times they have then gone and shared a drink out of the water bowl then had a mooch together round the garden in the shade to cool down, so surely it isn't aggressive?

Thoughts would be great, like I said I've never seen him play like that before.

My two are very growly when they play and dc are sometimes frightened of them but I'd probably watch it closely as they are newly together. Sounds very positive that they stop when told and are then sharing water :)

Sounds normal pointy play to me - I've noticed the incitement to zoom growl thing, but only between pointies

That sounds just like what my two do when they play. Honestly sometimes you'd swear they were murdering each other, but it's all just play. Actually it's Lurcherboy that makes all the noise, Pip doesn't make much of a racket, but then he's usually busy chewing on one part of Lurcherboy or another.

Mine nip each others' bums, back legs and necks and Pip repeatedly launches himself onto poor old Lurcherboy's back. Then one of them will run, the faster one (usually Pip) slows down to let the other catch up, they have another growly nip and wrestle session before taking off for a game of chase again. It's hilarious to see them tucking their bums under and scooting off just in time to avoid the other one nipping them!

That said, this is why I don't really allow my two to play with other dogs. (Although Lurcherboy used to before Pip lead him into bad Lurchery ways. ) As it is, anyone seeing my two playing together in the local park always looks like they think they're witnessing a dog fight and I don't think other owners would take too kindly to their precious pooch being involved in a game of nip and chase with my two hoolies. (I tend to only let them off when the park/field is completely empty - although having read another thread on here this evening, apparently I shouldn't even do that! )

Thanks, that's reassuring. I am keeping a very close eye on them, New dog thinks whippet is wonderful, but she is still very puppyish and boisterous and is bigger than him, so he is still not quite sure of her.

I wanted it to me love at first sight but I think with time they will be fine, they are happily sharing chews and fuss and last night both got on the same sofa for the first time and slept together. Up to then new dog had constantly gone and laid next to whippet, but whippet kept moving.

She has pretty much zero recall, so that is going to need a lot of work.

Dare I ask why moosemama?

I was reading the 'my dog killed a cat' thread. Unfortunately it was a lurcher and there are people on there saying they shouldn't be let off lead - even in an empty field ... just in case a cat happens to be lurking in the grass and leaps out in front of them.

Poor OP, the cat leaped from a clump of grass right in front of her dog, instinct took over and he grabbed it, there was no time for her to react - yet people are saying he was out of control, is dangerous and some saying should be pts. All getting whipped up with the 'what if it was a child' type hysteria. Not helped at all by all the publicity about the new 'dangerous dog laws' that came into effect very recently.

Yes, but there are also people on the thread that say it is perfectly acceptable for pet cats to roam and decimate the wildlife and 'that's different'. There are also people that immediately think that the dog's going to turn on a child next. So there are lots of people on the thread that are biased against dogs in the first place.

I do worry about the DDA and its implications though. I do think that it has been badly written and could be badly applied. I mean, my dog 'frightens' people when she runs past - simply because she looks a bit like a cross between a wolf and a fox and runs fast - but you can immediately tell from her attitude on approaching people that she is very keen to please and would really just like to great everyone with a lick (particularly if they have a picnic available).

We had two collie crosses who, once they were friends (that took some time!) would play fight for hours. They would chase round the (large) garden and then they would have wrestling sessions that sounded awful - mainly one dog making the noise and the slightly smaller one doing the odd nip here and there - she used to 'give up. and then nip the undercarriage of the 'winner' standing over her!

I know there are people on there taking a far more sensible stance, it's just scary how people, even in the doghouse (can't understand what they're posting in here for if they don't like dogs ) can have such knee-jerk reactions to these things.

With the new legislation, the thing that's changed is that you can now be prosecuted have your pet impounded etc for your dog frightening someone on private property, whereas before that only applied to public places. So you could always have been done for her scaring someone in the park, but in reality the police and courts don't want to be clogged up with lots of cases of someone being spooked by a dog that ran past too fast or - heaven forbid - looked at them.

The DDA was an illconceived, vote-chasing piece of knee-jerk legislation right from the get-go. So many dogs have been destroyed for just looking like a Pitbull, when no actual breed standard - or even breed even exists. They have patrols that go around in London looking for dogs that might fit the Pitbull description and will impound them immediately if they are not already registered and muzzled. This has been going on for 20 odd years. I saw a lovely Whippet/Staffie the other day, but there's no way I'd rehome her, as she looks like a long-legged Staffie, which is exactly the type of dog they go for. Not a scrap of banned breed in her, but they don't care about actual breeding - just appearance.

I remember being terrified when the DDA initially came out, as my Boxer/GSD lad was juvenile and fitted the description. He soon grew far too big and looked more like a mastiff/ridgeback cross as an adult, but he was both people and dog fear-aggressive, we lived in the city and we were constantly worried that he would be taken off us and pts. It was a horrible time.

Hello. Could I ask you a few questions? (Disclaimer - I do not own a hound).

I have 2 DC aged 4 and 7 and we're in the early stages of thinking about getting a dog, probably early spring next year. Like lots of people I'd presumed whippets/greyhounds etc would need a huge garden and miles of walking but now realise this isn't the case.

I see from the thread that they make good family pets so if we're thinking about this seriously what things do we need to consider? Are there any breeds that would be better for a family with young children? And is a rescue the best plan or would breeders be better?

DH and I both grew up with dogs and rehomed an elderly (and very lovely) terrier from the Dogs Trust when we were first married but haven't had a young dog before and not since the DCs so want to make sure we do things properly and consider it carefully.

Thanks in advance and for all the photos on the thread (which really aren't helping my urge to rush out and get a dog right now!! )

Hello Hairy. Well, I'm biased, and think that the only way to do it is to get a rescue. We got our girl at 2.5 yrs old (ish) - not that much was known about her but we were prepared to take the risk as she seemed to have a lovely nature - she has turned into the most wonderful family dog you could have. She's a scruffy lurcher - lots of greyhound in her, possibly a bit of deerhound, and possibly some bedlington (she is part kangaroo). She's not that big height wise (just under 23" TTS (to the shoulder) which puts her in the 'small' classes if their divided up at events. However, she's very long for her height - I put her up against a whippet cross which was just over 23" and there was an extra 1/3 of mistlehound hanging out the back!

We chose a lurcher because we wanted a dog that would manage the contrasts between week day (main walk with dogwalker, perhaps another walk out later on) and the weekend or holidays (sometimes out all day, stopping only for breaks). We wanted a dog that would like to play with DS and us - but would also be happy to settle down for a long snooze and not mither us all the time to play when we're trying to do other things.

Lurchers are interesting as you can get very different natures depending upon their mixture - and this gets more complicated when its a lurcher / lurcher cross.

I would suggest that, with a 4 yo, you might want to consider dogs that had already been in a home environment and are living in foster at the moment - this means that they have had time to let their character come out a bit more and their foster carers can give a good assessment of their needs and their ideal home. You will find that you have a lot more choice if you don't need a cat-friendly one - although lots of hounds do manage to live with cats.

The benefit of a rescue - well you get a dog that's already housetrained (if its been in foster - ours wasn't and its really 'interesting' to teach a 2.5 yo dog that inside is not the place to do things), and you will have a dog that has already developed its character so you will already know whether its going to like to play, good on recall, a food thief or content to pretend to be a cat most of the time at home - and it all depends what sort of dog you want, which one you choose!

Welcome Hairy!

I'd say investigate breeds really well and then approach rescues of those breeds who will homecheck and match you with the right dog or if there isn't one currently suitable they will contact you when one does. Breed specific rescues do get pups in so don't think they only have adolescent or elderly dogs for rehoming.

Shows such as Discover Dogs can be useful for breed researching. For me "busy dogs" such as terriers, collies and spaniels don't suit our current lifestyle. We've two children under four. We prefer a dog that doesn't need constant entertaining and hardcore mental stimulation or tons and tons of exercise. Personally I think hounds are fantastic and are often overlooked. They are so loveable.

Our recent addition Blue has been with us almost three months and we couldn't be happier. He was an owner surrender and used to live with small kids. He has his daily walks and the rest of the time he sleeps. He has complimented our existing dog brilliantly. She sleeps and lounges around all day too. We can take him anywhere and he will chill and snooze whilst you sit in a pub garden/cafe. Our other dog not so much. Need ear plugs.

There are quite a few lurcher and greyhound rescues about sadly.

You will need at least 6ft fencing and a secure garden. Hounds counter surf (discovered Blue in the kitchen sink helping with the washing up a few mornings ago ), some open cupboards and raid bins. Probably need to work on recall and do some training but that is to be expected with any new dog. Most of all pointies will have you wrapped around their paws in no time. Please come back and tell us how your search goes.

Should say Blue is a greyhound x whippet.

Totally echo what Mistle has said.

Thanks Mistle, that's really helpful. My concern about rescues had been not knowing the background of the dog and its temperament so the idea of an already fostered dog would be great. Good to hear that lurchers adapt to different routines - we're both shift workers which is ideal from the point of view that there is almost always someone in the house but not good for adog who needs quite a strict structure.

Our terrier was a rescue and had the loveliest nature but I almost feel as if we were just very lucky and so had been leaning towards a puppy as more of a 'blank slate'. DH on the other hand thinks that's utter rubbish and rescue is the way to go so really helpful to hear your experience.

Unfortunatly, the rescues often have puppies and young dogs in too - mine was 6 months when he came in, and EGLR have had 16 puppies born in foster in the last two days (you can see them on their FB page).

Our lurcher is very chillaxed - on week days hes snoozing by me as I work with a lunchtime run, on weekends we are out and he runs off lead for hours. He doesn't mind being left, and snores on ds's bed. He only barks to be let out or when playing with another pointy, and is endlessly patient with small people

I agree about a rescue, there are some great ones out there and a lot foster as mistlethrush says. I have a greyhound who hadn't been anywhere but a kennel and it took about 3 months for him to be fully toilet trained but my previous greyhound never had an accident. I think greyhounds are fab, ours loves playing with other dogs but not with toys. He's very affectionate, he's got quite a bit of energy when we're out, but happy with short walks too, he sleeps a lot! We also have a whippet terrier x, my kids love her because she plays with them but other children are bit nervous of her because she is quite jumpy. She has loads more energy than our greyhound but also sleeps a lot. She's a lap dog as well as being a loonatic!!!

I think they're both fab dogs for families. I also agree that you need to keep your eye in food and bins. My greyhound will happily take a banana out of my 3 year olds hand, very gently but he will still steal it! Mine are great with cats and my greyhound has zero prey drive for anything, whippet x is getting more interested. Mine are so different from each other but both fab and fit our family life.

Thank you for all the advice, it's been really helpful. Last question - are there any rescues that you would particularly recommend? We're E Midlands so reasonably central. Am getting the feeling it might be best to speak to a rescue about what we could offer and then wait for the right dog rather than just get in touch with lots of places when the 'timing' is right.