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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

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Original poster

Scottish deerhound

23 replies

zippyswife · 10/04/2022 07:25

My mum, who has wanted a dog for years (but was reluctant to commit as she was caring for my grandad) has met a Scottish deerhound on a walk and fallen in love. We’ve read up on the breed (typically not many in this country) and they also appear to need a lot of excercise. I wondered if there were any owners or people knowledgeable about the breed that could advise on life with one. I think she loves both the appearance and the temperament as it was very amiable calm and friendly.

OP posts:

Original poster

zippyswife · 10/04/2022 07:27

I should add she is very active and goes on walks for 2-3 hours most (but not every day). While she loves walking she says she doesn’t want to HAVE to go on a 2 hour walk. Just wondered if this breed would be too much for her.

OP posts:

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 10/04/2022 08:31

Is she strong enough to hold one back should it pull? They're huge!

SourMilkGhyll · 10/04/2022 08:35

Does she have a car that would fit one in.
Don't think they would fit in anything small 😆

tabulahrasa · 10/04/2022 09:16

I have no experience with puppy or teenage ones, but as adults... they don’t need particularly long walks, but they do need to be able to go somewhere with enough room for them to run safely.

They’re very much like greyhounds, but huge.

Hoppinggreen · 10/04/2022 09:22

friend of mine has one aged 6 months and she is adorable.
She’s so gentle and cuddly and even my grumpy dog likes her. Her owners have a terrier as well and walk miles with it so once the Deerhound is older I imagine they will take her too. She does have a high prey drive apparently but lives with cats with no issues

Looseleaf · 10/04/2022 09:38

The one we met nearly attacked our young DD (I blame the owner who assured us she could stroke it and the next thing is it had its jaws round her head; it had previously killed deer ). Probably a very unusual experience with the breed but with DC I feel much happier with a very gentle and friendly small dog!

Original poster

zippyswife · 10/04/2022 09:50

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

Is she strong enough to hold one back should it pull? They're huge!

I hadn’t thought of that aspect- definitely worth consideration.

OP posts:

Original poster

zippyswife · 10/04/2022 09:50

@Hoppinggreen

friend of mine has one aged 6 months and she is adorable. She’s so gentle and cuddly and even my grumpy dog likes her. Her owners have a terrier as well and walk miles with it so once the Deerhound is older I imagine they will take her too. She does have a high prey drive apparently but lives with cats with no issues

Can I ask where they got it from? Sounds like a perfect puppy!

OP posts:

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 10/04/2022 09:56

@zippyswife males weigh around 40-50kg (females a little less). That's the same size and weight as a small Rottweiler.

I love big dogs but they need to be amazingly well trained to be manageable. I see so many owners getting dragged around by their big adolescent "giant" breeds

I accept its training as much as anything but you'll need to be able to work through the adolescent training phase in order to get the calm adult.

shiningstar2 · 10/04/2022 10:04

I would not advise this breed for a first time dog owner. It is easy to underestimate the amount of consistent daily training a big dog needs so that you are confident in public of its docility and recall. Most dog owners have a few ' Help, I didn't sign up for this' moments, even with smaller dogs. Being a dog owner is great but I would encourage your mum to do a good bit of research first then possibly go for a less challenging option. 😃

SourMilkGhyll · 10/04/2022 10:09

I think she may be waiting quite some time before she can get a puppy. There are really not that many about. It could be a long waiting list. There are several heath issues to be aware of. You would want to make sure you were using a respected breeder who has health tested both parents.

Hoppinggreen · 10/04/2022 10:11

zippyswife friend works with animals and this pup was a very sick runt of the litter from someone she knew. Luckily she has been able to give it the time and resources to get better
And she IS perfect, I love most dogs but this one is a complete sweetheart

tabulahrasa · 10/04/2022 10:31

“That's the same size and weight as a small Rottweiler.“

They’re much bigger than Rottweilers, I fit a rottie in a fiesta when I had one, I’ve never known anyone with deerhounds to even put them in a car, they usually have a van for them.

The size is honestly why I don’t have one, I love them, they’re such great dogs, but they’re too big for an average house and garden and car, lol, and of course food and vet bills are way up there as well.

Like any giant breed yeah you’d have to do loose lead walking ASAP so you can walk them and I’d assume as puppies they’re terrors because puppies are, but as adults they’re really amiable laidback dogs, unless they’re chasing something.

MotherofTerriers · 10/04/2022 10:41

I had one, she was a lovely lovely gentle dog. Very easy to walk, didn't pull on a lead, wanted to be next to me. Very patient with my children who were small at the time. Liked a walk but happy to snooze on the sofa for hours
BUT
Hard to housetrain, took up a lot of space in the car, did a fair but of puppy chewing damage and hated baths. Was incontinent towards the end of her life and that meant very big puddles to deal with. Hard to find one and likely to be a very expensive puppy.

IMHO lovely dogs but not for first time owners and I'd be wary at my age (early 60s) because definitely strong enough to pull an adult over. Why not look for a lurcher with a lot of deerhound in the mix, you'd probably be able to find one much smaller than a pure breed deerhound.

Butterhound · 10/04/2022 10:42

I think you have to plan for emergencies as well as day to day stuff with big dogs. We have an otterhound and at 38kg I can just about pick her up to 'persuade' her into the car on a good day - lifting her in sick would be a challenge. She's leggy, taller than a big Lab, but will, at a push, travel clipped into the back of my small hatchback as well as our bigger 4x4.

How robust is your DM? Although our big girl's extremely docile and good on the lead she's managed to pull my DH off his feet after spotting something unexpected in a field (not me, however; I have extra ballast ). And does she have a good strong hoover? There's a reason castles used to have hounds knocking around: they can generate a whole carpet of hair in under three days...

PearlyGirls · 10/04/2022 11:49

Get a scruffy lurcher instead. Mine gets mistaken for a tiny deerhound all the time. She’s a bedlington x whippet. Small, calm, lovely natured. Just looks like someone put a deerhound on a hot wash.

PearlyGirls · 10/04/2022 11:53

I would also echo the comments above about how difficult it can be to have a large dog at the end of their lives. I had an almost 40kg lurcher who developed seizures towards the end of his life. Trying to get a dog that size into the car to get him to the emergency vets was deeply upsetting and difficult. I will never again get a dog I cannot lift.

TellMeItIsntTrue · 10/04/2022 12:05

I was going to come and say what about a bedlington whippet - lovely dogs and look very similar

Cryofthecurlew · 10/04/2022 12:48

My friend had one she was a beautiful elegant dog, when she was sitting in an air chair she looked like Lady Muck. I adored her so much I thought about getting one, TBH having researched the breed very carefully I was slightly put off they do have quite significant health issues; my friends died of a bone cancer at a fairly young age (under 5) she went lame suddenly one morning and was PTS the next day I was heart broken, apparently bone cancer is not uncommon in the breed. Unlike many sight hounds my friend could walks her off the lead but their size and agility means they can effortlessly jump a wall/5 bar gate and they do have a very strong desire to chase so she was always on the look out.

Soringhaze · 10/04/2022 13:01

They are very strong and could easily pull most people over should they see a squirrel. They eat a ton and have significant health issues. The insurance bill will be huge. It's worth pricing it all out first and thinking about the consequences of it all. There's a good reason there aren't many about. They are a specialist breed.

pigsDOfly · 10/04/2022 13:06

They are gorgeous and it's understandable why she's fallen in love after meeting one but they're not really the ideal dog for a first time owner as they can be a bit difficult with training. Also generally quite independent.

They are huge and powerful, adult male can weight up to 50kg, and they need space. Very much an outdoor dog.

Unless your mum is a very strong woman OP she might want to set her sights on something a little smaller.

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 10/04/2022 13:14

There's a good reason there aren't many about

I was going to say similar, really. Most rare breeds are rare for a reason - because their original "purpose" (work) is no longer needed and they're just not suitable as household pets.

ReflectiveJournal · 10/04/2022 13:33

We've had three, and absolutely love having them. They are famously quiet around the house, and mainly doze - much like greyhounds.

The first two (female if it matters) were easy to train (by me), wonderful on the lead, and great with people and other animals (cats as well as dogs). Our current one is just over one year old and has been 'trained' by DH. He is generally wonderful, but prone to getting over excited at the sight of a cat in the street. He shows no interest in deer what so ever (fortunate where we live). I feel he needs more lead work, but since it is almost exclusively DH who walks him, that may take a while. They have all been slightly free spirited .

Our first lived to 11 but the second was only 5 when she had a catastrophic heart problem. Insurance for the current one is £1800 per year.

Contrary to what pp suggested, none of ours have been big eaters. They eat less than a labrador eg. Due to the importance of ensuring good bone and joint health though, it needs to be high quality feed. Our puppy is already over 47kg. He won't get much taller but will fill out a little I hope.

I am surprised by the comment that they moult a lot. That has not been our experience at all. They certainly leave less hair around than any other dog we have known (mainly labs, collies and spaniels, so perhaps not typical).

After the puppy stage, one big walk and a couple of shorter ones would be fine. They can go longer if you fancy a big walk, but usually don't need it. We usually have one walk of about 1.5hrs and another couple of sniffs around the block.

Personally, for your DM if it is a 'look' thing, I agree with pp who suggested a bedlington/whippet cross. I believe there is a FB page for them where there are often litters or rehoming. Alternatively, if she is stuck on a deerhound, perhaps contact breeders to see if any of them have a returned one, adult or younger.

The Deerhound Club has a website and FB page, but they are run by older, not very tech savvy people so are not whizzy or sparkly at all. Do search for them though.

Good luck whatever she decides.

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