Sighthounds, our spirited friends.
At the time of writing, it’s ‘Lurcher Week’ at Bath Cats and Dogs Home. I have had the privilege of adopting three lurchers from them over the years and would have many more if I had the financial resources and sofa space (!) to support them.
The posts shared by Bath Cats and Dogs Home this week have flagged up many of the misconceptions people have about sighthounds, such as: ‘How much exercise do they need?’, ‘Can they be let off lead?’, ‘Can they live with cats?’ and ‘Do they get on with other dogs?’. The staff at the Dogs Home have been brilliant in pointing out that, as with any dog, it varies depending on the individual, but of course sighthounds typically share some qualities which do need understanding in order to enable them to learn the skills they need to live their lives to the full.
Sighthounds are my inspiration for becoming a dog trainer and have taught me so much as they certainly don’t respond to ‘traditional’ training in the way that some other dogs do.
With my first lurcher (a collie/greyhound cross) I really struggled to find any training advice (I’m talking 20 years ago) that applied to her in any way. At training classes I felt like a social outcast because my beautiful girl just wouldn’t do an instant sit, down, recall or retrieve a toy from a pile in the middle, and the trainers didn’t have suggestions for dogs who responded in different ways. In a class situation she would walk beautifully to heel, but none of the things I was taught were of any use to me in my everyday life with her where I needed her to stay close to me, and not scan the hedgerows for deer to chase. She also wanted to kill cats and, well frankly, anything that moved.
Luckily with my second Lurcher, Rosie, (a deerhound/saluki cross) I discovered Jess Richardson of Tailored Training and Behaviour. She taught me through using games how to make staying close to me more interesting for Rosie than the rest of the world, and how to teach disengagement from small furries.
What is a Lurcher?
Any sighthound crossed with another dog, or two sighthounds crossed together - so there are huge variations in characteristics.
This way of training was so eyeopening that I then went on and trained as a ProDogTrainer myself, teaching me how to asses the skills that each individual dog needs and then to teach their owners the games that will build those skills.
So here is my take on sharing life with sighthounds (and if you think you ‘own’ a sighthound in my view you are setting yourself up to fail. Sighthounds give us the privilege of sharing our lives with them!).
Playing lots of games to build value in proximity to you and to get them looking at you when out and about is gold dust;
They can be very prone to stillness, so finding games to get them moving and interacting with you is really important, otherwise you have no window to practice building a recall or emergency stop when it really matters;
They can be very anxious, so building confidence and setting them up for success is vital, if they get something wrong they will shut down on you very quickly and then it can be hard to rebuild trust;
Playing games to build value in disengagement is also really important so they know that by coming away from something they thought they wanted, coming to you is a guarantee of something really great.
It is hugely important to build value in food and toys at home, because once you are out and about and are competing with the environment, if you haven’t got your reward strategy right, you won’t stand a Scooby. Sighthounds know what a suitable reward value is and if you get it wrong they will spit the food out and give you a look of distain which leaves you in no uncertain terms that you screwed up!! Including movement with food and toys can be really helpful. Also, don’t keep repeating the same game, once or twice is all they will tolerate, so having a mix of different games plays to their strengths. Even so, think ‘a fun time not a long time’, play for a bit, then let them mooch, or get them back on-lead for a while.
They don’t need to run off-lead every day, in fact I believe rest days are important for keeping them fit and healthy. When letting my dogs off-lead I am constantly weighing up their skill level with the environment I’m in. Whenever I go into a field, and throughout my walk, I’m scanning the field for deer and the moment I see one I recall my dogs and get them on-lead. If you’re building value in proximity, you will be giving yourself half a chance here. I’m also very aware of other dogs, farming stock and roads - if I wanted an easy life I should have got a Labrador! (though of course I’ve worked with many Labrador owners who’ve had a few struggles as well)
At home sighthounds have a reputation for loving a good old sleep, preferably on the sofa or your bed. This is usually true, though not always. When they are young especially, bouncing off the walls, floor and ceiling are potential options, but by gently encouraging the choices you want they generally return to type and sleep away the day while you get on with your life and plan your next adventure together.
What is a sighthound?
A dog bred to hunt using sight as the primary sense. To stay very quiet by their owner’s side and when they see movement to sprint and chase. Usually very thin, with long noses and legs! Breeds include: Greyhounds, Saluki, Whipet, Deerhound, Wolfhound, Galgo.
