Lurcher

To understand the origins of the Lurcher, it is necessary to understand the role of the working sighthound through the ages.

At the time of the Lurcher’s creation (circa 14th Century) the ownership of sighthounds was restricted to nobility, royalty, the land-owning gentry. For anyone who did not fall into this elite category, owning a sighthound was effectively an admission of guilt – as obviously someone would only own an ‘illicit breed’ if they were in the habit of poaching the game (deer, hare, rabbit) belonging to the land-owners!

The penalty for owning such a dog could be severe and quite inventive (hanging, castration, blinding, being sewn into a deerskin and then hunted down with ferocious dogs!) and so it was sensible to have dogs that were biddable yet clever, fast and effective at hunting – and that possessed the skill and physique of a sighthound, disguised under the hairy coat of a working sheepdog or cattle droving dog.

The original Lurchers therefore, were the creation of an illicit meeting between a borrowed stud sighthound, and whatever scruffy farm dog bitch was available. 

Now that owning a sighthound or lurcher is no longer illegal, there is no need to have a hairy, well disguised dog, and lurchers look much more obviously sighthound related, but they still should be a dog capable of heeding the handler's cues, capable of hunting by sight, and willing to retrieve game to hand.

Lurchers dog breeds are bred to do a job and historically, that job varied depending on the species they were hunting and the environment they were hunting in. A dog needed to work with a mixed pack of scent hounds, terriers and ferrets in brambles and thorny cover is a very different dog to the one needed to follow a lamp beam across smooth cropped grazing land. A tall dog hunts taller prey but will trip and fall trying to pick up smaller, faster turning prey – and so Lurchers were purpose bred for the job their owner needed them to do.

So the Lurcher dog truly is the original ‘designer’ dog – designed to fit the needs of a particular owner, quarry and region. 

Recall, prey-drive and food stealing are typically the most common issues raised – and all of these stem from either unreasonable expectations or a misunderstanding of how these dogs think.

Care should be taken to train a rock solid recall from an early age (but even then, do not rely on it), and teaching your dog the animals that must be ignored (cats, sheep, deer etc) is vital, and while it can be a challenge, it is possible – after all Lurchers exist because of the need for a trainable hunting dog! 

Food stealing is easily prevented by simply not leaving food unattended!

A strong sense of humour is required and a gentle nature – you will not get the best from a Lurcher by being heavy handed! A desire to walk for hours through countryside and fields, and at least a rudimentary knowledge of what wildlife lives where and how it may appear and behave, so that you can train your dog and manage them safely. This simply is not possible if you are clueless as to which hedge may harbour a deer, or which clump of grass is in fact a squatting hare!

With Lurcher puppies of all sizes and breeding, exercise cautiously and avoid repeated running through heavy ground, up and down steep hills or staircases. With adults, expect 1 to 2 hours exercise per day, with the opportunity to run free in secure spaces provided at least several times per week. This is a dog built to run and failure to provide for this need will lead to an unhappy and stressed dog, and that can result in behaviour issues.
 

Whatever size your Lurcher turns out to be, they really don’t need a huge home. Those with a heavy Greyhound or Deerhound influence may be sufficiently long to find turning in a tight space difficult, and seating them in a small car may be awkward! Otherwise, the Lurcher is capable of curling up small, or spreading out to fill all the available comfy space. 

Whatever the size of your garden, it must be dog proofed and extremely securely fenced – Lurchers are agile dogs with some impressive jumping ability, as well as the intelligence and persistence necessary to burrow, climb, wiggle and occasionally… teleport! 
 

Your Lurcher dog’s diet needs to have the right balance of all the main nutrient groups including a constant supply of fresh water. It's important to conduct regular body condition scores to ensure you keep your dog in ideal shape and remember to feed him at least twice daily and in accordance with the feeding guidelines of his particular food.

Smooth coated lurchers will require a wipe down with a cloth and a brush with a stiff bristle brush to stimulate the skin once a week. Wire, rough and longer coated dogs will need more frequent grooming and some may develop a silky or woolly coat that mats easily, so groom daily, using pin, slicker and combs and learn how your dog’s coat behaves. Some Lurchers will benefit from being hand stripped once or twice a year.

All dogs should be given a once over daily to check for wounds and lurchers are incredibly good at picking up injury and saying nothing about it! If in doubt, see our guide on dog grooming and dog seek the advice of a professional groomer!
 

As a mixture of (typically) intelligent pastoral and/or terrier, it’s sensible to expect an intelligent dog with a desire to solve problems and work together with their person. Be your dog’s team captain, motivate your dog to want to work with you – and use positive reinforcement based methods. 

The sighthound element of the Lurcher may mean that food rewards are not so popular as with other breeds, you may need to use the opportunity to chase furry toys, or to find hidden toys or food instead of the simpler option of treats from a pocket or treat pouch. Be creative!

The Lurcher isn’t generally given to repeating behaviours for the sake of performance, however they are likely to enjoy activities like Man-trailing and Cani-X, and of course each dog is an individual, so keep an open mind as to what activities they will enjoy!
 

• Lurchers can be a straight cross between a pastoral breed and terrier breed, or be a ‘multi-breed’ cross – so a mixture of several of these breeds. It is more usual that a Lurcher is a multi-breed cross than a first-cross.
• The only truly common factor among lurchers is that they should look like a tall, athletic, sighthound-related dog - but, to add further mystery, not all tall sighthound-ish dogs are a Lurcher – for example a sighthound x sighthound is a Longdog!
• Lurcher dogs are most common in Britain! Though they can be found in other regions of the world, they’ve definitely made a statement in the UK.

If the Lurchers ancestry as a working type is understood and those needs are met appropriately, then they can make an excellent family dog. However, caution should be applied with some combinations of breeds and very small children or frail elderly people.

No dog should be expected to tolerate poor handling and children should be supervised at all times with any breed or type.