Let's talk sighthounds

[ZaraD]

Hi all

Ok so the woman we helped has chosen the lab but it got me thinking about my own future dog ( I'm talking like 10yrs + when Sampson has gone as I could only handle 2 dogs at a time.)

I adore sighthounds as do Sampson and Lara. I just love them and I know a few people with them Sampson's best Friend is a Afghan hound and Lara is in love with a borzoi who lives near by.

Even though I like Euraiser yesterday got me thinking maybe a sighthound is more suited to me for my next dog as I prefer dogs who are very quiet due to my Tinnitus , with Sampson I got really lucky as nearly all the giant schnauzers I have met have been very vocal and a lot of owners I know have said Sampson is the exception so I don't think I would have another giant even if I wanted one, and I think because he's so special to me I think it would not be fair to get another as I'll always be comparing another giant to Sampson. Were I could have another German shepherd as Lara is not that vocal compared to most giant schnauzers.

Anyway I have always personally had a soft spot for Borzoi and I think sighthounds suit me because there quiet, sweet affectionate but yet independent, polite, calm, sensitive dogs.

So when I read about silken windhound I was instantly drawn to them ( my mom knew about them and she was the one who suggested them yesterday , I had never heard of one)

So when out on our walk Lara got really excited when she saw the borzoi so I got the chance to ask the owner about him and ask if she knew anyone with a silken hound and luckily she did and I was lucky enough to join them this morning on a walk and OMG ailments are breath taking , I asked her about them and she said

", Silken are great dogs and are raised to train than most sighthounds as Mine are off lead every single day in whatever park, country park, open area we happen to be walking in. I never worry about them. My keenest racer in fact has now twice chased a deer and I've managed to whistle him back both times, I even got a video of it for facebook, he was right on the deers bottom and when I whistled he simply twirled round and came back, I have to admit that amazed me.

All the ones I know, are all off lead all the time, obviously away from roads.

Apart from wanting to be with their owners they are also easily trained in whatever you want to do with them. My youngest who is 11 months ( she pointed to which one at this point" has been trained by my niece and her partner (the first dog they have trained) and is in the advanced class at our obedience club doing distance control, sendaways, scent discrimination etc. All mine know a wide range of tricks too.

Having said that, they are hounds not collies, they're not fans of repetition. Mine will only do something so many times before simply refusing and lying down. My oldest at 9 makes everyone laugh because when you play fetch with her she will enthusiastically fetch to hand 5 or 6 times then the last time will just look at you and wander off to sniff the grass in the opposite direction!

They are quiet, sweet, affectionate with their owners and enjoy being petted by others but they're not demonstrative. They won't jump over anyone or fawn over strangers, simply stand calmly beside them inviting pats. They're very clean and quiet in the house and although they love to zoom outside once they've done that they will just wander along beside or behind you for as long as you want to walk.

For me they are the perfect dog, but others do think they are dull, some people want a dog to always be watching you, walking backwards in front of you, always eager to play, wagging their tails and jumping around, silkens in my opinion are way more civilised than that.

They are very quiet out of my four , one never barks I still have never heard him bark, tow bark now and again but only then to something interesting and my youngest barks a bit more but not everyday as sighthounds there not a very vocal breed.

I love them and are like I said perfect , they were created by borzois and whippets. Very healthy and long lived I know a man who has an 17yr old silken.
"

So after I met them and talked about silken I had to come on here knowing there are a few members who have sighthounds or have owned sighthounds and wanted to ask if what I was told above sounds right. And if you would like to share your experiences with sighthounds?

[JudyN]

Well you've heard plenty about Jasper and my thoughts on sighthounds in general already

I've never met a silken windhound and wondered if they were really that trainable, but according to Wikipedia they are good at obedience & agility. I wouldn't assume that you'd be able to train any to recall off a deer or other prey as they are individuals, but obviously you'd train with that eventual aim.

Sighthounds in general are easy and quiet round the house. OTOH, I have seem videos of lurchers in multi-dog environments play-fighting all over the furniture, walls, picture rails....

[Nettle]

The most important point here is that Silken Windhounds are not real sighthounds. They are a very recently created breed comprising a great deal of Shetland sheepdog and rough collie as well as the Borzoi (not very much Borzoi in them) and whippet. In the first few years of the breed's existence, there was a lot of fantasy and imagination in the information about them.

They are pretty and charming and might or might not suit you. They are infinitely better suited to a pet life than most genuine sighthounds.

You have never seen prey drive - genuine prey drive - until you see a real sighthound, pure or mixed, predating.

I love 'em - I wouldn't have anything else - but they take a lot of managing.

[Lotsaquestions]

I love me some sighthound, but I am very partial to Lurchers of the heavy collie variety. Bonkers and quick, and sometimes really trainable too!

[JudyN]

To me, collie genes seem to defeat the whole point of sighthounds/lurchers. Why would you want a dog who has the sense to think that asking them to sit and stand five times in a row is stupid and the independence to go on strike if you should try it, if you then have to teach him agility and flyball and simultaneous equations just to keep his brain ticking over?

[Lotsaquestions]

It all depends on which of the brains remains. A really trainable quick dog with energy for days but calmness when called for is right up my alley! Of course they are xbreeds so you never really know what you're going to get. Met some absolutely lovely collie x lurchers in my time though.

[JudyN]

Yep, it's very much horses for courses. Again to my totally biased point of view, if you're a 'collie' person, that collie can only be improved by putting a bit of a whippet in it - particularly if you want to do agility or flyball!

[Shalista]

on the topic of adding sight hound to things i really dont understand the person who first thought rat terriers would make good pets. take a terrier (prey drive and energy) and add whippet (prey drive and energy) and lets just put that on a couch and hope it stays there people are idiots.

[Ari_RR]

“They are quiet, sweet, affectionate with their owners and enjoy being petted by others but they're not demonstrative. They won't jump over anyone or fawn over strangers, simply stand calmly beside them inviting pats. They're very clean and quiet in the house and although they love to zoom outside once they've done that they will just wander along beside or behind you for as long as you want to walk.”

They only thing I would say is true “out of the box” is clean in the house. All the rest - IMHO depends on the training and doesn’t just happen. Strong will and independent thinking make things quite challenging at times

With my sighthound - simply standing by a human inviting pats is the level of affection and trust that very few humans receive. Probably 4, maybe 5 immediate family members. Never mind strangers... strangers should maintain their distance.

Although, come to think of it, RR is probably not a genuine sighthound either...

[JudyN]

Sorry Ari, I don't count RRs as 'typical sighthounds' Or maybe that they are 'special' sighthounds that buck the trend I'd say that description is fairly accurate, apart from enjoying being petted by others. Sure, some will happily lean into you for ages while you give them an ear rub or bum scratch, but some are just too polite to say no and just tolerate strangers' hands. Or they do express themselves, but their body language is too refined to be understood by the vast majority of people.

I'd love to be able to pet my friend's extremely fluffy and lovely lurcher but don't think it's ever going to happen. He obviously had bad experiences of people before he came to them but even if he gets over his trust issues I don't get the feeling he's interested in other people. He loves dogs, and it's a shame Jasper's not interested in playing/chasing with him apart from when there's a blue moon.

[Nettle]

None of mine has invited petting from strangers. They get the Dowager Duchess just-goosed -by-the-chauffeur boggle-eyed look if anyone tries.

[JudyN]

They get the Dowager Duchess just-goosed -by-the-chauffeur boggle-eyed look if anyone tries.

Jasper doesn't invite petting as such but then he does thrust his nose excitedly into his best friends' groins (and the occasional startled stranger) and how can they not give him an ear rub then? But yes, if it's uninvited he also does the boggle-eyed thing which occasionally develops into 'One moment longer and I'm gonna let RIP' mode. I do try to tell them...

[Shalista]

yeah i love the look and energy of sight hounds but i love me a dog that muggs for snuggles from strangers

[Lotsaquestions]

My old Lurcher wanted nothing more than to have his head in your lap all day long... Strangers? He gave zero sh*ts.

Out of all the sighthounds I've met, I think only two have asked for a stroke, and I think really they were assuming it would get them the chicken in my treat bag. One lovely coursing greyhound would come for a fuss and some noms. Then another fluffy (yeah it was weird, his coat was lots like lamb's wool) whippet who came for a scrubbing... Then slowly moved his head towards my treat bag.

[JudyN]

Could the whippet have had a bit of Bedlington in it? It's a common cross and there's not a lot of difference between a Bedlington and a lamb... at least, physically