Deerhound
Temperament:
The intelligent Deerhound is also called Scottish Deerhound. He has a high adaptability as well as empathy. Due to its proud nature, the noble British dog breed tends to be quickly offended. However, this is usually only when he is treated unfairly.
Characteristics
Maybe you have already decided on the Deerhound breed. Or maybe you want to find out the essentials first. No matter what moves you to learn more about the Scottish Deerhound, in the following we will inform you!
The proverb hard shell, soft core, fits as a characterization on the Deerhound almost perfectly. Due to its noble appearance and appearance, he is considered an aristocrat among dogs.
The friendly and dignified dog is probably one of the oldest dog breeds in Scotland. In addition, he is assigned to the group of sighthounds.
Other character traits include:
His intelligence and high empathy, as well as adaptability. Therefore, this type of dog is not only well suited for family life with children. The Deerhound also needs the direct family connection.
Furthermore, the Scottish Deerhound has a high need for activity as well as food. The self-confident, yet calm dog loves to run in wind and weather. In the house itself he behaves balanced, calm and adapted.
In addition, the British dog breed can also be used as a companion dog. For example, when riding or as a hunting dog, the Scottish Greyhound is well suited.
The Deerhound has a life expectancy of 8 to 12 years and reaches a size of 71 (females) to 76 cm (males). Therefore, he is one of the giants among the dogs.
With 36 to 46 kg, the well-built dog breed brings a stately weight on the scale.
A main feature of the dog is its striking appearance. However, its dense, close-fitting and short coat makes the Deerhound look noble and graceful. The colors of the shaggy coat are too mostly dark and light blue-gray mixed. But can also turn out reddish brown, golden yellow or chocolate brown.
In addition, the features include the black ears and barrels, as well as the black mask.
The tail, also black, is long and full at the hairline. It reaches almost to the ground and the hair becomes thinner in the course.
The ears themselves are rather small, but higher set and folded back. This type of ears is also called rose ears. When the Deerhound is excited, he raises them above his head.
Coat care:
Shedding:
Energy level:
Trainability:
Children suitable:
The right food
If you want to get a Deerhound, sooner or later the question of food comes up. Here, the diet must be very attentive to the energy and nutrient requirements.
But please remember that dogs have a different organism than humans. Therefore, some foods that you may find tasty, he may not or will not tolerate.
A still growing greyhound puppy needs in any case a suitable dog food. This must cover the increased energy needs of the young dog. With increasing age, this need decreases, but can increase through sporting activity.
The food must therefore be adapted to the age, weight and size, as well as the activity level.
There are many online calculators on the Internet that calculate your needs. Veterinarians also sometimes give you useful tips. However, you should listen to your gut feeling. Because in most calculations, many questions are not included. These are for example:
- Does the dog live with conspecifics or children?
- Does he often walk on a leash or free alongside?
- Does he have a lot of stress?
- How does he react to certain stimuli? Does he tend to remain calm or does he become agitated?
- Does he often go to dog shows or participate in greyhound races?
All of these factors also affect the daily needs of your new roommate.
The actual energy requirement cannot be summarized in a mathematical formula. But keep in mind that adult dogs need almost 2 kg of food per day.
Deerhound care
You have now already learned a lot about your new darling. You know how he ticks and that the diet requires special attention.
This important topic also includes the care of a Deerhound. So what should you pay attention to and what does the care look like in detail?
You can almost sit back and relax now. And you don't need to be afraid now. The care of a Scottish deerhound counts thanks to its rough fur, to the easy-care cases. By the way, the tousled coat grows up to 10 cm long.
Unlike many long-haired dog breeds, occasional combing is quite sufficient for the Deerhound. Rather infrequent washing of the coat (increased with water), but is also useful.
It counts to the care that the dog, as you already know, needs a lot of love. Extensive petting a Deerhound particularly enjoys. This also contributes to the bond between man and animal.
If your four-legged friend receives a lot of attention and love, his attitude is not a problem even for beginners. However, this also includes sufficient space and application.
When it comes to education, here's what you should consider:
The dog needs a consistent, but loving education. Especially the innate hunting instinct should be stopped early. So that the urge can not arise big in the first place.
Please also be sure to remember regular vet visits, as well as tick and flea protection. And also worming must be performed.
Suitable accessories
As you have already learned in advance, a Deerhound needs sufficient exercise. Therefore, for example, a jogging leash with harness is recommended.
Your darling will especially like agility equipment. Here, for example, you can use tires, tunnels, bridges or seesaws.
But also litter toys for extensive running Scottish deer dogs gladly accept. Otherwise, actually every dog breed loves a cozy basket and chew toys.
But you should also think about treats, in addition to the right food.
Origin & History
Deerhounds, just like Irish Wolfhounds, belong to the Celtic sighthounds. The Deerhound, also known as Scottish Deerhounds, got its name also because of that. The name of the breed Deerhound is composed of two words. The word Deer, which is in Scottish Deer means and Hound = dog.
Wondering how the name came about?
In the past, the Deerhound was used by Scottish clans for hunting deer. During the procedure, the dogs usually chased the game in pairs. The faster of the two drove the animal. While the larger and at the same time heavier then pulled the deer to the ground. Until the hunter came, the game was so then fixed.
Unfortunately, deer hunting was not without danger for the greyhound. And so some of the Deerhounds died during this time. When a little later the firearms came into use, the Scottish Deerhound lost his post.
In the Middle Ages, the British dog breed was led by the Scottish nobility as a status symbol. In Germany itself, the breed first appeared increasingly between the 20th and 30th centuries.
Around the year 1830, the Deerhound almost died out. Fortunately, two brothers took on the Highland breed. They bred the Clonsay Line from the best remaining specimens.
In 1886, not only was the breed standard established. Also the British Deerhound Club was founded.
