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[Skinnydog]

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Hi everyone! I am new to this forum - it seems a good one for advice etc. I have had rescue lurchers before who have been good workers, but am bringing up two bedlingtonx pups (litter sisters) who are now 14 months old. I am entering the pups in this next coming season as they were still a bit young last season. Where I live, there is a lot of mixed woodland and lots of rabbits, which is great for daily walks. The problem is that they do see a lot of rabbits and give chase, but the rabbits are so near the burrows that the dogs have never made any catches. What I am worried about is that the dogs will lose heart, as they have already started to slow down as they approach the rabbits, having learned that the rabbits will inevitably disappear down the nearest hole! I am aware that once the dogs are lamped (for eg) and begin to make catches, the interest will quickly pick up. I am sure this must be a common problem - does it delay successful entering? Anyone got any experience of this kind of thing?

Thanks in advance

 

[DOXHOPE]

Hi skinny,

it is a great pity you couldnt get a kill for them now, and at 14 months for this type of cross, they are slightly overdue. I have mostly kept deerhound lurchers, deerhound first crossers and pure deerhounds, and I make sure ALL pups I have kept from these have had there first successes before 12 months, some of my lurchers just over 6 months, even if this means I have taken them out on the lamp during the months of April, May. June or July. :- " I do beleive however that your pair will not be damaged by their lack of success, once they do get thier first taste, hopefully in the next few weeks or so, that will be that.

From the moment of a lurchers conception it becomes a race, a race to find out if the bitch has taken, a race to get them out, a race to get them sold, a race to get them to grow, a race to get them their first kill. Many of these things are out of our reach to effect and they are going to happen anyway. And as god made little apples, your dogs will get their first kills and their early misses will disappear into the mists of time

 

[DOXHOPE]

Hi skinny,it is a great pity you couldnt get a kill for them now, and at 14 months for this type of cross, they are slightly overdue.  I have mostly kept deerhound lurchers, deerhound first crossers and pure deerhounds, and I make sure ALL pups I have kept from these have had there first successes before 12 months, some of my lurchers just over 6 months, even if this means I have taken them out on the lamp during the months of April, May. June or July. :- "  I do beleive however that your pair will not be damaged by their lack of success, once they do get thier first taste, hopefully in the next few weeks or so, that will be that.

From the moment of a lurchers conception it becomes a race, a race to find out if the bitch has taken, a race to get them out, a race to get them sold, a race to get them to grow, a race to get them their first kill.  Many of these things are out of our reach to effect and they are going to happen anyway.  And as god made little apples, your dogs will get their first kills and their early misses will disappear into the mists of time

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

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Puppy 10 weeks old with his first kill....JUST JOKING

 

[Skinnydog]

Thanks for the quick reply Doxhope! A bit of reassurance is very welcome on that one! I think I'll give nature a helping hand before much longer! Both dogs show a lot of promise and are equally keen, so it is a little frustrating for all parties.Its a bloody miracle they haven't made a chance catch as I'm often out with them very early but I suppose our furry pals don't take chances at first light.

By the way I've had the occasional 'butchers' at your website - great stuff! I'm a card carrying deerhound fan myself. I had a deerhound/greyhound a few years back who was enough to convert anybody. I've recently acquired another fantastic

dog through rescue. He looks like deerhound/saluki/greyhound, or maybe even first cross saluki/deerhound (you can span his waist with ease) and is about one and a half to two years by the look of him. I'm not a great fan of saluki types, especially when taken on late and virtually untrained! but this guy looks like being a good find nevertheless. He's improving with recall, is beginning to twig what retrieving is all about and does appear to have tremendous stamina as you might expect. His temperament and looks are on the deerhound side and he's about twenty- six at the shoulder. Just interested to see what you make of this particular cross, virtues, vices, working potential,etc. If nothing else he'll make a first rate companion.

Interesting to see what other folk think too. Hope I haven't offended any saluki devotees :rant: :sweating:

 

[Mike from Hereford]

Hi SkinnyDog,

I go out at first light this time of year, (Alot cooler as well) and hope a rabbit has wandered to far from home, normal down wind approachs and as quiet as possible.Some will squat in long grass and won,t budge till your on top of them, several have actually been stood on, honest !! Your be surprised how far the rabbits have travelled from any cover.They will squat all day in little tufts of grass, the problem is finding them of course, for this I use a mates spaniel, and have the dogs on slip.

The lamp of course is a option, with a bit of a recce in the daytime to see if theres any obstacles that may prove a hazard to the dogs during any course, at night.

My final option is to use selective areas where the use of ferrets can take place.Try and suss out possible escape routes for the bolted white tails and get in slip mode.Have had some good courses already this year.

I find this method is a gamble but over the season you get to learn the escape routes, and can be a good source of decent courses.It can be annoying though if the ferret kills in, with the dogs getting bored. ( But shows the farmer your still keen)

Some folk will use both dogs at the same time during daylight hours but never two at night, its just an accident waiting to happen.

Good Luck, with your dogs, I,m sure your be eating rabbit soon !!

Mike

 

[Skinnydog]

More concerns of the raising/entering variety from me. Another niggle I've got with these pups is that I generally take them for their routine morning and evening walks with other dogs I have. Now, after all my careful training getting them to retrieve I'm just a bit worried that if one of the pups makes a chance catch they may do a runner with it, fearing that it will be nicked by one of the others. They are actually pretty good and when out for solo training sessions reliably retrieve fur dummies/ dead rabbits they come across (bit of Myxie about) but when there's a crowd they're sometimes not so good! I know that the conventional wisdom is to work them solo, especially when young, which is what Iv'e always done, but I can't get around taking my motley mob all out together at the moment. I'm sure this must be a common problem for many like myself with a few different dogs - just interested in what folk think/ do about this? Thanks!

 

[bappit]

Hi skinnydog, think you've come to the right place for advice...though not from me it must be said! :b

Try to keep us posted on how they get on.

From an entirely different perspective I would like to know the dynamics of the pair. Over the years I have watched with interest folks dogs that have been brought on from the same litter with the pros and cons involved...there are two I know of now that are a formidable pairing when hunting.

Sure they will come on...just let us know :thumbsup:

 

[nigelmcfc]

It`s all about patience . Your dog will get the opportunity. As Mike said , go out at first light and find a field where the rabbits feed out some distance from the buries. Try and get yourself and your dog between the burrows and the conies. You`ll find a fool that`ll run out away from the burrows eventually,but it may take time. If your dog hasn`t entered by autumn , take it out with the ferrets and bolt a few bunnies for it. Pick a burrow which is away from cover etc if you can. If the dog has got it , it`ll pick up a rabbit no problem. Don`t overdo it though, some lurchers can get frustrated at their lack of success and start opening up (barking) If you`re on permission , fine , but if not , do you really want to be out with a dog that yaps behind every rabbit it runs? It`s all down to patience on yours and your dogs part in the end.

 

[Skinnydog]

:cheers: nigel.

Sound advice! As I said in my original post, Iv'e had working dogs before but never brought pups up from scratch. I think I've been lucky in the past , for example I have a five year old 3/4 whippet greyhound bitch who I got again from rescue. On the first trip out she shot off and brought a rabbit back live to hand and once she settled showed herself to be superb despite having had a pretty rough time of it.Ready made I suppose!Training up an all round worker is a new one for me but one which has grown into a bit of a preoccupation, or should that be obsession! I'm sure it must be quite a feeling when things start to happen.

The pups seem keen to take feather too. I spend a lot of time up on the moors near where I live so - no bad thing! Any entering knowhow on this?

 

[nigelmcfc]

All 3 of my dogs are rescues , the collie x whippet came from a dogs home , she entered herself as if she was an expert , the whippet bitch did the same and my JR terrier is also self-entered. I`ve started a few pups though, over the years. My old 3/4 whippet 1/4 bedlington took a bit of doing, as he was a bit overkeen and tried to run against impossible catches. He was always headstrong , and he caught his first rabbit when he was about 12months old. Getting thm catching is the easy part, you have got to work hard on the retrieve , 2dogs together might not be ideal for this, as they can be jealous of their first catches, and run from the other dog. Worse still , they might just tear the rabbit up . Yo`uve probably been down this road before lol

 

[lamp dog]

Hi everyone!  I am new to this forum - it seems a good one for advice etc.  I have had rescue lurchers before who have been good workers, but am bringing up two bedlingtonx pups (litter sisters) who are now 14 months old. I am entering the pups in this next coming season as they were still a bit young last season.  Where I live, there is a lot of mixed woodland and lots of rabbits, which is great for daily walks.  The problem is that they do see a lot of rabbits and give chase, but the rabbits are so near the burrows that the dogs have never made any catches.  What I am worried about is that the dogs will lose heart, as they have already started to slow down as they approach the rabbits, having learned that the rabbits will inevitably disappear down the nearest hole!  I am aware that once the dogs are lamped (for eg) and begin to make catches, the interest will quickly pick up.  I am sure this must be a common problem - does it delay successful entering?  Anyone got any experience of this kind of thing?Thanks in advance

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

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hi skinny not to worry remember there is no close season for bunny so i would make a start at the first opportunity on the lamp the brighter the better i don`t know if you have one but the lightforce 240 blitz is my weapon of choice as they have a fantastic range and can take a little punishment accidental of course. the weather is not the best at the moment as there is no wind which which has numerous advantages masking sound being the greatest , allowing you to get closer to the bunnies as not to wear out the dogs on 300yd runs try to pick out "easy" rabbits sitting right out in large fields. a tip on lamping efectivly is to shake the lamp off and on the rabbit when close ti an escape (hedge or fence) this can help keep the rabbit on the field which is where you want it after a few kills you can then use the dogs for ferreting etc remember to keep the outing short as it is very hot even at 1am when your working as hard as the dogs will be. i hope this puts your mind to rest :thumbsup:

 

[lamp dog]

Hi everyone!  I am new to this forum - it seems a good one for advice etc.  I have had rescue lurchers before who have been good workers, but am bringing up two bedlingtonx pups (litter sisters) who are now 14 months old. I am entering the pups in this next coming season as they were still a bit young last season.  Where I live, there is a lot of mixed woodland and lots of rabbits, which is great for daily walks.  The problem is that they do see a lot of rabbits and give chase, but the rabbits are so near the burrows that the dogs have never made any catches.  What I am worried about is that the dogs will lose heart, as they have already started to slow down as they approach the rabbits, having learned that the rabbits will inevitably disappear down the nearest hole!  I am aware that once the dogs are lamped (for eg) and begin to make catches, the interest will quickly pick up.  I am sure this must be a common problem - does it delay successful entering?  Anyone got any experience of this kind of thing?Thanks in advance

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

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ps. youve chosen one of the best bunny dog you can get

 

[Skinnydog]

Interesting what folk say about Bedlington types. I've never had one before, favouring deerhound or bitza types. My Skye is 1/4 Bedlington but seems to have thrown towards the Beddie side. She looks very Beddie and ......well.......acts Beddie too. She is a lot more active and feisty than other lurchers I've had but what a character! Hobbies include: wrestling bigger dogs to the floor, balancing acts on anything from sofas to ledges, the wall of death routine, 'bunch diving'- let me explain - this involves leaping high into the air bunching up the legs and hoping the person grabs you, high speed nose nipping, and various other tricks of this nature (w00t) :blink: ) Anyone else got a barmy beddie- interesting to compare notes,..... injuries, damages,.....

 

[rabbiter]

best to break in the pups in apart from one another, but I can see what you have posted

above ,about having to give all the dogs a walk all together ,but perhapes you could walk them somewhere ,where there aren't any rabbits ,and then run them a part when breaking them in to rabbit ...because two dogs will bugger up each other when it comes to the retrieve...you could run them together later if you wish.I run a large number of dogs all together when on rabbit control , I'm not worryed to much about sport or the fact the rabbit won't be suitable for eating but break a young dog in by its self,showing it that it can do it by its self..then just run it the others..Just one dog in the pack does most of the retrieving...with most of the others this habit has never been formed ..a down side to running a number of them together. (w00t)

 

[Skinnydog]

Here are some pictures of the dogs....Tess

 

[Skinnydog]

Skye

 

[Skinnydog]

Angus

 

[Skinnydog]

Jet ....sorry about the quality :b

 

[nigelmcfc]

nice looking dogs , what is the breeding of the smooth dogs?

 

[Skinnydog]

Tess (the white with brindle) is three quarter whippet quarter greyhound. The black dog, Jet, is a bedlington x greyhound/collie x greyhound. The collie is more obvious in Jet, but Skye (her litter sister) has obvious beddie looks (and character (w00t) )