Every one saw her on the news or on the “Letterman” show or you may have even watched it with your family live on TV…..the 2011 Best In Show dog at the Westminster Kennel Club Show at Madison Square Garden on New York "GCH Foxcliffe Hickory Wind" a.k.a. "Hickory," a Scottish Deerhound.  Now, I have also had the pleasure of meeting this great “lady” and I have her younger brother as a client at my board kennel.

 The Scottish Deer Hound.  They are not just another pretty face.   This breed is known as a “Sight Hound” which means it prefers to hunt what it sees running from it.  Although they have a keen sense of smell, it is does not compare to its vision.

The actual origin is in the “Emerald Isles”.  Dogs resembling this breed have been found in paintings originating from Scotland and Ireland.  It is felt to be closely related to the greyhound, and it is thought that the official name of Scottish Deerhound came to be in the early 17^th century.

This is a tall lanky breed.  Males will reach the height of over 30 inches at the shoulders and weigh 85 to 110 pounds, the ladies will be 28 inches or taller and weigh upwards of 75 pounds.  The breed has a long head with a pointed muzzle, and a black/blue nose with abundant beard and mustaches (both the boys and girls).  Their eyes will reveal a sweet expression and be chestnut or hazel in color.  Their ears should fold back, but never stand erect, and are very soft to the touch and are always darker in color than the body.  The breed’s neck is long; the chest should be deep; the back is naturally slightly arched and the stomach is highly tucked almost giving the impression of ribs showing.  The tail is long enough to reach the ground but should be curved.  When the dog walks its back legs will overstep its front feet in trail giving it an exceptionally long stride.  The build of the body is made for long distance running with ample speed and stamina.

 This breed occurs in many colors but the most popular and preferred colors are gray-blue and dark gray.  You will also see them with coats colors from yellow, chestnut and red.  The only unacceptable color for this breed is solid or primarily white but white patches do occur on the chest and toes.  The coat itself averages 4 inches long all over the body and becomes shorter as you travel down the dogs legs.  Although the coat looks as if would be course it can be very soft to the touch and insulating against the weather conditions of the area. 

The Scottish Deerhound will never be known as your “guard dog” although they do like to bark. The breed is known to be a loyal companion who is tranquil, affectionate, obedient, and can have a tendency to be timid and lazy.

The breed is used in its country of origin for hunting deer and wolves in open expanses.  The breed has the ability to flush, follow, catch and capture the prey.

As a pet the breed needs room to run and is not known to be great apartment dogs.  "They need room to run".

 www.akc.org, www.ukcdogs.com,

Pictures from www.WKC dogshow.com and breed websites

By Luanne Bragg

TalkHunting Pro Staffer, Luanne "Beaglepup" Bragg, started hunting (going hunting) with her Grandfather in the fall of 1965.  He loved to squirrel hunt and would carry her into the woods and sit her on a rock and let her hold his prizes.  He took Luanne on her first Pheasant and Rabbit hunts when she was 7.  Shortly after that he had a massive stroke and was never able to return to the woods again.  When Luanne was 9 her Father, who was about to retire from the Marine Corps after 20 years active duty, and Uncle decided that since she could shoot she could remove the ground hogs and crows from the farm fields.  Luanne spent the next few years watching all the wildlife and removing varmints from the farm.  She took herself deer hunting for the first time when she was 15 and took her first deer at 17.  There was a long time between Luanne's first deer and her next deer due to college and work and general life.  She did a lot of small game hunting with her ex-husband starting in 1985 and killed her next deer in 1988.  She has not missed a deer or turkey season since.  When not hunting she is fishing or working in her garden (when not WORKING...).

Luanne has raised, trained and field trialed Beagles in the UKC and ARHA formats for 20 years and has produced several Field and Show Champions and Grand Field and Show Champions.  There is usually at least one litter of puppies born on her place every year.

She holds a Real Estate License in Virginia and owns a Dog Boarding Kennel.  Luanne belongs to the National Association of Realtors, Central Virginia Beaglers Association, NRA, NWTF and Buckmasters.  She was born in East Liverpool, Ohio,  and started showing Appaloosa horses in 1969 and was the Pennsylvania Appaloosa Queen in 1980 and runner up to the National Queen Title the same year. When she gets the chance she still enjoys a long trail ride.  She graduated from Kent State University in Kent Ohio in 1982 with a degree in Applied Science. Luanne relocated from Ohio to Virginia in 1984.

Comments(3):

1. the scottish deerhound

   being of scottish ancestry myself i presume these dogs were originally used to chase stags? did they hunt other game besides when first introduced? thank you luanne for the informative article on a little known breed in this country.

   Sunday, May 08, 2011 brad

2. REPLY

   None of the research I did stated that the Deer Hound was developed for Stag hunting specifically. They were developed to sight chase and bring down Large Game. My guess, which I do not like to state without fact, is that what they were primarily used for.

   Sunday, May 08, 2011 Luanne

3. Thank You

   An interesting article Luanne

   Sunday, May 08, 2011 clyde