Collie lurcher - any experience?

[Jingleballs]

So today we went along to our local greyhound charity's monthly greyhound walk - they are doing our home check this evening and we wanted to meet some of the dogs looking for a home.

While there, we met a lovely young lurcher bitch who is looking for a new home due to her current owners ill health - the charity had suggested that her owners bring her down to see if she got any interest.

Now, I was looking for a 3 year +, jet black greyhound - she is an 11 month old, mostly white lurcher - to me she looks to have plenty of collie in her but her owner says she thinks she's got spaniel in her (several other people commented on the collie breeding).

We spent a good hour with her, walked her round that park - she was fab with people, children, other dogs, bikes, swans - she is quite bouncy but very controllable, walks nicely on the lead and even if she does pull it's easy to manage even for my dad who's nearly 70. Didn't bark, lunge - very submissive when approaching other dogs. She's also extremely friendly and wants to say hello to everyone.

Apparently she's fine at home - often left home for 7 hours a day in her crate (although she doesn't need to go into a crate but the owners other dogs aren't very tolerant of her).

She seems perfect but it's not a breed I would have considered esp the collie element because I know they need loads of exercise and can be a bit mad! The exercise element is fine - my dad would walk it several times a day and it would get plenty of exercise at weekends - I'd actually like to try some canicross and maybe some fun agility with whatever dog we get plus we like to go for long walks at the weekend.

I know every dog is different but does anyone have any experience of this type of cross? Would we be taking on too much.

Here is a wee picture of her - we still need to pass the home check and they need to decide that she is suitable for us but they seemed quiet hopeful that she'd be a good fit.

http://s215.photobucket.com/user/kirstin_bell/media/rowan_zps9acd1809.jpg.html]

 

[joelb]

Not met many but those I have are really nice dogs, great in and out of the home and generally nice to have around. Obviously it’s always a calculated gamble with mixed blood. She does look to have a fair bit of collie so might just need more mental stimulation rather than physical exercise. Good luck with your home check hope you have a happy outcome.

 

[Alec Swan]

I couldn't be certain from just one pic, and I may well be wrong, but my guess would be that apart from the obvious greyhound, I'd say that somewhere in there, there's some "Bull" breed. For a better analysis, a side shot with the dog standing would make life easier!

Alec.

 

[lurcherlu]

I agree with Alec..... I home check for lurcher rescues, have two rescued ones myself..... Collie lurchers are ace I wish I had one, easy to train,can do most things and make brilliant riding companions. There is only one downside.... The are very very very addictive , one is nt enough,......

 

[twiggy2]

collie/bull/greyhound is one of the most popular mixes these days, if you liked what you saw today then go for it

 

[{97702}]

Lovely dogs I'm sure, but I love my greyhounds because they are relaxed, easy going and idle You wouldn't get that with a collie lurcher...

 

[splashgirl45]

sorry picklenash, you would and i did...i had a border collie/whippet/bedlington cross and she was fab. really easy to train, excellent recall and brilliant at agility.....one of the easiest dogs i have ever owned..

 

[{97702}]

I stand corrected splashgirl Would she do the essential thing and sleep for 99% of the day lol?

 

[splashgirl45]

as long as she had a walk she would relax the rest of the day, i currently have a bearded collie/whippet/bedlington cross and a collie/lab cross(3/4 collie 1/4 lab) and both are currently fast asleep, i think the collie cross has picked up the sleeping disease from my lurcher.....so i have had 3 with collie in them and all are easy and relaxed...perhaps its me???? although my horse is an absolute loony!!!!!

 

[{97702}]

I'm never sure whether my dogs are lazy because I am, or whether I am lazy because they are

 

[Jingleballs]

That's the only picture I have available - I'm not sure about the bull cross - she is very slim with a very small, sleek head - definitely a lot of collie intelligence in her eyes.

We had the home check last night and passed so hopefully it's now just a case of arranging the hand over although her current owner is insisting that she brings the dog directly to us while the rehoming charity want to do the hand over as per their usual process - that might delay things slightly!

Although she's not at all what I was looking for, she does seem perfect - certainly while we were with her. She's also the polar opposite to our last boy which I guess is a good thing as it's not like we're simply replacing him with a similar dog.

 

[SpottyTB]

I think my grans dogs a lurcher X collie.. Jasper - aged 17 .. he was a triple rescue when we got him at 3 years old!

 

[dollyanna]

Mine is a collie lurcher, probably half collie and half bull whippet, and he is a cracking dog. When I first got him he needed a lot of brainwork, he is unusually bright, but once he settled in and felt safe (tough history) he is a wonderful dog - I'm not always able to do long walks every day, but he is more than happy to stay in bed with me or curl up on the sofa under a blanket with me!! As long as he gets out and about a bit he is happy with whatever exercise he gets these days - he enjoys longer walks but on my bad days he is happy to bomb around the garden for a bit and then curl up again. He loves to play as well. He has done agility, obedience, a bit of herding and a lot of trick training, as well as demos around the country for deaf dogs, but we don't do so much these days and he is still very happy and content. I have a couple of friends with collie x lurchers as well, they both did agility/ disc dogs but equally beautiful, friendly and calm dogs when not "working". We would all have another in a heartbeat. Go for it, she looks gorgeous!!

 

[Leo Walker]

Collie x grey/whippets are brilliant dogs! The collie doesnt seem to make the ones I know more manic, if anything it makes them more biddable and trainable. My wworking whippet really couldnt give two figs about pleasing me, and training him is harder because of that. My bitch who is collie x whippet and poss a bit of saluki, but def a good dose of collie in there, is a lovely dog. All the good bits of my other dog, but really wants to please you and incredibly trainable. She has slightly more stamina, but is def easier to manage than a working bred whhippet She would be an ideal family pet for almost anyone I could think of, well if she didnt have issues due to some hideous abuse in her early years that is

 

[tootsietoo]

I have a collie greyhound. He is perfect. He loves me more than anyone else in the world loves me (including my husband) but that is his only downside. I didn't realise just how strong the attachment would be and didn't train him to be left on his own, and he is terrible at being left. I am working on it now, and within a day he was learning what was required of him - he is very clever. Very trainable, because he wants to please so much. I have two children, and he is great with them, but doesn't relish a hectic house - he will go and hide in another room if it's particularly noisy! Having said that, he loves parties. Is always under the table or hanging around chatting to people if we have friends round!

Your picture does look as if there's something extra and terrier-like in him though.