Nudibranch
Well-Known Member
So, I went to view the saluki last Sunday. (Lovely home but they didn't have time for her.) She was calm but friendly, said hello, lovely manners. So I brought her home!
I took her along the road to "neutral territory" while OH followed a way behind with our dachshund. Then we let them catch us up and the dogs met. Not a single bark from the normally terrified dachshund! They walked home side by side and then we let them wander in the garden. Again, the pair of them seemed pretty relaxed. I was partly surprised, but then the saluki was so calm and confident she just seemed to give the dachshund confidence.
5 days on and they now sleep together in the kitchen, walk on and off lead together and travel in the back of the car. His anxious barking has almost completely stopped - he only does a short bark when she does now. Her recall is pretty good for a saluki, and she is just a general delight around the place. Very loyal. There are acres of safe space for her to run and I'm doing a lot of recall and taking the lead on and off at random times, which she does really well. We we even managed a recall from full chase mode after a pigeon this afternoon! My only slight concern is that on the lead she seemed a little more interested in the sheep than I would have liked; she was supposed to be used to them. However I'm going to start anti-sheep training and will probably book onto a course not too far from here just to make sure.
I can see why they might not be suitable for everyone, her suburban home didn't suit a sighthound, but she seems to have settled well into rural life. She is content to potter in the garden or round the yard for hours on end, and loves her gallops in the fields. She's also taken really well to raw; apparently she didn't have much appetite on dry but she'd probably eat fresh meat until the cows come home.
All in all, so far definitely a good start for the two of them!
I took her along the road to "neutral territory" while OH followed a way behind with our dachshund. Then we let them catch us up and the dogs met. Not a single bark from the normally terrified dachshund! They walked home side by side and then we let them wander in the garden. Again, the pair of them seemed pretty relaxed. I was partly surprised, but then the saluki was so calm and confident she just seemed to give the dachshund confidence.
5 days on and they now sleep together in the kitchen, walk on and off lead together and travel in the back of the car. His anxious barking has almost completely stopped - he only does a short bark when she does now. Her recall is pretty good for a saluki, and she is just a general delight around the place. Very loyal. There are acres of safe space for her to run and I'm doing a lot of recall and taking the lead on and off at random times, which she does really well. We we even managed a recall from full chase mode after a pigeon this afternoon! My only slight concern is that on the lead she seemed a little more interested in the sheep than I would have liked; she was supposed to be used to them. However I'm going to start anti-sheep training and will probably book onto a course not too far from here just to make sure.
I can see why they might not be suitable for everyone, her suburban home didn't suit a sighthound, but she seems to have settled well into rural life. She is content to potter in the garden or round the yard for hours on end, and loves her gallops in the fields. She's also taken really well to raw; apparently she didn't have much appetite on dry but she'd probably eat fresh meat until the cows come home.
All in all, so far definitely a good start for the two of them!
