Hello all ,hope you dont mind me joining your forum ,I do not have the pleasure of having a deerhound yet but I live in hope ,I have always loved hounds and have worked with many over the years but one day I will be in the positon to be sharing my life with a gorgeous deerhound and until then I plan to find out all I can about them so have joined the forum.

Hello and welcome willow in the Deerhound forum.

We wish you many fun here.

Best regards
Joerg and Yoki

Hello and welcome Willow - deerhounds are indeed fantastic dogs and I am lucky enough to shaare my life with Murray who will be 3 next March and Carys who will be 2 in November. Like you I waited years before getting Murray who was my 1st deerhound and he was well worth the wait. Then came Carys as 1 is never enough

Hi willow and welcome there are a lot of knowledgeable people here and they will share their knowledge with you so you will be prepared for your first deerhound.

Hi Willow ..welcome!Don't worry I haven't got a deerhound yet either but I have been hanging round here learning as much as I can to

Welcome Willow - I waited about 15 years before I could offer a deerhound the kind of home they demand:-)) Well worth the wait - mind you I also have a soft spot for hairy lurchers who tend to last longer.

Hello everyone .thank you for the warm welcome ,I have always had a dog until my last GSD had to be put to sleep because age and athritis had made life unbearable for him a few years before this 13year old daughter came im with a kitten,couldnt do anything about this because she was off on holiday with her friend and her parents we had never had a cat before ,hubby said I dont know anything about cats she will have to go 19 years later last june 2010 Mishka
sadly passed away we waited a few weeks then our other cat Poppy who was a ferile kitten desperatetly needed a feline friend and we adopted another rescue cat who has settled in brliiantly . I had been thinking oflooking for a dog at the time but my main aim is to get a sight hound and preferably a resue dog and I know that alot of them do not get on with cats ,although I must admit I do not know alot about this ,however it may be quite a while befor this is possible ,but I know the next dog we welcome in will definately be a hound.

Hello and welcome Willow. Congrats on picking a most excellent breed !
If you have a questions, just shout out as there's quite a collection of knowledge here and mostly friendly

I have had two lurchers and two deerhounds with a cat, the cat is quite an assertive ex stray tabby from Cats protection, but we had him as a kitten with my last deerhound - I was a bit concerned at the beginning, but due to the cat being very sure of himself, he gradually started bossing the dogs about and soon had them under his paw. My latest Deerhound who I had as a puppy, enjoys chasing our cat and tormenting him, but the cat is always one step ahead, and a quick swipe of a paw and hiss has Dirk retreating! So if you get a hound as a puppy and make sure he understands the houserules, it shouldnt be a problem!

Belive it or not, my cat actualy hates dogs - untill layla came along
the cat and dogs didnt mix (they still dont), but for some resion kit kat will
tolerate layla being near him, have even caught them lieing on the bed near each other,
hes never done that with any other dog, kit kat is semi ferral, he came to be at 4 weeks old
fisty as hell, dont know why he's taken to layla, but not the others - as he still runs if he sees any of them, hes an indoor cat and lives upstairs.

Hi and welcome to the forum and good luck with getting a Deerhound sometime in the future.

Pam

Hi Willow and welcome. I've always kept cats alongside my dogs and they get on just fine in the house. I would be careful with a Deerhound outside and off leash if there's a running cat in sight. Mine are fine with my cats in the house, and in the garden, where they've got plenty of hidey-holes and two cars to zoom under at moments of crisis. However, a Deerhound's hot-wired to chase, so it's up to the human to decide what, if anything, the dog's allowed to chase.

That said, we did have a cat once who liked to go for walks with the pack. Hobbes was such a strong character that it never occurred to him or the dogs that he was anything but top dog, so they never offered to chase him.

HI Willow, and a big welcome from down under. I agree with whats been said so far - I waited 30 years to get a deerhound and had many dogs before then - well worth the wait!!!! Anyway our deerhounds respected our old cat inside and outside, and respect the new kittens inside and to a point outside now. If the cats bolt they will be chased, but if they stand their ground the d'hounds will back off.
Pixie does have a pet chicken though that she adores and who lets her suck its tail feathers. Not sure if this is a health arrangement for either?????
regards
Jenny and Paul with d/hounds Jag, Faye and Pixie from New Zealand

Hi Willow and welcome. Our Finn is a rescue DH and we were concerned with how he would fit in with our four cats. I'm pleased to say "no problem". He will playfully chase in the garden but a quick smack on the nose from one of the cats tells him if he is getting too rough. Equally, if he is asleep and one of the moggies gets too close there is a warning growl and they know to back-off. We are convinced that he sees them as part of his pack and on occasion where there is a cat fight between one of ours and a neighbouring cat he will intervene to rescue one of his own! Having said all this if he is on his walk and spots a "foriegn" cat or anything furry his ears are up and he is ready to chase

I have 2 cats which I got after having Carys and Murray deerhounds. A sensible introduction with plenty of squirts of water and firm 'No's' did the trick and they are all living happily together. Having said that any other cat is still fair game

Hello Willow...always nice to see a new member on here..welcome..