Is it my imagination or are there more lighter eyed dogs coming in the ring? What are the rules about eye colour? Is it something that weighs heavily in a dogs favour if they have the darker eye. I do love to see a really dark eye. If fact when I see an Irish Wolfhound with their light eyes I find it quite odd.

Hi there, from memory the standard says that dark to hazel eyes are preferred, the darker the better and light eyes are not liked. Over here when they get that reslly yellow eye we call them snake eyes and I think they lokk horrible.

Pam

Something I have always wanted to know, what diffrnc does a dogs eye colour have to his hunting ability? after all, is it not, they are meant to be judged on their ability to to do the job they are bred for?

Come one, someone is going to tell me something else I didn't know!

It may have something to do with expression. The darker the eye the softer it looks. A very pale eye can have a harder expression. Just a thought

Lurch8252 wrote:


Can't help with eye colour I'm afraid, however when I showed Ben at the 2007 Breed show the judge told me that he had round eyes instead of oval eyes, as in the breed standard, although most good hunting animals do have round eyes. He also said that he thought Ben was a powerful dog and was just the dog that you'd want to hunt deer with. He wasn't placed in the show though, partly as he had "a very 1830's look" like in the Landseer sketches of the Deerhound heads that have more of a "stop" than today. I do wonder if much of the standard really is geared towards hunting or is more of a fashion/cosmetic thing.

Robb you really said a mouthful there. That your Ben didn't place with his 1830s look speaks volumes. I have no doubt that the dainty deeries favoured in some show rings today would be positively useless in taking down a stag, (although they may be good at chasing a lure). I daresay we've lost sight of how large and powerful a stag truly is and what sort of strength a deerhound must possess to take one down. If judges kept that in mind we would most certainly see a change in current fashion trends.

Rob, was this at Bromsgrove Breed Show? Post Graduate class, under Brian Doak? if so I think I was talking to you, Ben was quite exciteable! You were also in the ring with my dog, Sally got first and we got 2nd. I think I have a pic?
Thats my daughter running Murphy, Sally is in the check jacket, is that you on the left?

Yes Lurch, it was at the Bromsgrove show, he was in 2 classes but I can't remember which ones. It could be me in the picture but there's not much of me in it to tell. I was wearing light green jeans and a grey top. Ben was quite young then and could be a bit excitable at times, however I seem to remember him being surprisingly well behaved in the ring.

I do not mind light eyes as much , would not breed light eye to light eye though ( and , if I wanted to breed a fairly light eyed female I might want to look further back into her family and the males' , too ) , dark is wanted and so beautyful - only once a friend remarked something about 1 of my girls who has lighter eyes " oh finally , the wolf-eye " and that stuck with me ( thanks , Ironstone for that remark ! ) , love wolfes and their oh so keen, piercing expressions - dhds at least should be able to look keen - they are meant to be hunters .
Here 2 pics I took the other day , first , Mawu , my " lighter eyed " deerhound , gazing out , ready to hunt and then , her niece Hermione , just over 1 year , really dark ees and yes , she can look very keen with them ( if not on the photo - love tis one as sky and horizon and trees are refelcted in her eyes ) .

Ok , wouldn't allow me to upload them together , so here comes her niece Hermione then .....

Robb wrote:


Yes, they were all good in the ring, I just remember you, you were sat next to me at side of ring, with your wife, I was with my daughter and her boyfriend, my daughter took Murphy in the ring as my back had gone, it was her first time and she did ok. And am pretty sure you said you lived really local to the show.

Small world!

Murphy's eyes are the same as Mawu's, must admit Hermoine's eyes are lovely.

Lurch8252 wrote:


Yes I remember you now, your daughter did well with Murphy. I used to live quite nearby at Penkridge near Stafford although it was still approx 50 mins by car to Bromsgrove. I moved to Shropshire since, mainly to get a better place for Ben (Things we do for DH's). I'm still quite near to Stafford but in a different direction.

Ben's eyes are like Mawu's as well and I think the breed standard says soft brown eyes. I agree with Lurch and think Hermione's eyes are really lovely.

Ironstone wrote:


I have not or ever will loose sight of how large and powerful a stag is in the rough ground of a Scottish hill, and what I know is required in a Deerhound for purpose.

Eye color shape is cosmetic and is just icing on the cake, if people breed for this one feature heaven help all of us. Your not alone Ironstone.

No matter how big or strong a stag is or the pursuing deerhound is, the hound must have the guts and courage to go in and bring it down even the smallest of hounds can take one down if they want to and once they learn the right technique no matter what colour there eyes are.As for the dog to use a person would know what type of ground you are to run on and alter there pack or dog through size build and levels of stamina to suit the ground or hill that is to be worked i have seen hounds run that i knew were capable but the ground didnt suit them and that did them no favours but in which other hounds excelled so maybe purpose changes from place to place which gives us variety in our wonderfull breed

farnorth wrote:


I have always said " Handsome is as handsome does" and its very hard to judge that keeness in the ring, I always like to find a strong jaw and neck with a strong back end but these are Scottish Deerhounds bred for the hills, stone and require stamina not speed to go up those.

I followed the Cotswold coursing greyhounds for years and coursed with my grandfathers hounds as a youth his coursing hounds were bred totally differently than his track dogs of course
but these are Scottish Deerhounds

I have seen photo's of the last " working pack of deerhounds", alot of them were in fact lurchers

interesting points that I mostly agree with farnforth

This is something I think about , too - how much courage is left in the deerhounds ? I have seen only 10orsohunt , out here in our bush and wilderness and out of tose 1 for sure has it ( she is 3/4 Nelungalooworkingline dh from Australia - a beautiful girl and just awesome to watch ) and then 2or 3( if se matures the way she started ) of my own girls ;one of them had a very nice seize but her bones were really not strong enough . The rest gave nice runs , looking mostly beautiful , but for sure not made to do the job - conditions are extremely difficult , steep hills , lost of rocks , dense bush/forest at times . I actually find , that the smaller ones ( 27-28" for females ) do have a great advantage , as long as they are nice and wide in build and have good strong bones and , shoulders and powerful rears. I also worry about the sensitivity the breed shows quite often seemingly now - ok , we want the soulfulness and softness at home , but , they should have the ability to bounce back from mishap , shake it off and not suffer and withdraw , as so many seem to do . I find , at times , there are 2 different breeds out now , both wonderful , beautiful hounds , but one is the deerhound and then , there are the dear hounds . And yes , the neck is also so imortant - I regularly get to see deercarcasses here ( hunted dwn by coyotes ) and though these are smaller than elk , their neck bones are incredibly strong , as is , of course their musculature. I'll attach 2 pics of the " working girl " ( 3/4 working line ) and the kind of " stick"she plays with - we can barely lift them ....

and here the 2nd stick - truly not a 1 time thing , she does this regularly

I think , I do have to make a correction , out of the 10 I have seen (regularly ) out here in the bush I'd say only 2 have , what it takes - 2have various parts but not
" enough " ( e.g. lack of strength of bone and then one is perhaps a tad too soft in the connective tissue , which makes her prone to injury ).But all 4 that came to mind initially , have in them , to various degrees, some blood of the still actively hunting line from Australia . I think I was blessed to have my very first deerhound ever with some connection to it , she was an absolutely great intro to the breed and their phenomenal skills . Not that I don't equally love the dear-hounds I have here , too ( 1 actually a great lurecourser , 3 times topping the Canadian year end list , but basically forgettable out in the bush....) , they bring different qualities , that also deeply touch my heart and soul , but breeding to them , I wouldn't.