WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER AS A WORKER?

[Guest Frank]

frank i agree totally with you.I work 3 lurchers and 3 terriers week in week out and i find that a bond builds with my dogs .They are like part of my family (hope me missus dont see this)but at the end of the day they are workers and must earn their keep.Iv seen too many good dogs wasted by being treated as pets, its a rel shame i think

 

Exactly.

Their is a lot of lurchers out their, that have never been worked to the full, theirefore, not reaching their true potential.

Year ago over here, most dogs were kept outside and workers were real workers, brought up hardy, the fittest survived and the best bred. When i say years, it was not that long ago over here, im talking 's 90's. Since this celtic tiger, that has reached Ireland, it has gone down hill for lurchers ect. Too many fancy houses and money, making the dogs spoilt, if you get my meaning?

More and more, are becoming pets, more and more folks, working very long hours, in demanding jobs, have feck all time, for little else!

Dogs need a lot of work, ect, to bring the most out of them, that folks, working none stop, dont seem to have anymore!

[Caravan Monster 323]

I guess a lot of people watched "The Mighty Celt" film at the weekend, which asked the same question in the context of greyhound racing...

 

My lurcher is a pet/ companion, whatever you want to call it, that is used on rabbit (and hare when she was younger). I like dogs and learning how to train and work them, I like going off wandering around the fields, and I like to put a bit of game in the freezer.

 

I' m not saying that kenneling dogs is wrong, but don' t understand how it improves working ability- I don' t know, never having done it. It must be a necessity if you keep several dogs.

 

In hard times, when hunting for profit, wouldn' t trapping and shooting be more important tools- they require a lot of skill and knowledge too, but are surely cheaper and more efficient overall.

 

I reckon indiscriminate and ill informed breeding is a bigger threat to the future standard of the working lurcher than the changing way in which people keep their dogs.

[cúagusgiorraí 57]

Hi Frank,

Well I made the point in my "I am not a hunter" topic, that modern western society makes it very difficult for us to live fulltime as hunters and our dogs as workers. We really have no choice but conform to society. I believe that years ago when we lived in poverty and being subdued by the authorities we had to have our dogs to poach for food. These dogs were workers and essential to the survival of the poorest and starving in society. Nowadays there is very little fulltime work for a lurcher. I feel that the true workers are the dogs living now with families providing food in the third world contries in Africa, South America and the Far East.

My dogs are pets and hunting partners that I hunt with regularly, but it is for sport not survival.

[marko 30]

yes some good points frank but other things you need to take into account everything is rush rush now and less time is devoted to families, pets working dogs, what have you, also not everyone has plenty of bunny permission to work there dogs on a few times a week, me i used to be out a good bit now i have a family now the dogs are walked a lot in the week the lurcher will go out nearly all the time with me ie shooting,rabbiting,ratting,she is very handy and wouldnt be without her she is kept inside and is also a pet i have a good bond with her and the terriers and because of this i find they do there best to please me so thats just my little input.

[lamper12 30]

well mine are workers that live out side that i will be lamping 3-4 times a week next season and lots of ferreting when my pups older but he done a nice bit this season mainly ferreting 2-3 times a week and having his first tracked deer a big fallow buck,start as you mean to go on but then again theyre great dogs to have about the place and lots of fun for my little brother....