Posted by Lynn on October 02, 2002 at 20:20:17:
In Reply to: Re: Selecting a coursing dog posted by phborzoi on October 02, 2002 at 17:06:09:
AMEN! Believe it or not, there is actually one greyhound that is currently racing (I forget which track) at 96 lbs. The biggest you see at the track normally is around 80-82 pounds, and that is big. *My* idea of the perfect grey is around 70-75 lbs and around 28 inches at the shoulder for the males and low 60's for the females at around 26 inches. These dimensions would never fly in the AKC world, though, I believe the standard is quite a bit smaller than what people are actively breeding right now.
One more question has popped to my mind, and perhaps this isn't a problem with dogs that have never raced oval track, but how do you teach a dog to slow when cornering. I have a feeling that may be part of Joplin's current problems. On the track, while the curve in the oval is substantial, it is banked and is not an immediate corner. The few runs he made in lure coursing were wonderful, but he maintained his lead of the pack in a large part by not slowing for the corners... he just didn't k now that he needed to. Obviously you can see how much stress this would put on an animal 71 lbs moving at 35 miles per hour abruptly changing direction. NOT GOOD.
Anyway, is this something you all have encountered before?
Lynn and Pack
