Remarkabull Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 (edited) Just from my own experiences I would have to say JRT. My girl is a crazy thing when after something. She screams like a banshee while hunting things, not just mice either, she will 'hunt' almost anything. Flies, moths and any kind of beetles are favourites and birds will almost send her over the edge! She gets fixated and cannot be distracted from the hunt. Edited cause i can't spell tonight Edited August 30, 2010 by dobesrock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W Sibs Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 From my experience.. JRT. Crazy little dogs. The 2 I know will chase everything and anything. And, will do everything and anything to catch whatever they are chasing too! They are both trained in drive. Both of mine loves to hunt and chase... Charlie keeps away the insects, mice and lizard away. Birds no longer visit out yard anymore since we got Emmy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkySoaringMagpie Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Agree with Alyosha that in individual sighthound breeds you have a lot of variation and with any sighthound breed there's a risk of getting a serious hunter in your backyard. Taken as a whole tho', I think PF is probably right about Salukis. Not a breed to buy if you can't handle scrubbing blood off the carpet because you forgot to shut the back door. Can't comment on the terriers, but also agree with Aidan that it would be hard to usefully compare a terrier with a sighthound. The tenacity and drive is expressed in different ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diva Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 I'd find to hard to pick a breed because of the different ways prey drive is expressed and the variety between individuals in a given breed. Not sure if anyone has mentioned sibes yet, but I have met a few that were pretty driven around furry critters. Not sure if they were typical though. And sometimes it seems to take very specifc circumstances to trigger prey drive, while other dogs are 'on' for anything that moves. I have had a little Borzoi bitch who was safe with almost everything - including free ranging chickens - but if she spotted or scented fox she was transfomed into a driven lunatic. Not sure if it is considered high drive when it's that specific, but she was manic for that one prey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted August 30, 2010 Author Share Posted August 30, 2010 It's a very subjective question by nature. I'm just interested to see what people come up with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 My Hamlet rabbits/roos/foxes/crows/mice/sheep .... he cannot be walked away from the house unless he is on a long rope...and he will kill if he catches whatever he is chasing. He is a Koolie X English Cocker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkySoaringMagpie Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 I have had a little Borzoi bitch who was safe with almost everything - including free ranging chickens - but if she spotted or scented fox she was transfomed into a driven lunatic. Not sure if it is considered high drive when it's that specific, but she was manic for that one prey. It's times like that I'd like a magical reverse camera through the lines to see where it comes from. We encountered ferrets at a pet expo once, Lucy was there as an example of a well behaved Saluki. When she got a whiff of the ferrets her entire expression changed from laid back couch Saluki to "right, whatever that is I have to nail it now!". Mercifully the people with the ferrets made a deft retreat. As far as I know, ferrets are not native to the middle east but someone said it was probably that they have a foxy sort of smell? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 (edited) It's a weird thing- there is a 'switch' somewhere, as Hamlet sleeps on teh couch with our cats- but will kill a feral one, no problem. rabbit chasing he adores, but as he bays the whole time he's running, usually, he's not an effective hunter . Edited August 30, 2010 by persephone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diva Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 It's times like that I'd like a magical reverse camera through the lines to see where it comes from. I agree, it's fascinating how that kind of discrimination can be inate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 OK- are those dogs out there with high prey drive triggered by the sight or scent of the prey, d'you think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 OK- are those dogs out there with high prey drive triggered by the sight or scent of the prey, d'you think? That depends entirely on why/how they are bred to work. Sighthounds, as the name suggests, trigger largely based on movement. The animal that doesn't run is far safer than one that does. For others, its scent and/or sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkySoaringMagpie Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 OK- are those dogs out there with high prey drive triggered by the sight or scent of the prey, d'you think? Don't know. Sight I think primarily with ours but it's sometimes hard to know. Tonight we got home late from a meeting. OH skittled a bunny while driving home and there were a few about the margins on our road. Driving up our drive I saw one as well before it ran off into a front paddock. In short, the local area is hopping!!! We let the dogs out, and they all instantly ran down to the driveway gate. Maybe their vision was good enough to spot the rabbit in the paddock from the light from the house, or maybe they smelled it. They knew something was there tho', even tho' by the time I let them out it had skipped off into the darkness from my human perspective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alyosha Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 When she got a whiff of the ferrets her entire expression changed from laid back couch Saluki to "right, whatever that is I have to nail it now!". Mercifully the people with the ferrets made a deft retreat. As far as I know, ferrets are not native to the middle east but someone said it was probably that they have a foxy sort of smell? Yes... Tell me about it... My daughter's pet ferret escaped her cage one day last week... It took Sonya all of about 2 seconds to dispatch her once she squeezed through the fence into the backyard... The other two borzoi were on the other side of the yard "That's off limits - we're not involved in touching it! Not us, no way!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whippets Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 I'd say a keen raced trained greyhound has a very strong prey drive. We've have also been able to control that drive later when they were retired. Same as the whippets and I can train them to recall and stop a chase. As for my 2 JRT's...not a chance in hades of getting rid of their "vermin" prey drive. The mice around here would agree with you, if they were alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxagirl Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Not Boxers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staranais Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Haha, now we're getting into the type of discussion that usually makes me very unpopular. So for now I'll just say that I'm talking about actual hunting, as in, the dog sees/smells a prey animal (whatever it was bred to hunt) and goes after it. I'm talking about the speed and tenacity the dog will display in going after the prey animal. My little Vall shows a lot of speed and tenacity for a tug toy, but loses interest in the house mice that lurk around the rabbit food the moment they go out of sight. So for the purposes of the discussion, he would have rubbish prey drive. In that case, I'd say terrier or sighthound. Although I've never seen my malinois move faster than the day she found a rat in the house! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafhafa Hounds Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Agree with Alyosha that in individual sighthound breeds you have a lot of variation and with any sighthound breed there's a risk of getting a serious hunter in your backyard. Taken as a whole tho', I think PF is probably right about Salukis. Not a breed to buy if you can't handle scrubbing blood off the carpet because you forgot to shut the back door. Can't comment on the terriers, but also agree with Aidan that it would be hard to usefully compare a terrier with a sighthound. The tenacity and drive is expressed in different ways. DITTO!! Having both Salukis and a JRT I can confirm that BOTH breeds have very high prey drive - and (have to disagree, SS Magpie!) not really expressed in different ways either. The Salukis are faster than the JR, sure - they have waaay longer legs, but for sheer tenacity in the face of insurmountable odds, the JR wins paws down!! He'd go after a moose (if we had them in Oz!!). My Saluki bitch is rarely let off-lead anymore, since an encounter with a giant jumping rat (kangaroo) left her slightly damaged, but howling for more! (BITCH!) She has much higher prey drive than my boy dog, but he's caught & despatched his fair share of rabbits/hares. Sonia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafhafa Hounds Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 OK- are those dogs out there with high prey drive triggered by the sight or scent of the prey, d'you think? Salukis - sight takes greater importance during the chase (sighthounds, afterall), but I watch them scenting the air as we walk along the edge of the sand dune on the beach - they're smelling for roos, for sure! The JRT is activated by scent, then movement, based on my observations of my Tom. My Tenterfields have been good little mousers in their younger days too. My female sniffed first, then chased & killed when she ferreted one out. Sonia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkySoaringMagpie Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Having both Salukis and a JRT I can confirm that BOTH breeds have very high prey drive - and (have to disagree, SS Magpie!) not really expressed in different ways either. The Salukis are faster than the JR, sure - they have waaay longer legs, but for sheer tenacity in the face of insurmountable odds, the JR wins paws down!! He'd go after a moose (if we had them in Oz!!). Sounds like you have a winner Corvus! JRTs it is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkySoaringMagpie Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Yes... Tell me about it... My daughter's pet ferret escaped her cage one day last week... It took Sonya all of about 2 seconds to dispatch her once she squeezed through the fence into the backyard... The other two borzoi were on the other side of the yard "That's off limits - we're not involved in touching it! Not us, no way!" That must have been upsetting. I can imagine Boris and Ursie trying to be as far away from the crime scene as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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