MyDogBreeds
Hovawart is originated from Germany but Lurcher is originated from United Kingdom. Both Hovawart and Lurcher are having almost same height. Hovawart may weigh 19 kg / 42 pounds more than Lurcher. Both Hovawart and Lurcher has almost same life span. Both Hovawart and Lurcher has same litter size. Both Hovawart and Lurcher requires Low maintenance.
The Hovawart, is a German Black Forest breed developed as a guard dog for large estates in the medieval era. They first appeared in history in the early 13th century as heroes who saved the German son of a castle lord, despite being injured themselves. The boy they saved grew up to be a German legend. He wrote the oldest German code of law that remained from medieval times. In it he names the Hovawarts as a dog that if you are responsible for hurting, stealing or killing it, you must pay for it or replace it. No other dog had this protection.
In the late fifteenth century Hovawarts were featured in Heinrich Mynsinger’s “The Five Noble Breeds”. This guard dog breed was esteemed on a level with the hunting dogs – their health a question of life or death for their owner. In the 1500’s the popularity of the breed began to fade. The GSD or German Shepard Dog began to replace the Hovawarts as the preferred guard dog.
By the early 20th century the breed had almost disappeared but were saved by breed enthusiasts in the early 1900’s. Zoologist Kurt Konig was prominent in this effort and went looking in the Black Forest area for dogs working on farms. Using the dogs, he found on these farms, Konig began a breeding program crossing the them with Newfoundland’s, Kuvazoks, Leonbergers, GSD, an African hunting dogs and Bernese Mountain Dogs.
By 1922 the first litter of these pups was entered officially into the German Breeding Registry. In 1937 the Hovawart was recognized by the German Kennel Club. However, many members of the breed died in World War II as they were used widely by the military and not many were left by 1945. Once again breed enthusiasts came to the rescue forming a Coburg Hovawart club. This club still exists and in 1964, for the second time, the breed was recognized by the German Kennel Club. Other countries also began to take notice of this working breed.
The Hovawart has many skills in addition hunting and guarding. The Hovawart does not work for people, he works with them as he is a very independent thinker. He is also good at search and rescue and tracking. An owner of this breed must be stronger, smarter, more alert, intentional and consistent than his Hovawart. These are not dogs for the faint of heart or first-timers.
The Lurcher is a crossbreed dog that doesn’t seem to have too much certainty around it. There are stories that Lurchers may have been bred to produce a sighthound with more intelligence for hunting.
Hunters discovered that breeding certain breeds with sight-hounds produced a dog better suited for hunting and working purpose.
A Lurcher is a sighthound, a classic working crossbreed and some of the dogs used to bring about this breed were Greyhounds, Deerhounds, Whippets, Border Collies, Bedlington Terriers and Irish Wofhounds among others. This means that the Lurcher has many different looks as well. In the UK, Lurchers have their own shows, but no registry recognizes the dog.
The Hovawart is a proud and majestic dog and his looks match his character. He looks a bit like the Golden Retriever with a powerful and broad forehead. His skull and muzzle are the same length and his nose is black. His oval eyes are a medium to dark brown and his ears are high set and triangular.
Their chests are strong, broad and deep. The breed has strong legs straight in front with round, strong and compact feet. They are heavy boned with dense, long coats that lie flat and have a slight wave to them. The coat can be black and gold, blond or black.
It is difficult to put a size and weight to the Lurcher, This is because of the many dogs used in his development, so that they vary in size and coat type. Generally though, he is a deep chested dog that stands roughly between 50 – 75cm and weighs 25 – 32kg.
However, because Whippet was a dog used in his development, he could be as small as a Whippet, the size of a Greyhound or Deerhound.
Generally he has a shortish coat. Colours of the coat vary greatly so you can find fawn, cream, white, grey, black, tan, silver or grey and bi-colored. The ears are usually small and can be floppy or held erect or back and the tail is usually long.
The Lurcher’s temperament is much like that of the sighthound – loving and calm. It is a good idea to have the Lurcher trained and socialized to help prevent both timidity or aggression.
He is an independent and intelligent dog and can be easily trained. He is a gentle dog and will get on well with children and pets in the home as he is a fairly relaxed breed with a quiet temperament, loving to spend time with his human family. Another advantage is that he is low maintenance and makes a great pet when shown love and care.
They have a great sense of smell and a well-balanced personality.
They are not indoor dogs and should have a yard to run in. They do not tolerate hot weather well. They do great out in the country.
They are intelligent independent thinkers. They lengths well with positive reinforcement.
The Lurcher is a working- and hunting dog that won’t do well in the city, as he requires large spaces to run.
He is a dog that will need you to provide him with games and other activities as well as a walk every day to keep him fit and lithe. He will therefore require an owner who loves to be active and who is consistent, firm, fair, patient and kind.
With the right human family, the Lurcher is a loving, devoted dog who will make an excellent family pet.
Though their isolation protected them from genetic health issues for centuries, once they were being rejuvenated and mixed with other breeds some common issues began to show up. These include:
Every dog has the potential to develop genetic health problems, but the way you feed a dog and look after it will play a huge role in his wellbeing.
Lurchers are looked upon as being a pretty healthy dog breed and they can be with you for between 10 and 15 years.
Some of the main health concerns with this dog would be bloat, ear- and eye infections or heatstroke.
Remember that if you’re getting a new puppy, you can prevent some of the major life-threatening diseases by having your puppy vaccinated.
Dogs pant heavily when they’re hot. When the panting isn’t enough, the dog’s body temperature rises and this can be fatal for your pet.
The signs of heatstroke in dogs include vomiting, diarrhea, dullness and loss of consciousness. Being locked in a hot car, being over-exercised or left in a yard without shade and water can bring on heatstroke.
It is imperative to remove the dog from the hot place immediately and cool him down by spraying cold water gently over him while making sure no water enters the mouth or nose. Get him to the vet if you can because of shock and the fact that other problems could have developed.
Feed breed specific high quality dry food for puppies. Feed 1-2 cups in 3-4 meals per day
Again Feed breed specific high quality dry food for adults. Feed 2-3 cups per day in 1-2 meals per day.
Points for Good Health – Stamina
The Hovawart needs plenty of exercise. Remember this is a mountain farm dog used to working all the time. Walk or jog with them daily. They can excel at field trials, obedience, search and rescue, agility, flyball, therapy dog, and service dog.
Brush your pet’s coat at least twice a week.
The Lurcher just loves to run and be free, so this is a dog that will want a long walk every day.
Check his eyes and inside his ears for ear infection. Find out how to clean inside the ears and make sure they are kept dry.
Keep his nails clipped, as long nails can hook and cause painful injury to the paw area. Check his teeth too and brush them because dental disease is the root cause of many other diseases.
Make sure your dog has a comfy, dry, warm place to sleep.
Encourage health and longevity by giving your pet high quality food full of vitamins and minerals. If you’re going be giving him commercially manufactured food, make sure its one of the better ones. Try and add in homemade food such as boiled chicken, brown rice and vegetables and add this to his kibble as a tasty treat. Some raw meat added in when you can afford it will also be to his advantage.