You hold on to your quivering hound tightly, awaiting the “Tally-Ho!” from the huntmaster. Straining and leaping, your dog fights to be free and then explodes after the fleeing quarry when you finally release her. She and her two running mates gain on the quarry, until it suddenly changes direction and leaves them slamming on brakes and scrambling to turn and catch up.  Straight-aways, turns, acceleration, braking, the course continues until they finally turn back toward you. Now you can feel the ground rumbling under their pounding feet with each giant stride and see the excitement on their faces. As the object of the chase slows the dogs snatch it triumphantly, every bit as proud as though they had filled the pot for a feast. Of course, the catch won’t be very nutritious: It’s simply a white plastic garbage bag.

Lure-coursing
At its simplest the lure course consists of a lure (usually a white plastic garbage bag) dragged in a zig-zagging pattern to simulate the movements of a fleeing hare. The lure is pulled around a field by means of a long line strung around a series of pulleys, with its speed controlled by a lure-operator. Typical lure courses run between 600 to 1400 yards, but are occasionally longer. Salukis are not dumb; they realize the lure is not a real hare. Their instinct to chase is so strong that they nonetheless usually choose to play the game and pursue the plastic.  Contrary to popular belief, training with live hares does not increase their enthusiasm for lure coursing; in fact, sampling the real thing is just as likely to dampen enthusiasm for the lure.  Salukis chase the lure for one simple reason: It’s fun!

Although lure coursing comes naturally to many salukis, you can do a few things to help prepare your prospective runner.  The pole lure, which you can make by hanging a lure (a white plastic bag, rag, or fur piece) from a pole by a string, is great for introducing youngsters to the lure in your own backyard. A long horse lunging whip makes an even better pole lure. Even if you never plan to lure course or don’t even have a sighthound, the pole lure provides a fun game and good exercise.  Run around erratically letting your dog chase the lure, but don’t make it too easy and be sure to quit while your dog still wants more¾and be sure to do it when your neighbors aren’t home to witness yet another weird doggy event in your yard. 

Your dog will eventually need to do more than run in circles around you, so the next step is to practice on a real lure course. Taking your dog to a lure coursing practice introduces her to chasing the lure at higher speed, around turns, and with distractions.  Once your dog is hot after the lure, you will want to let her practice running the lure alongside other hounds. Before your saluki can compete with other hounds, she needs to demonstrate her ability to chase the lure while running alone. 

Both the American Kennel Club (AKC) and the American Sighthound Field Association (ASFA) sponsor lure coursing trials, with only slightly different rules and scoring.  Both require your dog to demonstrate that she has sufficient interest in chasing the lure before being allowed to run in actual competition. For AKC trials, this means earning the Junior Courser title. For ASFA trials dogs need to be pre-qualified by demonstrating they run cleanly with another dog, neither interfering with nor chasing their running mate.  Dogs in competition run in either braces or trios; a dog that interferes or fights with other dogs is not welcome on the field!

Dogs need more than blistering speed to win at lure coursing. Competitors are judged on their speed, agility, endurance, follow of the lure, and overall ability or enthusiasm.  Unlike open field coursing, dogs can’t force the lure to turn, but some still try to hedge their bets about which way the lure will go.  A little anticipation shows the dog is using its brain, but wild haphazard guessing about where the lure may be headed is frowned upon and will result in a lower score from lack of following. 

Safe and Sound
No matter how keen you and your hound are about the idea of coursing or racing, you won’t be doing either of you any favor by embarking upon a day in the field without being fully prepared. Coursing probably burns more calories per second than any other canine activity. Exhausted or overtaxed muscles don’t pull their own weight, putting your dog at risk of injury. Successful coursing dogs are supremely conditioned athletes; to run an unconditioned dog not only puts you out of the ribbons, but robs your dog of the enjoyment of running her best.

Older dogs, and especially dogs with old injuries, should be thoroughly examined by a veterinarian before beginning conditioning. Puppies should never be run except for very short bursts, since they can injure growing joints and bones. Once you release your dog on a course she will not run at half speed or run half way; she will run full out until she can give no more. Make sure your dog is physically fit and sound or do not run your dog at all. 

At a lure coursing trial your dog will usually run at least twice, perhaps more in the event of ties, or if she wins and goes on to compete for Best of Breed and ultimately, Best in Field. Especially with an inexperienced dog, however, you should quit at any time your dog appears tired, overheated, sore, or lame.

Most lure courses are laid out in clear fields without obstructions, but some are laid out on hillsides or in the vicinity of trees. It is the responsibility of the club to design a course that is safe for all dogs, but it is ultimately your responsibility to express any safety concerns you may have. 

Coursing supplies are minimal, consisting mostly of things to keep you and your dog comfortable in either hot, cold, or wet weather. Competing dogs wear brightly colored yellow, pink, or blue coursing blankets so the judge can identify them from a distance. Dogs are released, or “slipped,” with a special slip-lead, a leash and collar combination that allows the dogs instant freedom simply by letting go of the strap with one hand.  You can always borrow a coursing blanket and a slip lead from somebody there, so don’t worry that you don’t have your own at first.  At first other competitors will be glad to lend you whatever you need, but don’t forget to bring your own water—and plenty of it. Bring water for both you and your dog to drink, and if possible, extra water and towels for cooling your dog.

Eventually a well-stocked first aid kit should go with you to every trial. In it should be bandages, gauze strips, sterile non-stick pads, stretchy roll tape (such as Vetrap), scissors, tweezers, a pen light, chemical ice packs, an anti-inflammatory ointment, sterile saline, a thermometer, a water mister, and towels. Somebody on the field should have a cellular phone and the number of the nearest emergency vet. 

Tally-Ho!
The sighthound breeds have been shaped by generations of selection for their running ability, and the standard of each breed reflects the emphasis on athletic endowment. The show ring can never test a dog’s speed, agility, determination, or courage¾qualities essential to the coursing hound.  By testing our salukis in both ring and field we can best keep alive the ideals upon which the breed was molded generations ago. The saluki is among the most beautiful and graceful of dogs, but its beauty is best appreciated in full stride. 
 

Titles
The AKC awards the suffix Junior Courser (JC) to dogs that demonstrate they can complete two courses running alone, the suffix Senior Courser (SC) to dogs that qualify running with competition at four trials, the suffix Master Courser (MC) to SC dogs that complete an additional 25 runs against competition. The prefix Field Champion (FC) is awarded to dogs that win against competition in a number of trials. 

The ASFA also awards a Field Champion (FCH) title, but as a suffix, for dogs that win over competition in several trials, and goes on to award the extremely competitive Lure Courser of Merit (LCM) suffix for continued success in the Field Champion stake. In fact, dogs can continue to rack up LCM points so that they can become LCM2, LCM3, and so on—so far the record is LCM14! 

Lure-coursing in Florida
Join us for some Florida lure-coursing sponsored by one of the following clubs: 

ASFA

• Apalachee Coursing Club, ACC, B. Elise Farrar, 5420 W. W. Kelly Rd., Tallahassee, FL 32311, 850-877-3565, yiilyiin2@earthlink.net
• Emerald Coast Coursing Hound Organization, ECCHO, Kathi Edwards, 3606 Phillips Lane, Panama City, FL, 32404, 850-747-9600
• Greater Ocala Gainesville L C Assn, GOGLC, Alice Vesely, 1016 Crystal Lake Rd., Lutz, FL, 33549, 813-949-6822
• Suwanee Valley Kennel Club, SVKC, Marion Ditter, 16248 115th Rd., McAlpin, FL, 32062-2316, 904-362-2017, mditter@suwanneevalley.net

• Greater Ocala-Gainesville Lure Coursing Association, Tamara S Gerace, 2420 SW 7TH Ave, Ocala, FL 34474-4507 
• Suwannee Valley Kennel Club of Florida, Marion Ditter, 16248 115TH Rd, Mcalpin, FL 32062-2316

• American Kennel Club lure coursing rules: http://www.akc.org/lure1.htm#13aC
• American Sighthound Field Association http://www.asfa.org/
• Large Gazehound Racing Association  www.lgra.org
• National Oval Track Racing Association http://www.notra.org

AKC Afield (covering all AKC field events)
5580 Centerview Drive, Ste. 200
Raleigh, N.C. 27606-3390
Subscription: $15 (6 issues per year)

ASFA Field Advisory News (FAN)
P.O. Box 399
Alpaugh, CA 93201
Subscription: $30 (6 issues per year)

NOFCA News
14781Holt Ave.
Tustin, CA92680
Subscription: $10 (3 issues per year)

The Gazehound Sprinter (LGRA)
P.O. Box 137
Cassville, NJ 08527-0137
Subscription: $15 (6 issues per year)