This picture shows a pair of deerhounds coursing a brown hare on the Fens in Lincolnshire, showing that better working deerhounds are catchers of brown hares, rather than just exercisers of this, the ultimate quarry. This hare has just been taken, but not all hares chased are killed. Organised hare coursing is more to do with the deerhounds scoring points, which are awarded for their ability against the hare.
This shows how during a course at an organised meeting, each deerhound gets their turn to show their ability. The white collard (Doxhope Ambecky) is now on the hare. Notice at the time when this photograph was taken, these hares are completely white in colour.
DOXHOPE AMBECKY, (Becky) is keeping this mountain hare off the fence well, hares often use items such as fences, walls, plantations etc as escape routes when being chased. These blue hares also make use of rabbit warrens and drainage pipes. Becky is a taker of hares rather than a courser, on many occaisions she has taken double figures of this type of hare in one days work. She was truely a remarkable working deerhound.
These 2 coursing deerhounds in Scotland are working their quarry well, the hare this time is a blue hare, (Lepus timidus scoticus). The ground is grass bordering onto heather, this stage suits the long loping stride of the deerhound.
Just one more stride and this hare will be taken by Gwen, Rosslin Fling. This bitch took at least one hare in every organised coursing competition she was ever entered in, she was one of the top deerhounds in the UK for the voloume of prey taken, this includes hares, rabbits, fox and roe deer.
This hare has the two deerhounds in a bit of a spin, but it does show that working deerhounds do possess an amount of turning ability and agility for such large dogs.
Gwen once again doing all the work on a course, and this hare is about to be hers
