|
|
|
Lure-coursing in France |
|
|
Lure-coursing in France involves setting the dogs onto an artificial lure which usually consists of strips of plasticized ribbon attached to the end of a line and pulled around the course by some sort of motor (driven by battery, petrol engine, or even mains electricity). The course itself can vary in length from 250 metres up to over 1 kilometre, although Sloughis are distance runners as opposed to sprinters (hence the lean flat muscles and thin bony outline) and only really get going on longer courses.
|
In the above photo, the judge and person controlling the lure are on top of the shed in order to have a good view of the terrain, while the motor is on the ground to the left. |
|
|
The general idea is for the course
to resemble the trajectory taken by an imaginary hare, i.e. with
several straights and turns and usually some sort of obstacle, such
as a bank, low fence, stream, etc.
|
|
One of the best ways to get a young Sloughi interested in the lure is to let it practise and play with a lure tied around a nice smelly piece of rabbit skin (road kill for example).
|
|
|
|
Dogs are slipped by their owners at the start - collars and leads are removed in advance and it can sometimes be quite difficult restraining some of the more enthusiastic competitors!
|
|
Each dog will have 2 runs during the day, usually matched against a different dog for each heat. The dogs wear different coloured jackets or collars (usually red and blue) and are judged by points allocated for their keenness, speed, dexterity, stamina, their ability to get past obstacles and, finally, their capture of the lure. |
|
|
At the end of the race, points are also awarded for the "capture" of the lure - with top points if the dog throws itself bodily onto it (known as brassok).
Care is needed now in case one of the dogs gets a bit heated over "ownership" of the lure.
|
|
Once all the dogs have run their two races, the scores allocated by the judge to each dog are totted up and the overall winner and other placings are announced. (It's not always quite as stylish as it might seem in the photos below - this was the French lure-coursing championship 2006 so it was a bit special!)
I'm not sure whether it's the Sloughis or their owners who have the most fun!! |
|
|
Rules for competing in France In order to compete in official lure-coursing events, French dogs first need to be registered with the French Kennel Club (SCC), to have been "confirmed" by a breed judge as conforming to the standard for the breed, and to have passed the "Brevet de Poursuite à Vue sur Leurre (BVP)" (certificate for lure-coursing) which, after the appropriate evaluation and test runs, is usually awarded by the local training club to which the owner should belong. This then leads to attribution by the French SCC of the "Carnet de Travail de Poursuite à Vue sur Leurre" (lure-coursing work book) in which will be recorded information such as the date and result of taking the "Brevet" and the results and comments for every race in which the dog has run. Foreign dogs belonging to foreign owners may take part in official lure-coursing events in France provided they are in possession of an international licence for racing or coursing. If this document is not available (for example in a country without a recognised international organisation on racing/coursing), sighthounds belonging to owners who are not French residents need to be registered with their country's official canine registration body/kennel club, to have obtained the "Brevet" in France and to be in possession of a "Carnet de Travail" issued by the French SCC. The CACP (Certificat d’Aptitude au Championnat de Poursuite) and RCAP are awarded in national events to the winning sighthound, male and/or female depending on number of entries, in each breed provided the dogs have gained a minimum of 25 points. There are also a number of international lure-coursing events for which the CACIL (Certificat d'Aptitude au Championnat International du Lévrier) and RCACIL may be awarded. The maximum number of points that can be allocated to a sighthound during a lure-coursing event is 33, after adding together the scores from the 1st and 2nd heats.
Speed
.................... 2 + 2 = 4 BONUS................... + 2 Total ....................... = 33 PENALTY ............... - 1
|
|
.jpg)
