Lure Coursing Brief History & Facts

Waterloo Cup

Coursing has been a dog sport for more than two hundred years. We can thank Queen Victoria! She loved and supported the hare coursing over her reigns in the UK. The Waterloo Cup was held from 1836 to 2005 in Great Britain where attract tens of thousands of spectators to watch the greyhounds coursing (Ref. 1). The root is deep for dog fanciers towards their hobbies and the devotion to their beloved canine companion. I am indeed a passionate hound lovers and wish that LC remains around for another 200 years!

Hare Coursing is still strong in Ireland where I had the privilege to meet some of the top greyhound breeders and trainers.

Modern Lure Coursing

Hounds have a strong instinct to chase moving objects and often demonstrate a tremendous pleasure to engage in those pursuits. In the '70s, the modern LC meant to simulate the hunt of prey in an open field was developed where the hare was replaced by an artificial lure, i.e., a plastic bag. The length of the run was established to be over 600-1000 yards allowing the hound to demontraste all his/her hunting abilities such as speed, follow, agility, endurance and enthusiasm. The American Sighthound Field Association (ASFA) was then created (Ref. 2). Ten years later, trials began to be held in Canada under Canadian Kennel Club (CKC). The American Kennel Club (AKC) and the United Kennel Club (UKC) are also sanctioning bodies.

Lure Coursing in CANADA

In the late 1960's, Lyle Gillette and other coursing people developed (artificial) Lure Coursing in the United States. This was an approximation of Live Coursing. Intrigued by the development of formalized lure coursing in the western United States, Jeffrey and Heather Loube and an American friend drove from Victoria to Denver in the fall of 1975 to enter one of the Loube Afghan hounds in the first Grand National Lure Course. On their return to Canada, they placed a newspaper advertisement to see who else might be interested in forming a "lure coursing club" closer to home. Tony and Helena James, newly arrived from England with their Ringdove Whippets, and Deerhound owner,Clio Matheson, were among those who answered. A drag machine was built by a high school auto mechanics class whose teacher happened to own an Afghan Hound and a small group of enthusiasts began to meet regularly to practice a local park. https://www.csfa.info/