Good point Ginger beard, Ive only had two first crossers, and to be fair, their far from being my ultimate lurcher, but, I was killing rabbits with them from nine months with the bitch, and 10 month with the dog I bred. I enter pure deerhounds at 10 months, they were coursing in organised hare coursing event at 15 months, as this was the rule of the Deerhound Coursing Club at the time..Ive never challenged any others on this misconception, as they may have seen more, or had more experience with the breed..