Primarily and essentially the Deerhound belongs to the order Agaseus, hunting by sight and not by scent, and although he may indeed occasionally put his nose to the ground, yet his powers of scent are not remarkable.  His vocation, therefore, has undergone a change, and it was recently ascertained that of sixty deer forests there were only six upon which Deerhounds were kept for sporting purposes.

Happily the Deerhound has suffered no decline in the favour bestowed upon him for his own sake.  The contrary is rather the case, and he is still an aristocrat among dogs, valued for his good looks, the symmetry of his form, his grace and elegance, and even more so for his faithful and affectionate nature.  Sir Walter Scott declared that he was “a most perfect creature of heaven,” and when one sees him represented in so beautiful a specimen of his noble race as St. Ronan’s Rhyme, for example, or Talisman, or Ayrshire, one is tempted to echo this high praise.

Seven-and-twenty years ago Captain Graham drew up a list of the most notable dogs of the last century.  Among these were Sir St. George Gore’s Gruim (1843-44), Black Bran (1850-51); the Marquis of Breadalbane’s King of the Forest, said to stand 33 inches high; Mr. Beaseley’s Alder (1863-67), bred by Sir John McNeill of Colonsay; Mr. Donald Cameron’s Torrum (1869), and his two sons Monzie and Young Torrum; and Mr. Dadley’s Hector, who was probably the best-bred dog living in the early eighties.  Torrum, however, appears to have been the most successful of these dogs at stud.  He was an exceedingly grand specimen of his race, strong framed, with plenty of hair of a blue brindle colour.  Captain Graham’s own dog Keildar, who had been trained for deerstalking in Windsor Park, was perhaps one of the most elegant and aristocratic-looking Deerhounds ever seen.  His full height was 30 inches, girth 33-1/2 inches, and weight, 95 lbs., his colour bluish fawn, slightly brindled, the muzzle and ears being blue.  His nearest competitor for perfection was, after Hector, probably Mr. Hood Wright’s Bevis, a darkish red brown brindle of about 29 inches.  Mr. Wright was the breeder of Champion Selwood Morven, who was the celebrity of his race about 1897, and who became the property of Mr. Harry Rawson.  This stately dog was a dark heather brindle, standing 32-3/8 inches at the shoulder, with a chest girth of 34-1/2 inches.

A few years ago breeders were inclined to mar the beauty of the Deerhound by a too anxious endeavour to obtain great size rather than to preserve the genuine type; but this error has been sufficiently corrected, with the result that symmetry and elegance conjoined with the desired attributes of speed are not sacrificed.  The qualities aimed at now are a height of something less than 30 inches, and a weight not greater than 105 lbs., with straight fore-legs and short, cat-like feet, a deep chest, with broad, powerful loins, slightly arched, and strength of hind-quarters, with well-bent stifles, and the hocks well let down.  Straight stifles are objectionable, giving a stilty appearance.  Thick shoulders are equally a blemish to be avoided, as also a too great heaviness of bone.  The following is the accepted standard of merit.