Drever puppies

About the Drever

The Drever is a Swedish scent hound bred down from a German dachsbracke to trail and drive deer slowly enough for a hunter to get ahead of them. It is a low, long bodied hound on short straight legs, with a short weatherproof coat, usually tricolour or tan with white markings. Drevers are cheerful and even tempered, easy in company, and rate at the top of the scale for both children and other pets. They are also loud, which is exactly what they were bred to be.

A Drever needs daily activity, walks, hiking, running alongside a bike, and above all something to follow with its nose. Give it tracking or barn hunt work and it will settle on the sofa happily afterwards. Grooming is minimal, an occasional brush and bath. Two things catch owners out: the voice, which carries a long way and cannot really be trained away, and the nose, which will take an untested recall straight over the horizon.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Drever puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A medium breed puppy at eight weeks is a manageable armful that will not stay that way. Most of the growth happens between now and six months, so buy for the adult dog where you can. This is a high energy breed. At eight weeks that shows up as intensity rather than stamina, and it will need a job to do long before it needs long walks. Grooming is straightforward, but start handling the coat, feet and ears in week one anyway so it is never a fight later. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything it meets calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of its life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Intervertebral disc disease, which the long back and short legs predispose to and which is diagnosed on imaging
• Hip dysplasia, screened by x-ray evaluation of breeding stock
• Ear infections in the low hanging ears, caught by regular ear checks
• Weight gain, which loads the spine and is managed by measuring meals

From Drever breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/drever/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Your Drever puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Medium for a Drever.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 15.9 to 18.1 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Other medium breeds

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