Breed Name: Greyhound, English Greyhound

• PO Box 543, Abilene Kansas, 67410,
• 913 263 4660
• NGA Home Page
• e-mailmailto:nga@jc.net
• Adopt a Greyhound the National Greyhound Council greyhound adoption information site.

• Corres. Secretary,Margaret Bryson, 15079 Meeting House Ln., Montpelier, VA 23192
• Breeder Contact,Margaret Bryson, 15079 Meeting House Ln., Montpelier, VA 23192 (804)883-7800
• Rescue (AKC registered dogs):Greyhound Club of America Cheryl Reynolds, (805)684-4914, California
  Lois Bires, (412)935-3276, Pennsylvania
  

• NGA registered dogs - these are the greyhounds used in the United States in "professional" racing - that is racing with pari-mutual betting.
• National Oval Track Racing Association (NOTRA) - amateur - no betting oval track racing.
• Large Gazehound Racing Association (LGRA) amateur - no betting straight track racing.
• American Sighthound Field Association (ASFA)
• National Open Field Coursing Association (NOFCA)
• North American Coursing Association (NACA)

Breed Description:

• Original purpose and special abilities:

  A dog for high speed pursuit of sighted game in open country (coursing). These dogs possess great speed. Used to course small to medium sized quarry: fox, hare, coyote.

Breed History:

As with other windhounds, fanciers attempt to trace greyhounds back to those slender hunting dogs depicted by the Ancient Egyptians in their tomb paintings. There is good documentation for the folded ear (rose ear) greyhound in Europe from the middle ages on. They were traditionally associated with the hunting sports of the nobility.

The breed was fairly popular in England in the 19th century and was used in the sport of open field coursing as well as participating in first dog shows. When track racing was introduced in the 20th century a schism appeared in the breed between the animals maintained primarily for show and those that were raced and coursed. Separate studbooks are maintained for the racing and coursing dogs in the United Kingdom and the United States. World wide there are many more dogs registered with the racing registries than with the show registries (36,000 NGA registered dogs in 1996 as compared with 220 AKC registered dogs, for example).

At this time racing registered greyhounds can be registered with the AKC and other show registries as the breed is still reguarded as a single breed. With their very small gene pool the AKC registered dog population might suffer in the long run if the breed was officially 'split' and the AKC studbook closed to NGA originated dogs.

• AKC - 1996 - 218 individual registrations.
• NGA - 1996 - 28,719 individual registrations.

• Weight (AKC breed standard) 65 to 70 (pounds): (dogs); 60 to 65 (bitches)
  
• Height 25 to 29 (inches): (dogs); 24 to 27 (bitches)
  
• Among racing fanciers little attention is paid to height and the AKC breed standard does not list height. Racing greyhounds tend to be a bit shorter and broader for any given weight than the show dogs. However weight, which definately affects performance, is recorded in advertisements for performance dog studs and discussed in the AKC breed standard.

  In the 1890's advertisements for American bred coursing greyhound sires listed weights runing from 55 to 65 lbs. In 1997 dogs advertised in the NGA Sires book range from 55 to 85 lbs, averaging 65 lbs.

• Eye color: Dark, bright and intelligent. (AKC standard)
• Lips: tight
• Ear type:

  Rose (folded) ears, small in size and when unfolded, triangular in shape. Emphasis is put on ear form because a major cosmetic trait distinguishing the windhounds is in the form of the ear. Breeders who empahsize the conformation ring are quite intolerant of dogs with stiff upstanding ears.

• Disqualifications: Breed disqualifications can lead to a dog be offered as a pet animal. One should never pay more for a dog with breed disqualifications because it is rare or unusual!
  • There are no breed specific disqualifications in the AKC Greyhound standard.
  • In most registries absence of two apparentlu normal, fully descended testicles in the scrotum in males is a general conformational disqualification.
• Cosmetic Surgeries (to establish 'breed look') None
• Color:

  Both solid and piebald color, with or without black mask; with or without black mantle (overlay). Red, fawn, cream, with or without black overlay. Black and blue dilution of black. Brindle of all colors. Eye rims, lips, nose can be quite dark to black. Black and tan is not found, neither is merle. Piebald greyhounds may be so extensive in their white markings that the base color of the dog is apparent only on the ears or in the ticking and flecking on the white coat.

• Coat Type:

  The coat is soft, very short, and dense, the skin is fine and tight. Dogs habituated to snowey winter weather will develop a thick soft winter coat rather like moleskin. When this sheds in the summer the dog appears quite moth eaten for a while. People desiring to keep the shiny short coat typically seen in show greyhounds need to blanket them in cold weather to prevent the growth of the short double layered winter coat.

• Temperament:

  Correct appreciation of the temperament of greyhounds is of major importance because of the highly successful retired racing greyhound adoption programs in the United States. Adoption organizations do a fairly good job of educating the adopting public as to the personality of these dogs. They also screen the adoptees to eliminate obviously psychotic animals.

  Although there is a range of temperaments in greyhounds, these dogs typically have the western windhound type personality. They are friendly and fairly outgoing and can adapt to new ownership situations without much difficulty. They are, however, hunting dogs and can become quite focused on the capture of small animals that they perceive as legitimate game. Up to three or four dogs generally get along well as a social unit but when their numbers get greater, great care needs to be taken that the pack does not decide to severely pursecute one member (called "packing up" or "mobbing"). There is a real reason why greyhounds turned out to exercise in large numbers wear turn out muzzles.

  As with many hunting breeds strongly selected for a specific quarry, these dogs, even when strongly focused on hunting are relatively unlikely to be aggressive to humans. Care should be taken with them around infants and small children, who are sometimes not recognized as human by the dog due to the child's high pitched voice and rapid, erratic motions.

  As with other windhound breeds they "get along well with children taught to respect them." (direct quote of Dominique Crapon de Caprona, Ph.D.'s excellent article relating to Sloughis". However it is important to remember that the emphasis is on children taught to respect them. This means the dog behaves in a safe fashion when in the presence of children who do not tease or mistreat it. This does not mean that the parent can allow the child to manhandle the dog as if it was a stuffed toy.

• Special Requirements:

  These are coursing hounds and require adequate exercise. They will use a crate as a personal cave. Retired racers will tolerate crating as a means of housing for fairly long periods of time. However anyone contemplating ownership of a large dog who finds that they need to crate the animal more than 10 hours in 24 should reconsider owning the animal.

  Greyhounds are a short coated breed and must be provided with warm shelter in cold weather. As a guideline my greyhounds are generally happy to be outside in the daytime hours in eastern Maryland during the winter. They will put on a dense winter moleskin type coat in temperatures below 40 degrees F. However they must have sleeping quarters that are above freezing. Greyhounds exposed to very cold weather without a warm retreat can develop frostbite of the ears in winter climates in such places as Massachusetts. During cold weather they are happy to play and run in the cold, but they must have resting areas that are maintained above freezing temperatures.

• Typical Competitive Activities for this Breed:

  All forms of windhound field sports: Lure coursing, NOTRA racing. LGRA racing, open field coursing.

  Among the windhounds, the greyhound has a stronger level of food treat motivation than breeds such as Borzoi and Saluki. However individuals can still show stress anorexia. Obedience work is pleasant and quite possible with them but a patient instructor who knows how to motivate dogs that (1) do not readily take food rewards and (2) that become inhibited by rough corrections - is needed. They love being petted and massaged so vocal praise can be associated with petting episodes in much the same manner as it is linked with food rewards in more typical operant conditioning training techniques.

• Genetic problems commonly encountered in this breed:

  This is a healthy breed. Racing greyhounds are unique as the breeding programs of the NGA breeders concentrate on dogs that have had a successful racing career. Many dogs and bitches are not bred until they are over 4 years of age. In addition they are strongly selected for physical fitness and vigor. This phenomenon of selection of breeding stock almost exclusively from successful atheletes is quite different from the norm in pure bred dog breeding.

  Normal sized, muscular animals are unlikely to have hip dysplasia. Bloat is rare. Older dogs may be prone to kidney failure. These dogs may be quite sensitive to toxins, pesticides and anesthesia so care needs to be taken in applying general pesticides to them. Seek out a veterinarian with experience with greyhounds and other sighthounds.

  The AKC registered show bred greyhounds are also resistant to hip dysplasia and generally long lived.

• Non-genetic health problems commonly encountered in this breed:

  Greyhounds are prone to an number of traumatic injuries associated with the high speeds they can achieve. Animals running full speed on rough terrane frequently injure toes (not life threatening) and inexperienced owners must seek out knowledgable advisors on proper techniques of conditioning if the dogs are going to be lure coursed.

• Breed Pluses:

  A healthy breed with little odor and few reported inherited problems. They are more outgoing than the oriental windhounds. However people whose dog owning experience has been with sporting breeds will still find, in many cases, them to be a bit stand-offish or distantly friendly. As with other windhounds these are not dogs for people who feel a dog should be free to roam at will, they have to be carefully introduced to small, scurrying pets. In general they are relatively long lived (12 to 16 years) for their size.

  They are lovely to look at and are generally clean as house dogs. Puppies and adolescents can be very destructive, the adult retired racers are used to quiet time in the crate. Some can be vocal watch dogs and afford a sense of security.

• Breed Minuses:

  They like to chase things. However they are more likely to find their way home if they get out by accident than some of the other sighthound breeds. In large numbers (ie more than 4 or 5) they can be prone to "packing up" (mass attacks on a single underdog). When frustrated and confined they can be destructive chewers.

  As with other windhounds, these are hunting dogs with a full set of hunting dog instincts. While protective of the home they do not feel a strong sense of property boundaries. They need protection from cold.

• Who should own this breed?

  People who are willing to understand and enjoy the nature of sighthounds. Along with the whippet this breed is a good beginner windhound breed for a person new to sighthounds. People who own cats and appreciate the independence of the cat often find windhounds quite pleasant to own. However any dog needs training and socialization into the household social order at a much higher level than a cat, a dog cannot be allowed to just grow up.

• Who should not own this breed? People who expect a high degree of obedience and compliance to rules will find them frustrating to own. People who have problems owning a hunting breed of dog with the need for adequate fencing and supervision in unfenced areas will be dissatified because the dog is always running away to hunt.
• Esthetic Defiencies: Often these are also the breed disqualifications and are legitimate reasons for a dog to be sold at a pet price on a 'neuter contract'. These should not detract from the health of the dog or its suitability as a pet.
  • Tail Deformed tail, spitz type high curled tail carriage.
  • Eyes Very light, staring eyes or blue eyes.
  • Ears Ears habitually carried erect or hanging by the side of the head.
  • Dentition Undershot or overshot occlusion or many missing teeth.
• Do not buy a puppy that is 'sold as a pet because it' is/has:
  • It is excessively fearful or excessively aggressive.
  • It has a really exaggerated posture - front feet flat on the ground to the stop pad, hind feet flat on the ground.
  • Chronic lameness is a 2 to 5 month old puppy.
  • The unhealthy scrawny pup in the litter. This pup may have any one of a number of life treatening congenital illnesses such as a major heart anomaly, pancreatitus, severe food sensitivities.
  • An extremely large puppy for its age with very large, tender or hot to the touch "growth knobs" at the wrists and ankles. Very rapidly growing puppies are much more likely to have joint problems later in life. This is in part a management problem. These dogs can be feed to rich a diet as pups and pushed to grow too rapidly. Too rapid growth is generally an error made by novice owners and breeders.
  • A pup from an excessively inbred litter.

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  Articles of related interest:

  About Windhounds

• Author (ie person to flame if you take exception to this breed description) - Bonnie Dalzell