The History Of Greyhounds

It’s  hard to picture any greyhound, as we know them, roaching on the sofa  and sleeping all day long with all the energy of a snail ever being used  for hunting…although it isn’t hard to imagine them being revered.

Greyhounds  have a certain mindset, one where they believe themselves royalty and  we are but their toast-providing servants!  But this is most likely in  relation to the fact that Sighthounds are amongst the most ancient of  dog breeds and one of the few that have had their physical appearance  almost completely unchanged through the course of history.

Imagery  of sighthound-like silhouettes; large, long-nosed, long-legged, and  curled tailed dogs have been found in archaeological dig sites dating  back over 8000 years in which all sighthounds today descended from.   Though while they have a rich history, across countless countries and  cultures, the exact origins are still of great debate!

Sighthounds,  which are otherwise known as Gazehounds, include a wide range of breeds  with greyhounds amongst the most well-known.  Salukis, Borzoi,  Whippets, Afgans, Deer and Wolfhounds…the list goes on, but they are not  as frequently seen or recognised by the average passerby.  Sighthounds  have overcome a lot of trials and tribulations over their vast history,  with Greyhounds and Italian Greyhounds overcoming near extinction at  different times.  The Italians, of which in recent years have massively  increased in popularity due to social media, had a near miss in the  period between WW1 and WW2 with the traditional Greyhound going through  the same.  

Thankfully, they were all saved and preserved, rewarding us with the beautiful companions we have today!

Though what is so special about Sighthounds that has ensured their vast and prominent place across history?

Sighthounds  are unique within the dog world.  They hunt solely by sight, and speed,  rather than scent.  With narrow heads and wide set eyes, they have a  phenomenal 270-degree vision that sports both an incredible long  distance and peripheral vision.  This adaptation works best in  identifying movement, clearly, up to half a mile away.  If their prey  moves, even the tiniest bit, they’re off and chasing!

Their  remarkable speed, agile nature, and sight, to which they still have  today, means that Sighthounds held a prominent place alongside humans  over the years for their hunting abilities.

With  sighthounds depicted in art, dating back to a time before Ancient  Egypt, it is of no surprise that the Greyhound is the only dog breed to  be mentioned in the Bible!  But it isn’t just the Middle East that holds  evidence of Sighthounds.  They appear in both Greek and Roman mythology  and have been revered across numerous cultures!  Forever immortalised  in paintings, tapestries, pottery and more…including well known  literatures by that of Shakespeare and Chaucer.

Greyhounds,  in particular, have been the treasured possessions amongst royalty,  such as Queen Victoria and King Henry VIII, as well as other nobility  through the ages, it isn’t too hard to understand why they consider  themselves so self-important!

Dogs  have been looked down on throughout history, particularly in certain  cultures and times such as the Middle Ages.  However, sighthounds were  always held to a higher standard and maintained their place as highly  valued hunting dogs.  For a time, only nobility was allowed to have  sighthounds, particularly greyhounds, but relaxation of these  restrictions meant that their popularity amongst the middle class  increased.  They began to be bred more openly, and were used in hunting,  agriculture and land clearance increasing.  This led to the popularity  of sporting coursing with sighthounds (particularly greyhounds) as a  pastime within the Tudor time English, a sport that has continued to  present day.

It wasn’t long  before the first coursing club opened to the public in 1776 with the  popularity of the sport booming well into the 1800s for both greyhound  and whippet events.  Coursing became big business and with the  introduction of registered events, the Greyhound Stud Book was created  and duplicated by similar publications in other countries.

In  the late 1800s, due to their hunting skills, greyhounds were imported  to the United States to help control the jackrabbit populations in the  west.  As in England, coursing events soon developed and the increasing  popularity of the sport lead to the invention of the mechanical lure in  1919 that was used to establish greyhound track racing.

Once  the first greyhound tracks opened using this system opened, it didn’t  take long for oval racetracks to appear all over the country.  With the  development of this new betting sport, a dramatic increase in popularity  across the 1920s and 30s sent the oval tracks, and the sport,  worldwide.

Though with the  development of the sport, there was an unexpected impact on greyhounds  as a breed.  It greatly reduced their status and desirability as pets as  it became assumed that they were aggressive, highly strung, and too  energetic to be domesticated or considered appropriate family pets.   This saw a large decrease in popularity as pets for a long time, a stark  difference to previous years.

Despite  the impact on their image as pets, the popularity of the sport was  unfazed at the time.  However, the height of its popularity was short  lived with it’s decline beginning in the 60s.  While there are  significantly less tracks in the UK, with only 21 active and registered  stadiums, it is a sport enjoyed by many, but condemned by others.   Greyhound racing has become a controversial subject, but due to large  changes in the racing industry to ensure the future of every greyhound,  large scale adoption campaigns, and through the help of social media,  the imagine of those ‘aggressive, highly strung and too energetic’  greyhounds in the early 1900s was turned around.

This  has led to greyhounds being the most recognised and commonly owned  sighthound breed…which is probably why you have one on your sofa right  now!

Most sighthounds, greyhounds  particularly, are lazy, passive, adaptable, friendly (if a bit over  affectionate at times) and do well in a variety of home situations. They  are excellent family pets, often living well with children and other  breeds...sometimes other species.

The  various sighthound breeds have been refined through breeding, so their  temperaments are more desirable as pets! From whippets to wolfhounds,  greyhounds and Italians, sighthounds are magnificent dogs with a rich  and diverse history...but through it all, we know that from their first  appearance in history they have been loyally beside us humans.