• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL KENNEL COUNCIL Extended Breed Standard of THE ITALIAN GREYHOUND Produced by Italian Greyhound Society of NSW Inc. in conjunction with The Australian National Kennel Council Standard adopted by Kennel Club London 1994 Standard adopted by ANKC 1994 FCI Standard No: 65 BSE adopted by the Club and ANKC 1998 Breed Standard Extension reconfirmed by ANKC 2008 Copyright Australian National Kennel Council 2008 Country of Origin — Italy Extended Standards are compiled purely for the purpose of training Australian judges and students of the breed. In order to comply with copyright requirements of authors, artists and photographers of material used, the contents must not be copied for commercial use or any other purpose. Under no circumstances may the Standard or Extended Standard be placed on the Internet without written permission of the ANKC. HISTORY OF THE BREED The name of the breed is a reference to the breed’s popularity in Renaissance Italy. Mummified dogs very similar to the Italian Greyhound (or small Greyhounds) have been found in Egypt, and pictorials of small Greyhounds have been found in Pompeii and they were probably the only accepted companion-dog there. As an amusing aside the expression ‘Cave Canem’ (Beware of the dog) was a warning to visitors, not that the dogs would attack but to beware of damaging, tripping over or stepping on the small dogs. Although the small dogs are mainly companionship dogs they have in fact been used for hunting purposes, often in combination with hunting rat or mice. The Italian Greyhound is the smallest of the family of gaze hounds (dogs that hunt by sight). The breed is an old one and is believed to have originated more than 4,000 years ago in the countries now known as Greece and Turkey. This belief is based on the depiction of miniature greyhounds in the early decorative arts of these countries and on the archaeological discovery of small greyhound skeletons. By the Middle Ages, the breed had become distributed throughout Southern Europe and was later a favorite of the Italians of the sixteenth century, among whom miniature dogs were in great demand. Sadly, though, ‘designer’ breeders tried, and failed, to make the breed even smaller by crossbreeding it with other breeds of dogs. This only lead to mutations with deformed skulls, bulging eyes and dental problems. The original Italian Greyhound had almost disappeared when groups of breeders got together and managed to return the breed to normal. It is due to its popularity in Italy that the breed became known as the “Italian Greyhound.” From this period onward the history of the breed can be fairly well traced as it spread through Europe, arriving in England in the seventeenth century during the reign of Charles 1. It was in England that the breed became a favorite of royalty and the privileged classes. The breed reached its zenith during the late Victorian period. During this period there were many big kennels throughout England and Scotland and the breed was introduced to the United States. The type of the Italian Greyhound has not changed greatly from earliest times down to the present, but like the majority of breeds, it has undergone considerable refinement. There have been many stories that attribute a sporting sense to the Italian Greyhound, but these are discredited by many who have known the breed. It is really a companion dog. It has maintained that station throughout its long history. Extended Breed Standard of the Italian Greyhound - Page 2 ! GENERAL APPEARANCE A greyhound in miniature, more slender in all proportions. “A greyhound in miniature” does not mean an exact small replica of an English Greyhound, nor is a scaled down Whippet in type, correct. The European Standard compares them to a Sloughi - a more refined greyhound with similar movement. The Italian Greyhound must be more refined than any other greyhound and not show any coarseness. Fig. 1 The correct outline with slight arch over the loin. Note the abrupt set–on of the neck, the balanced angulation fore and aft. The slight bulge of the neck above the pro–sternum. ! CHARACTERISTICS Elegant, graceful and quick moving. Although not mentioned here, the free-stepping gait is a most important breed characteristic. The Italian Greyhound is elegant and graceful without being weedy. Any signs of cloddiness or stockiness is not desirable. Quick moving means that they are extremely agile and fleet of foot but does not necessarily mean that the fastest around the ring is the best; those taking rapid, short, exaggerated, up and down steps are not correct. ! TEMPERAMENT Intelligent, affectionate and vivacious; may appear aloof. The Italian Greyhound has a typical sight hound temperament - they may show aloofness and may be reluctant to be handled by strangers, but not to the point of being overly shy. Extended Breed Standard of the Italian Greyhound - Page 3 ! HEAD AND SKULL Skull long, flat and narrow, slight stop. Muzzle fine and long. Nose dark in colour. Long does not mean the longer the better - the head should be in proportion to the dog. The skull and foreface should be approximately equal in length. From above it is a long wedge shape. In profile, skull and muzzle are on parallel planes with a slight stop. The widest part of the skull is at the zygomatic arch -and there is chiselling around the eyes to give a clear outlook which is a must for a sight hound. Chiselling below the eyes is not to be confused with a pinched and snipey muzzle. The underjaw should be strong yet fine. The nose extends beyond the jaw line to allow a good air intake. The skull may appear slightly domed when the ears are at rest with a slightly prominent occiput - however, when alert and the ears are roofed, the skull appears to flatten. A dark nose is usually taken to be a nose that is darker than the body colour. In pale fawns, a brown nose, and in blues, a slate nose is quite acceptable. Fig. 2 Typical heads. Note correct eyes and expression. ! EYES Rather large, bright and full of expression. Large does not mean protruding eyes - any bulginess of eyes ruins the typical Italian Greyhound expression as does a small slit- like eye which is most undesirable. In common with many sight hounds, the eye is a soft, slightly triangular shape (almond). Very light eyes give a hard, sharp expression, which is not correct. Eye colour is in keeping with the coat colour. The expression is rather soft and doe-like, but showing intelligence and their sight hound heritage. Fig. 3 Poor heads with rounded skulls and bulbous eyes Extended Breed Standard of the Italian Greyhound - Page 4 ! EARS Rose shaped, placed well back, soft and fine, not pricked. Ears are set on high at the outer corner of the eye. When alert, they are carried almost horizontally at right angles to the skull, usually referred to as “roofed”. Button ears, semi button ears and pricked ears are faults. When puppies are teething their ears often “fly” and behave erratically. Ideally, the ears should be small, neat and fine in texture - with no floppiness or untidiness. Fig. 4 A well balanced head with ears roofed. ! MOUTH Jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite Le. the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaw. Teeth even. This needs no further explanation. Fig. 5 This dog is too straight in angulation. Note the very short, upright upper arm Extended Breed Standard of the Italian Greyhound - Page 5 ! NECK Long, gracefully arched. The neck is approximately the same length as the head with a definite crest and a slight bulge at the thyroid level. This is not to be confused with a ewe-neck that is comparatively shorter and bulges at the throat with a concave curve instead of a crest. The neck fits into the shoulders rather abruptly and is carried high with strong musculation apparent. ! FOREQUARTERS Shoulders long and sloping. Legs straight; well set under shoulders; fine strong bone and pasterns. The forequarters are set rather forward on the body with not much prosternum showing however, there must be some fill between the elbows - a narrow, A-frame front is not acceptable. The shoulder blade is set back far enough not to impinge on the neck and a straight line should be able to be drawn from the point of the withers through the elbow to the ground. Pasterns are long and springy, and slightly sloped when viewed from the side. Elbows should not turn in or out. Bone should be fine but strong and oval bladed bone round bone is not correct. Long, fine, flat muscling should be apparent. Fig. 6 Bad fronts – left dog too narrow - no width of chest. Right dog out at elbow. Note also poor ear carriage. ! BODY Chest deep and narrow. Good length of rib and brisket. Back slightly arched over the loin. The Italian Greyhound has an inverted pear-shaped rib cage with good depth, ideally reaching to the elbow, and to slightly behind the elbow. The rib cage is approximately 2/3rds of the body length - being fairly short coupled. The brisket should be carried back to avoid a too sharp cut up underneath. The back line is curved and drooping - the curve starts at the anti-cline - the highest point of the curve at the start of the loin, creating a definite tuck-up at the flanks. Fig. 7 Note adequate width of chest. Extended Breed Standard of the Italian Greyhound - Page 6 The croup is rather long and sloping and the loins well muscled.

Load more

  10

Copy Link