GREYHOUND

Named that way for its traditional rabbit hunting skill. Greyhounds stand out due to their light and elegant movements, their enormous resistance, their attentive and deep gaze and, mostly, for their running speed. There is no dog more specialized than the greyhound for this type of hunting, and it is also officially acknowledged as the athletic dog by excellence. In older days, the esthetic beauty and enthusiasm that greyhound racing provoked in open field led several fans to promote the competitions as a popular sport. With time, categories were diversified, being horse racing one of the most appreciated, in which the rabbit, the dog, the horse and the man converge in an exciting spectacle. In the most important dog tracks in the world, the greyhounds are absolute stars.

Almost every breed in this group enters speed competitions. Currently, a mechanical or electrical hare is used at dog tracks, which replaced the live animal, after which the dogs run. But there is a general abandonment tendency of the hunting sport, probably due to the high cost of horse, dog and facility maintenance and the decadence in interest for these modalities. Hunting greyhounds are still used in hunting, some breeds even in large game, as is the case of the saluki, which hunts small antelopes, the afghan greyhound, which faces the bore, or the Irish greyhound, traditional enemy to the wolf. Despite this, it is becoming more frequent that dogs in the greyhound breed group are turning into company dogs, with an optimal acceptance encouraged by those who know it well.