Types of Sighthound
From tall to tiny, smooth to scruffy.
Sooner or later a stranger will point at your hound and ask, “Is that a whippet?” It might be. It might also be a greyhound, a lurcher, a podenco or something the rescue described, with great confidence, as “a bit of everything”.
Sighthounds are a family rather than a single breed. They share a build and an old job: Spotting something moving and catching it before it knows what's happened. After that, they're all gloriously different. Some are lap-sized shiverers. Some can rest their chin on the kitchen table without bending their neck. Here's how to tell them apart, and what each one tends to be like to live with.
A quick word before we start. Breed gives you a rough idea. The hound in front of you tells you the rest. We've met shy salukis, clownish wolfhounds and greyhounds who never once read the brief, so treat everything below as a starting point.
The whole family, in five stops
The everyday three
Lurchers and longdogs
The glamorous ones
The gentle giants
From Spain and beyondThe everyday three
These are the sighthounds you're most likely to meet on a walk in Ireland or the UK, usually wearing a better coat than you.
Greyhound
The original. Elegant, affectionate and outrageously lazy for a hound that can outpace a moped. Most greyhounds living in homes here came from the racing industry, so expect a few quirks while they settle: A fear of stairs, deep suspicion of shiny floors, clinging to you like Velcro and the occasional attempt to nap somewhere completely baffling. Weird, quirky and absolutely adorable. Our What Are Greyhounds? page has the full story.
Whippet
Not a mini greyhound, whatever the man at the bus stop says. Whippets are their own breed: Smaller, often a bit busier and blessed with Mariah levels of demands. Still speedy, still snuggly, and sometimes a bit more vocal about it. Coats in winter, blankets at all times and no concept whatsoever of personal space. They'll demand more cuddles than they've strictly earned, and you'll hand them over anyway.
Italian greyhound
The smallest of the family, drawn by a fashion illustrator after a long lunch. Iggies are dainty, charming and permanently cold, and they'll burrow under your jumper or your duvet to prove it. Some are famously tricky to house train. All are convinced they're the main character, and frankly they've a point.
Lurchers and longdogs
A lurcher isn't a breed. It's a sighthound crossed with something else, often a collie, a terrier or a bull breed, which makes every one a lucky dip. Some are sleek and greyhoundy. Some look like a hearthrug that learnt to run. Most are somewhere in between, and very few look like their littermates.
Lurchers turn up in rescues across Ireland and the UK in large numbers, and they're every bit as charming (and every bit as capable of outrageous lounging) as their greyhound cousins. If you're looking to adopt, there's a fair chance a lurcher will find you before you find them.
A longdog is a cross between two sighthound breeds, such as a greyhound and a saluki. These days most people call them lurchers too, so don't be surprised to see both words on the same kennel card. Our Lurchers page covers the whole story: Sizes, crosses, history and what they're like at home.
The glamorous ones
These are the sighthounds who stop traffic. They're rarer in rescue here, but you'll spot them at shows, on long country walks and occasionally being carried across a wet car park by a devoted owner.
Saluki
The royal divas. One of the oldest breeds around, graceful, gentle and often a little aloof. Salukis love their people deeply and may pretend not to know them in public. Think Cleopatra, with a hint of chaos and better hair.
Afghan hound
A catwalk model with a sense of humour. That glorious coat needs brushing. A bit. Or a lot. Or most of your evenings, depending on the season. Fast, but only when they feel like it, and independent enough to make recall a lifelong conversation rather than a command.
Borzoi
Tall, silky and slightly dramatic. Borzois float rather than run and can be very choosy about their inner circle. It can take a while to earn their trust, but once you're in, you're in for life.
"If a greyhound is a sleepy uncle, a saluki is the mysterious cousin."
The gentle giants
Irish wolfhound
The tallest of all dog breeds, with a heart the size of a horsebox. Wolfhounds are more gallop than sprint, and most of them firmly believe they're lapdogs. You will not win that argument. Like most giant breeds, they tend to have shorter lives than smaller dogs, so it's worth asking about health before you fall in love. You will fall in love.
Deerhound
Scotland's shaggy, sweet-natured giant: A greyhound in a wiry jumper. Calm indoors, dignified outdoors and very good at looking like a deer in pyjamas. They're less common in rescue, but no less enchanting when you do meet one.
From Spain and beyond
Galgo
The Spanish greyhound, traditionally used for hunting hares. Galgos tend to be gentle, a little shy and very soft once they trust you. Many living in homes here came through rescues abroad after their hunting days, and some take a while to believe that a sofa is really allowed. It is. They work that out.
Podenco
Podencos are Spanish hunting hounds with big upright ears and sighthound-style bodies, in regional types including the Andaluz, Canario and Ibicenco. They're different in temperament from greyhounds, and it's worth knowing before the sofa's been promised. Podencos hunt with their eyes, nose and ears together, so they tend to be busier, more curious and more independent. Many are brilliant jumpers and climbers. Your garden fence may need a rethink, and possibly a second rethink.
Sloughi and azawakh
Rarer here. The sloughi comes from North Africa and tends to be reserved and sensitive. The azawakh comes from the Sahel and is lean, loyal and often wary of strangers, with a protective streak you won't usually find in a greyhound. Neither is a typical first sighthound, but both have devoted fans.
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, Irish wolfhound (“tallest of all dog breeds”) Link
Found your type? Or just your next sofa thief?