Erté
The Greyhound, one of the oldest breeds; beautiful, elegant, loyal, gentle, kind and frequently depicted in art...
The Greyhound, one of the oldest breeds; beautiful, elegant, loyal, gentle, kind and frequently depicted in art...
The greyhound has deep roots in the history of the world. Evidence of
the existence of greyhounds over 4,000 years ago is found in murals,
sculpture and paintings of dogs strikingly similar to the hounds we see
today.
Greyhounds claim descent from the desert dogs of the pharaohs and Arab sheiks. These ancient dogs were held in high regard in the Middle East and were the companions of Egyptian and Arab princes. Etchings of greyhounds have been found on the walls of the tombs of ancient pharaohs. The pharaohs prized greyhounds both as pets and hunters. The Bedouins, too, so admired the greyhound that it was the only dog permitted to share their tents (a high honour in nomadic tribes) and to ride atop their camels.
Greyhounds claim descent from the desert dogs of the pharaohs and Arab sheiks. These ancient dogs were held in high regard in the Middle East and were the companions of Egyptian and Arab princes. Etchings of greyhounds have been found on the walls of the tombs of ancient pharaohs. The pharaohs prized greyhounds both as pets and hunters. The Bedouins, too, so admired the greyhound that it was the only dog permitted to share their tents (a high honour in nomadic tribes) and to ride atop their camels.
Bedouin with Salukis, relatives of the modern day Greyhound and the oldest domestic dog breed in the world.
Greyhounds are the only canine mentioned in Holy Scripture. In the
writings of King Solomon (considered to be the wisest of the wise)
greyhounds are described as one of the four mighty beings no one should
go against (Proverbs 30:29-31).
Greyhounds were introduced in England just prior to the ninth century
through the many conquests, crusades, and wars with Middle Eastern
tribes. Their speed, agility, and keen eyesight made greyhounds highly
prized as sporting dogs by British royalty. Canute enforced laws which
stated that only free men could own and hunt with greyhounds. These
restrictions, enacted to keep poachers out of royal forests, became
known as the "Forest Laws."
Misse and Turlu, The Greyhounds of Louis XV
http://www.galgonews.com/
http://levriers.net/
Eros, Prince Albert's favourite Greyhound, Sir Henry Edward Landseer, 1841
Thomas Gainsborough, portrait of Elizabeth Jackson, C 1760, stroking a young Greyhound
Marchesa Luisa Casati, Giovanni Boldini
Jean Gabriel Domergue
Margaret Gorman, the first Miss America, with her Greyhound 'Long Goodie' 1925
Today Greyhounds are used for racing and hunting unfortunately all too often there are reports of extreme cruelty, abandonment and worse. Earlier today I was reading about the plight of the Galgos (Spanish Greyhounds):
The Spanish Greyhound, or Galgo, is one of the most persecuted dog
breeds. Galgos are used to hunt hares in the Spanish countryside. They
spend their lives in damp, tiny, dirty holes or windowless shacks
deprived of daylight, exercise and affection. They are typically fed
only water and stale bread. At the end of the hunting season, countless
are abandoned or worse.
Sadly, the Galgo’s native land still views it as a second-class animal
and few Spaniards will own them as pets. They are bred carelessly and
used for hunting by galgueros (Galgo handlers). At the end of the
hunting season in Spain, the Galgos deemed worthless or too costly to
maintain are destroyed in a variety of inhumane ways – including being
hung, dumped into abandoned wells, shot, and even burned to death.
The lucky ones are rescued by a handful of shelters in Spain,
operated by dedicated individuals. Almost all of the resources to help
the dogs come from outside of Spain, namely the U.S., U.K., Belgium,
Denmark, France, Holland and Germany.
There are a handful of Spanish shelters dedicated to saving the
Galgos and other unwanted animals of Spain. Although more and more
galgueros are willing to give their unwanted dogs to the shelters, the
abuse and torture of Galgos continues. Organizations like GRIN are
dedicated to the welfare of the Spanish Galgo and sighthounds worldwide,
and assist the Spanish shelters with adoption, veterinary care, and
fundraising.
I have been looking at some horrific images today, I will spare you the details, I was in tears at one point. Fortunately there are many organisations all over the world who rescue sight hounds and try to re home them. Greyhounds make wonderful pets, people seem to be put off them because they are under the misapprehension that Greyhounds need a lot of exercise, like all dogs they do need exercise but nothing excessive, they are actually rather lazy and enjoy nothing better than lounging about, they can exist perfectly happily in apartments and like to give and receive lots of affection. I would love a rescue sight hound as a companion for Crusoe, he would love a girlfriend! I just have to persuade MG. I was looking at galleries of the dogs up for adoption...more tears, I want them all.
http://galgorescue.org/http://www.galgonews.com/
http://levriers.net/
www.gap.grv.org.au
If you would like me to include an organisation, let me know and I will add it to the list.
Bedouin with Salukis
If you would like me to include an organisation, let me know and I will add it to the list.