Italian Greyhound: History

The Italian Greyhound is an old breed, and dogs like it may have been around for more than two millennia. Miniature greyhounds are seen in 2,000-year-old artifacts from what's now modern-day Turkey and Greece, and archaeological digs have turned up small Greyhound skeletons. Although the breed's original purpose has been lost to history, the Italian Greyhound may have served as a hunter of small game in addition to his duties as a companion.

By the Middle Ages, the breed had made its way to southern Europe and was very popular among the aristocracy, especially in Italy--hence its name. Many Italian Greyhounds were immortalized, along with their owners, in portraits by famous artists such as Pisanello and Giotto di Bondone.

In the 1600s the Italian Greyhound arrived in England, where, as in Italy, it found many fans among the nobility. Royal owners throughout the centuries include Mary, Queen of Scots, Princess Anne of Denmark, Charles I, Frederick the Great of Prussia, and Queen Victoria, during whose reign the breed's popularity peaked.

The American Kennel Club registered its first Italian Greyhound in 1886, and American breeders began to establish the breed in the United States. Although the American population of Italian Greyhounds was small, they may have helped save the breed from extinction. During World Wars I and II, when dog breeding became an unaffordable luxury for most people, the numbers of Italian Greyhounds in England dwindled dangerously low. Each time the wars ended, British breeders used those American-bred Italian Greyhounds to restore the breed in Europe.

Today the Italian Greyhound is enjoying a second renaissance, as modern dog owners rediscover the elegant little hound who's delighted his human companions for at least 2,000 years.

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