Irish Wolfhounds

[3-greys-and-a-mutt]

Has anyone here ever had an Irish Wolfhound? I am in love with these 'biggest of the big' dogs! Someday, I plan to rescue an IW, but down the road when I have a bigger house and yard. I'd love to hear anyone's IW stories or insights - although the more I hear about them, the more I want one!

[bugmom]

Aside from the normal website search - i first saw the Irish hounds and the scottish elkhound at a scottish highland games event. I've also seen them at celtic festivals. the hounds are part of the competitions and also compete elsewhere in coursing events. i saw some videos of the coursing and its really impressive.
they are really beautiful animals and very very soft and snuggly. i wouldn't mind one either! its just that small house syndrome.

jan & bug

[carrie]

You really don't need a big house for an Irish Wolfhound. As long as they get to run and have enough excersise, mentally and physically, they do tend to lie around like a very large rug for the rest of the time! The height of their tail tends to be the biggest hazard!

[TheAntiPam]

I've only been around one wolfhound, but he sure made a good impression! While at a vet's office, I returned to the waiting room while my cat had some tests, and saw (I thought) the world's biggest stuffed animal on the floor! Then it moved! Wow, what a wonderful enormous cuddle beast!

In a few moments, this shaggy creature came over to make friends, and eventually wanted to sit in my lap. Now, I have a roomy lap, but not THAT big!

I spoke with the dog's owner and learned some great things. As Carrie mentioned, they need their exercise and they need their leisure. Just don't forget how much food goes into such a large dog...and the corresponding amount of um, er, "output" you'll have to deal with.

I don't know if I'd ever been in a situation to adequately house an IW, but I'd love the chance to get to know one!

[AdoreMyDogs]

Jan...ya know what? Those big wolfhounds don't need very much excersise at all! They are quite lazy, as many of the giant breeds are. They need a good romp every day, but they are more then happy taking up an entire couch and sleeping the majority of the day

One of the vets at the office I used to work at bred and showed Irish wolfhounds in conformation. She had the std. grey color and the cream colored ones. The cream colored dogs were incredible! Very pretty. They were on the stubborn side, and they were also sometimes a bit distructive when they were left alone in the house, but they all had great temperments. Kids could crawl over the lying dogs and the dogs never showed any signs of aggression, which is a trait worthy of honor. That, to me, is the most important trait...friendly and good with kids. The thing that I dislike about the breed is their lifespan. Some only live to be 7-8 years old. Six years old is very old for an I.R. That is hard for us who get so attached to our dogs. Graham is 8 years old and I feel he has many more years left. It's almlost unheard of for an I.R. to live to be 9 years old.

[3-greys-and-a-mutt]

Yes, the short lifespan is the only downfall, in my eyes. I know they are prone to cardiac problems, osteosarcoma, and serious bloat/gastric problems.
The years pass too fast even with a dog that has a 'normal' lifespan of 12 to 20 years; a dog that is ancient at 8, like Berners, IW's and Newf's, seems so unfair!
I have three sighthounds already in a yard that is not that big, and they make do (they run in circles or figure-8's), so I don't worry too much about they size of the yard. But I already have four 20 to 75 pound roadblocks, and don't need to add a 200-pounder to my already tight hallways at this point - LOL! Someday, someday....
I ran into a IW owner at a pet store recently, and she said that her (smallish) IW only ate 5 to 6 cups of quality food each day - is this typical? My 65-lb greyhound eats 5 cups a day!

[Rottie]

Well, they are BIG dogs! My neighbor down the street has one, and also my agility instructor has a couple.

My neighbor used to have two. They were best buddies. The older one died a few months ago. He was 15! She said that was the record for Irish Wolfhounds. The one that is left is 9 years old, his name is Puppy!

[AdoreMyDogs]

WOW, 15!!! That's a miracle!

And as for the food...I only feed Graham 1.5 cups a day and he's about 46 pounds, 19 inches tall. The food he gets is very quality (Innova) and he also gets supplements. I keep him trim because he does agility and it's better to have them on the slim side (although not too thin). He seems very satasified with his amount, and does not gobble when I put it down for him. Five cups seems like alot for a 65 pound dog, but Greyhounds are active, right? Graham is not very active so less food is better for the "lazy" pooches

[3-greys-and-a-mutt]

We follow the 'three-rib' rule for our greyhounds - you should always see the last three ribs - and modify their food intake by 1/8 to 1/4 cup if they are showing too little or too much rib! Buddy is about 75 pounds, and he has a slow metabolism and is lazy He gets 4 cups a day, but recently he started eating only about half of his breakfast. We tried giving him 1 cup of his food and one cup of Pup's weight control each meal, and now he is back to eating 4 cups. Paula is about 54 pounds, and frail, and she gets about 3 3/4 to 4 cups per day. Boo is our high energy, spastic, high metabolism girl, who could probably eat 6 cups a day and not gain an ounce. But we keep her at about 4 1/2 to 5 cups. All the greyhounds get Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice, and some playtime in the yard (and neighborhood walks).
Maybe greyhounds have naturally higher metabolisms than other dogs?

[carrie]

Greyhounds do have a very high metabolism. All sight hounds do, as do cheetahs. The amount of food going in when balanced with excersise should mean that most pet Greyhounds would be obese. It is VERY unlikely that you see a fat Greyhound in the coventional sense like a Lab, for instance. The three rib rule, as above, is rule of thumb. You should just be able to see the third rib in your "average" Grey. A fat Greyhound tends to have a very wide back and a very boring life. A thin Greyhound is not a disaster, as my mother believes, it is often the case that a couple of pounds under on a 70lb dog looks dreadful. A Greyhound that looks right is just, well, perfect.
Dogncatluver has a beauty, Jamey, that has just joined her family and she has promised to post pictures as soon as she can - he could carry another pound or two but for a happy, healthy dog you couldn't ask for a better specimen!

[dogncatluvr]

Ok, it's me....I haven't posted in AGES! I have been busy with work and my furry family...and adding one more, King James, now known as Jamey. He's a black retired racing greyhound, 21 months old (wanted to play, not race, so was retired early).
As soon as someone will help me I will post a couple of pictures of him.

[3-greys-and-a-mutt]

Yippee! Another crazy 'greyhound person!' We got all three of our greys before they were two, also - the young ones certainly have alot of spunk, don't they? Please tell me all about your decision to get a grey - I could talk all day to people about this wonderful breed that I am so much in love with!

[Daisy's Mom]

Welcome, Jamey! I can't wait to see some pictures of the new baby!

[shais_mom]

YEAH! Another greyhound to the board !!!
I read in the issue of Dog Fancy about Irish Wolfhound that they are known to have eaten 30 cups of food a day!!!! Thats alot!!
Shaianne is slightly overweight, tho the vet doesn't seem concerned. She is 77 lbs.
She only gets about 3 cups of food a day BUT I mix her morning meal with about a 1/2 - 1 cup of frozen BIL JAC which she loves, or a small can of dog food.
She usually picks out the moist or canned food and then she eats the dry throughout the day. She is soooopicky when it comes to eating her dry food plain. I have found some that she will eat without the canned/frozen mixed in. She like the Royal Canin Holistic, Nutro Lamb or Chicken and Rice, and Professional Lamb and Rice.
I prefer her to have Lamb or Chicken and rice since the beef sometimes causes allergies, and I think its gentler on her belly. She has a problem with gastritis and cholitis so I have to watch what she eats. I really tried to find another option of food than getting the perscription food from the Vet for Sensitive stomach by Hills. (very expensive) I really didn't want to do that, and I have had good results with the lamb/chicken and rice.
She doesn't get much exercise tho with my schedule changing in a couple weeks I hope to rememedy that for both our sakes!!!

[dogncatluvr]

I've posted a couple of Jamey's pics under a new topic...Jamey Greyhound pics.

Happy