Skip to main content

Irish Wolfhound

Meet the tallest of the dog breeds-- the Irish Wolfhound. These gigantic canines can stand 3ft tall at the shoulder!

Not only are they the tallest dog, but they are also one of the oldest breeds out there. Their ancestors appear in art and writings that date back to around 300BC, and they could be even older than that! They were bred to be all-purpose dogs, able to be used for war purposes, as well as herding and hunting. For a while they were only be owned by members of the nobility, and were involved in wolf, bear, and elk hunts. As those species became rare and extinct due to over-hunting, the Wolfhound lost part of its purpose and dwindled in number.

The breed was revived in the late 19th century by using the few remaining Wolfhounds and crossing them with Great Danes, Deerhounds, Borzoi, and Mastiffs. The results was the breed we now have, and its first breed club was founded in 1885.

Irish Wolfhounds are very sweet-natured, easygoing dogs. They are very loyal, gentle dogs, and are great with children. The downside to such a gentle giant? They have a very short lifespan (usually only 6-8 years), and are susceptible for bone cancer and heart disease.
Status : Domesticated
Location : Ireland
Size : Height around 32in (81cm), Weight around 120lbs (54kg)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Mammalia -- Order : Carnivora
Family : Canidae -- Genus : Canis -- Species : C. lupus -- Subspecies : C. l. familiaris
Image : Dux
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status :  Not Listed Location :   Cent
Post a Comment
Read more