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IRISH WOLFHOUND |
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The Irish Wolfhound
is the tallest of the running hounds, combining speed and power to the
"nth" degree. Their history, equally sketchy, probably parallels
that of the Scottish Deer-hound. Imposing sighthounds have been recorded
in Ireland since histories were kept. The Celts invaded Greece and sacked
Delphi in 275 BC. There they could have acquired dogs of the Greyhound/Afghan
type who accompanied them on their conquest of Europe. Celtic tastes in
dogs ran to great speed and size, and these running hounds may have been
crossed with rangy mastiffs even before they reached Ireland, the furthest
reach of the Celtic migrations. The Romans found the dogs there when they
invaded British shores in the first centuries AD.
A letter written
in 393 AD by Roman consul Symmachus to his brother Flavianus, then stationed
in Britain, thanked him for the seven Irish hounds sent previously. He
states "All Rome viewed them with wonder"—this a jaded citizenship
who regularly saw huge mastiffs and men fighting bears and lions in the
arena! The Irish dogs must have been imposing figures even then.
In early times
the great Irish hound came in smooth and rough coats as well as in a variety
of dark and light colors. While type might have been quite variable, their
qualities of heart, loyalty to master, strength and speed were universal
and became legendary. From Ireland's heroic age of 200 BC to 200 AD, magnificent
tales of these dogs abound.
One saga involves
the hound "Ailbhe," who supposedly defended the entire province
of the king of Leinster.
The story says the dog was so fast that he could run around Leinster in
a single day, and he possessed keen wisdom and supernatural intelligence.
In one episode, Ailbhe is asked to decide whether the men of King Conor
or those of Queen Maeve are more heroic. Unfortunately, the dog is killed
while pursuing the frightened men of King Conor!
The bitch
"Bran" was another famous legendary hound, the best of a famous
pack of the 4th-century king of Ireland, Cormac. Cared for by Fionn
MacCurahaill, the dogs in the pack supposedly were said to have magical
powers. "Bran was especially prized for her incredible speed, her
bravery in facing wild boars and her ability to warn Fionn and his men
against enemy attacks." Fionn's men rescued Bran and other hounds
when they were stolen by a servingman who intended to sell them in Britain.
From other written records
of the fifth century, we know that dog breeding in Ireland was so
organized and the dogs so valued that merchants sold them abroad by
the shipload! At least the majority of the dogs to be sold were of
the wolfhound type, and these Irish cargos may have contributed to
the development of breeds in Europe. In the 1100s,
it was purported that the King of Ulster offered 4,000 cows for a
coveted Wolfhound. When the offer for "Aibe" was refused,
it started a war. A long Icelandic saga of the 13th century sets a
dog in a prominent role. One of the principals, Gunnar, received an
Irish hound as a gift from a friend, who said "he is a big animal
and will make as good a comrade-in-arms as a powerful man. He has
human intelligence and will bark at every man he recognizes as your
enemy, but never at your friends; he can tell from a man's face whether
he means you well or not. He would lay down his life rather than fail
you. His name is Samr." In this tragedy of feuding and revenge,
the dog serves Gunnar well. When enemies come to assassinate Gunnar,
they pay a farmer to kill the dog first. Samr fights mightily and
is killed only because they manage to drive an ax into his head. With
his dying gasp, he emits an eerie howl which serves to warn Gunnar
of the approaching enemies.
From this grim tale of the
past, we know that Irish dogs were already so exalted as to be featured
in the literature of another country. It also shows they were regarded
as princely gifts and the world knew of their strength and speed.
The tale of the theft of Bran and her pack indicates how a poor
man might make a few dollars selling these valuable dogs abroad. Certainly
a section on Wolfhounds would not be complete without the most famous—and
true—story. In the 13th century, Llewelyn, prince of North Wales,
had a place at Beddgel-ert, where he enjoyed hunting in the company
of "Gelert, the Faithful Hound." One day, Gel-ert was
unaccountably absent as the prince left on his hunt. On Llewelyn's
return, the truant, stained and smeared with blood, joyfully sprang
to meet his master. The prince, alarmed, hastened to find his son,
and saw the infant's cot empty, the bed clothes and floor covered
with blood. The frantic father drew his sword and plunged it into
the bloody hound. The dog's dying yelp was answered by a child's
cry. Llewelyn searched to discover his son unharmed, but lying near
the body of a mighty wolf, which Gelert had slain. The prince, filled
with remorse, is said
never to have smiled again. Gelert's grave in northern Wales is
marked by a monument that says: "He buried Gelert here. The
spot is called Beddgelert."
From
the medieval chores of battle, guarding, and hunting boar, stag
and the long extinct Irish elk (which stood six feet high at the
shoulder), the Wolfhound gradually turned to the specialized hunting
of wolves by the 15th and 16th century. It was during this time
that they became more consistent in type and more like the Wolfhound
of today.
By the
mid-1600s, Cromwell decreed the exporting of Wolfhounds to be
illegal because wolves were still a major problem on the British
Isles and the great hounds were not plentiful. The last wolf was
killed in Ireland before 1800 and, within 50 years, the great
hounds—having lost their purpose—were reduced to low numbers.
The Great Irish Famine of the 1840s also took its toll on the
large dogs. Because of the 150-year ban on exportation, there
was nowhere else to go for new breeding stock.
Almost
no one in the early 1800s had ever seen a live Wolfhound and,
with their exagger-ated tales in literature, there was much argument
among period authorities over what a true Wolfhound had looked
like. (Most assumed they were extinct.)
R.D. Richardson stirred
some interest in the breed by writing articles in the 1840s.
He also acquired a dog named "Bran" who was of the
old type, and bred him to several wolfhounds and deerhounds,
and their descendants became the ancestors of all modern Wolfhounds
through the Kilfane and Ballytobin Kennels. Finally in the latter
half of the 1800s, Captain G.A. Graham made the restoration
of this ancient Irish breed his life's work. He acquired descendants
of Richardson's Bran and bred them to deerhounds of the Glengarry
strain. With careful selection and occasional outcrosses to
Borzoi or even Great Dane to increase size, he recreated the
old type. It bred true. Shown successfully in the 1870s, the
Irish Wolfhound was on the road to recovery and a breed club
was formed in 1885. The breed is admired and owned in many countries around the world, still prized for its gentleness and unswerving loyalty. His stature as the tallest dog in the world precludes him ever becoming a common pet, but he is a quiet house dog who can be successfully kept content if his regular need to run is met. The rough coat requires occasional combing only. Modern owners can take advantage of lure coursing and other running events.
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