Augustine (August) Massimo

Info

Don't know where my admiration for the Italian Greyhound began but I can genuinely say I have always loved this energetic and vivacious breed and always hope to have one in my life.

Details

We aren't sure where Greyhounds originated. Many say the middle east perhaps as long as 8,000 years ago. Paintings of greyhound type dogs can be found in the pyramids. These dogs were treated with reverence by ancient Egyptians and highly regarded by other cultures in the Middle East and were sometimes mummified with their owners. Others say that true greyhounds originated from the ancient Celts from Eastern Europe or Eurasia. Either way they are a very ancient breed that Homer talked about in The Odyssey. Where the greyhound got its name is unknown. It could derived from the Saxon words Gech or Greg, meaning - Greek - because they thought the breed originated in Greece. The word could also have come from the centuries when only aristocrats (Great people) were allowed to own greyhounds. It may also have been derived from the term gazehound - a dog that hunts by sight. The name has nothing to do with the greyhound's color. Gray is a rare color for a greyhound. Most greyhounds today can trace their bloodlines directly back to greyhounds bred in England in the early 1800's. Greyhounds arrived in the Americas with Christopher Columbus. They became very popular later as the midwest was settled to keep the jack rabbit population under control. Greyhounds were also used then and are still bred in some areas, to hunt and kill coyotes.