THE ITALIAN GKEYHOUND. 



BY G. IRWIN ROYCE, M. D. 



^ISTORY has not told us with any degree of certainty 

 when or where this delicate, sensitive, and graceful 

 little animal originated, but it is safe to conclude 

 that it had the same origin as the other types of the 

 Greyhound family; that by careful breeding, and no doubt 

 by considerable inbreeding, it has been reduced to its pres- 

 ent size and form ; and from the name we may reasonably 

 infer that it has long been known as a native of Italy. It 

 is also plentiful in Southern France and in other countries 

 where the climate is always mild and equable. 



The Italian Greyhound was taken to England about the 

 time of Charles I., at least this is as far back as any 

 account is given of their being seen in that country, and 

 since their introduction there they have been bred down to 

 finer and more perfect models, more nearly resembling in 

 conformation the larger type of Greyhound; still they have 

 always been the same delicate, graceful creature that we 

 see them to-day; and they have ever been the favorites 

 of the nobility in nearly all parts of Europe where they 

 can survive. We read of them as the pets of the Mon- 

 tagues and the Capulets, and even in our own day some of 

 the best specimens extant have been in the possession of 

 Her Majesty the Queen of England. 



Poets have immortalized this dog in verse, and Land- 

 seer, Paul Veronese, and others of the old masters have 

 employed their brushes to faithfully chronicle his exquisite 

 formation and graceful outlines. Comparing the more 

 modern form of the Italian Greyhound with pictures of 

 the older specimens, we see but slight variation between the 

 various models; in fact, the Italian is but a miniature 



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