S/ZE OF THE IRISH WOLFDOG. 2 \ \ 



be. From the accounts we have, however, we can clearly and distinctly gather that the dog has 

 always been of Greyhound shape, of gigantic stature, and great power, in fact, such a dog as a 

 cross between the Great Dane and present Deerhound would produce, as to form and bulk, 

 but of superior size. 



Richardson, to further his views regarding the probable size of the ancient Irish Wolf- 

 dog, tells us that certain canine skulls were found by Surgeon Wylde at Dunshauglin which were 

 concluded to be those of the Irish Wolfdog ; of these the largest was II inches in the bone, and 

 from that fact he proceeds to argue that the living dog must have stood about 40 inches. To 

 begin, he takes for his guide a Deerhound dog standing 29 inches, whose head measures 10 

 inches. To the 1 i-inch Irish Wolfhound skull he adds 3 inches for muzzle, hair, skin, 

 and other tissues, thereby making the head of the living dog 14 inches ; thus getting the 

 height of 40 inches from it, as compared to the 29 inches from the lo-inch head. Here, how- 

 ever, he would appear to be in error, as ij or 2 inches at the most would be enough to allow 

 for tissues, &c., making the head I2j to 13 inches only, and so reducing the height to 36 

 inches ; moreover, the measurement of 10 inches for the head of a 29-inch Deerhound is 

 manifestly insufficient, as the writer can testify from ample experience. A Deerhound of that 

 height should have a head of at least 1 1 inches ; so, calculating on the same principles, the skulls 

 would have been from dogs standing about 34 inches. This skull is stated to have been 

 superior in size to the others, so if the argument was of any real worth, we can only gather 

 from it that the dogs would have ranged from 31 to 34 inches in height, which is probable 

 enough. 



It is an incontestable fact that the domestic dog, when used for the pursuit of ferocious 

 animals, should be larger and apparently more powerful than his quarry if he is expected to 

 take and overcome him single-handed, as the fierce nature, roving habits, and food of the wild 

 animal render him more than a match for his domesticated enemy, if of only equal size and 

 stature. We know that the Russian Wolfhounds (certainly very soft-hearted dogs), though 

 equal in stature to the wolf, will not attack him single-handed and wisely too, for they 

 would certainly be worsted in the combat. The Irish Wolfdog, being used for both the capture 

 and despatch of the wolf, would necessarily have been of Greyhound conformation, besides 

 being of enormous power. When caught, a heavy dog, such as a Mastiff, would be equal to 

 the destruction of a wolf, but to obtain a dog with Greyhound speed and the strength of the 

 Mastiff, it stands to reason that his stature should considerably exceed that of the Mastiff 

 one of our tallest as well as most powerful breeds. The usual height of the Mastiff is thirty 

 inches ; and, arguing as above, we may reasonably conclude that to obtain the requisite 

 combination of speed and power, a height of at least thirty-three inches would have been 

 reached, though we are told by several writers that he exceeded that height considerably. 



In the New York Country, about May, 1878, it is written: "It is absurd to give as 

 a reason for the indifference and apathy through which such a breed has been allowed to 

 die out or its perpetuity to be endangered, that in the extermination of his particular foe 

 the wolf his occupation was gone. A noble animal of this character should never have 

 been permitted to waste away while curs of the lowest degree are petted and pampered 

 and carefully provided for. In this country particularly the Irish Wolfdog could be made 

 of special service. Here he would find in the chase and extermination of the wolf a wide 

 field for his prowess and courage. On the western bounds of civilisation he would be invaluable 

 for the purposes of hunting, his keen sight and scent rendering him superior to many breeds 

 now in vise, and as a companion and friend of man his fidelity and devotion have never been 



