Ibizan Hounds: Ibizan Hounds have bodies that are fine boned and slender. Their heads are long and narrow with long muzzles that taper to a point, giving the appearance of a cone. Their noses are a rosy flesh color. Their teeth meet in a scissors bite. Their small eyes are a clear amber to caramel in color. Their erect ears are large and pointed. Their necks are long, slender and slightly arched. Their backs are level and straight. Their chests are long and deep. Their front legs are straight. There are three varieties of Ibizan Hounds: smooth-haired, long-haired, and wire-haired. The most common is the smooth-haired and the long-haired is very rare. The wire-haired has a longer coat of rough hair that is softer textured than the other two varieties. Colors are white and red, white and tan, or solid white or red.
Ibizan Hounds are quiet, clean, playful and polite. They are also good with children, gentle, sensible and sensitive. Protective and somewhat independent, they will hold back watchfully with strangers. Once they decide the stranger means no harm, they will relax very quickly. Be careful with small pets such as rabbits, cats and rodents; the Ibizan Hound is bred to hunt these creatures. Cats that are raised with Ibizan Hounds will fit in just fine as part of the "family," but it will chase and possibly kill a cat it does not know. As in all breeds, Ibizan Hounds should be well socialized with other dogs, other animals, adults, and children. Ibizan Hounds love their humans, are as clean as a cat, and respect the rules of a household. Ibizan Hounds actually blush when they get excited, as does the Pharaoh Hound. Ibizans like to learn and do so very quickly.
Ibizan Hounds are very similar to Pharaoh Hounds, with the main difference being coat color and the Ibizan's larger size. Depictions of dogs that looked much like today's Ibizan Hound were found in ancient Egypt about 3400 BC. It is thought that sea traders brought these dogs to the island of Ibiza, along with other surrounding islands off the coast of Spain about 700-900 BC. The dogs were used to hunt rabbit, providing food for the islanders. The dogs also hunted for themselves as they were not fed by the humans. This fast, hunting greyhound type is able to hunt in both daylight and night. They hunt by sight, hearing and smell, alone or in packs. When the prey is discovered the Ibizan points and when it bolts, the dog's sight hound instincts come into play and the hound is in full flight in strong pursuit. When the pray is captured the dog can be trained to bring it back to the hunter like a retriever. Ibizan Hounds were often used in the sport of lure coursing. They were recognized by the AKC in 1978.
The Ibizan Hound Size:
Height: 22-29 inches
Female: 42-55 lbs. |
