| Old Croatian Sighthound | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other names | Old Bosnian Sighthound | ||||||||||||||||||
| Origin | Bosnia–Herzegovina &Croatia | ||||||||||||||||||
| Breed status | Extinct | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Dog (domestic dog) | |||||||||||||||||||
TheOld Croatian Sighthound (Croatian:hrt, 'greyhound'), also known as theOld Bosnian Sighthound, is an extinctbreed ofsighthound from the countries ofCroatia andBosnia and Herzegovina.[1][2]
It is claimed the Old Croatian Sighthound was descended from sighthounds kept by theCelts; it closely resembled images of dogs on Celtic coins from the 5th century BC, as such it is believed to be closely related to thegreyhound, which was introduced to Britain by the Celts.[1] Descriptions of the breed in the region have been found in the writings offriars from the 13th and 14th centuries AD.[2]
The Old Croatian Sighthound was almost identical to the Greyhound although slightly smaller, with dogs standing between 60 and 70 centimetres (24 and 28 in) bitches being 5 to 10 centimetres (2.0 to 3.9 in) shorter.[1] The breed had a short coat and was predominantly white with black, brown, red or yellow patches.[1] Traditionally the breed was kept forcoursing, predominantly huntinghare; it would catch the game and return it to the hunter.[1]
The breed never received recognition by anykennel club and suffered greatly under the formerYugoslavia. The government of Yugoslavia banned coursing with sighthounds and further prohibited hunters from owning dogs without kennel club registration.[1] In the early 1980s, some remaining specimens were found inOrašje and the surrounding villages; a pair were brought to theZagreb School of Veterinary Medicine with the hope of starting a breeding program, but ultimately the program failed; it is believed the breed was extinct by 1995.[1]
Dogs originating inCroatia | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
 | This dog-related article is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |