When in 1980 I bought the Baron Piero Renai della Rena's book "I LEVRIERI", I wouldn't image that it would became a priceless reference that provides ability to understand everything about the Greyhound.
In order ro crown this, during march 2003 I asked him to autograph it, he appreciated it and he made me a shorT dedication.
I conseder the standard a base on which all experts should study, due to the morphological and practical changes that every breeds are suffering because of the different use .
I would often ask the judge which were the elemets that brought him to choose a dog instead of another...very often some dogs move away from some peculiarities that I consider necessary for the morphological funcionality of the dog.
Anyway I relate the official standard and I suggest you to read the Renai's comment developed in his book.
FCI-Standard N° 158 / 03. 06. 1998 / GB.
GREYHOUND
ORIGIN : Great Britain.
DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 24.06.1987.
UTILIZATION : Sighthound.
CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 10 Sighthounds.
Section 3 Short-haired Sighthounds.
Without working trial.
GENERAL APPEARANCE : Strongly built, upstanding, of generous proportions, muscular power and symmetrical formation, with long head and neck, clean well laid shoulders, deep chest, capacious body, arched loin, powerful quarters, sound legs and feet, and a suppleness of limb, which emphasise in a marked degree its distinctive type and quality.
BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : Possessing remarkable stamina and endurance. Intelligent, gentle, affectionate and even tempered.
HEAD : Long, moderate width.
CRANIAL REGION
Skull : Flat.
Stop : Slight.
FACIAL REGION :
Muzzle : Jaws powerful and well chiselled.
Jaws/Teeth : Jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bitte, i.e. the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Eyes : Bright, intelligent, oval and obliquely set. Preferably dark.
Ears : Small, rose-shape, of fine texture.
NECK : Long and muscular, elegantly arched, well let into shoulders.
BODY :
Back : Rather long, broad and square.
Loins : Powerful, slightly arched.
Chest : Deep and capacious, providing adequate heart room. Ribs deep, well sprung and carried well back.
Flanks : Well cut up.
TAIL : Long, set on rather low, strong at root, tapering to point, carried low, slightly curved.
LIMBS
FOREQUARTERS : Forelegs long and straight, bone of good substance and quality. Elbows, pasterns and toes inclining neither in nor out.
Shoulders : Oblique, well set back, muscular without being loaded, narrow and cleanly defined at top.
Elbows : Free and well set under shoulders.
Pasterns : Moderate length, slightly sprung.
HINDQUARTERS : Body and hindquarters, features of ample proportions and well coupled, enabling adequate ground to be covered when standing.
Thighs and second thighs : Wide and muscular, showing great propelling power.
Stifles : Well bent.
Hocks : Well let down, inclining neither in nor out.
FEET : Moderate length, with compact, well knuckled toes and strong pads.
GAIT / MOVEMENT : Straight, low reaching, free stride enabling the ground to be covered at great speed. Hindlegs coming well under body giving great propulsion.
COAT
HAIR : Fine and close.
COLOUR : Black, white, red, blue, fawn, fallow, brindle or any of these colours broken with white.
SIZE : Ideal height : dogs 71-76 cm (28-30 ins); bitches 68-71 cm (27-28 ins).
FAULTS : Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog.
Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.
N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
