Quick Links: Table of Contents
- Irish Wolfhound Breed Overview
- History of the Irish Wolfhound Breed. Where Irish Wolfhounds came from
- What the Irish Wolfhound Looks Like
- How Much is the Irish Wolfhound Puppy?
- Best Irish Wolfhound Breeders
- Adopting or Rescuing the Irish Wolfhound
- Irish Wolfhound Growth
- The Temperament of the Irish Wolfhound
- How Long Irish Wolfhounds Live
- Irish Wolfhound Litter Size
- How Fast Irish Wolfhounds Can Run
- Good Names for Irish Wolfhounds
- How Intelligent are Irish Wolfhounds?
- How Popular are Irish Wolfhounds with New Dog Owners?
- Health Problems in Irish Wolfhounds and How to Prevent Them
- How to Take Care of Irish Wolfhound
- Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Irish Wolfhounds
- Other Things to Know About Irish Wolfhounds
Irish Wolfhound Breed Overview
The Irish Wolfhound is a giant-sized dog.
The adult Irish Wolfhound stands 32 to 35 inches tall at the shoulder.
The Irish Wolfhound belongs to the Hound Dogs group.
Dogs in the Hound Dogs group, like the Irish Wolfhound, were bred to pursue and hunt warm-blooded animals. Hounds hunt by using their good sight or their good sense of smell. Dogs that belong to the Hound Group have strong prey drives and often will stop at nothing to catch what they are pursuing.
The fact that the Irish Wolfhound belongs to the Hound Dogs group is one of the reasons why Irish Wolfhounds have the personality and temperament that they have.
The temperament of the Irish Wolfhound is generally described as:
- Dignified
- Generous
- Loyal
- Patient
- Sweet-Tempered
- Thoughtful
History of the Irish Wolfhound Breed. Where Irish Wolfhounds came from
According to legend, Quintus Aurelius Symmachus was given a “Great Hound of Ireland” by his brother (in total, seven dogs were given to Aurelius).
Old paintings, statues, and jewelry depict this dog, which was once described in 1500s literature as “bigger of bone and limb than a colt.
” The Irish Wolfhound was a favorite of many royal courts, and the law once stated that only royalty could own these lovable, massive dogs.
These noble canines were frequently given as royal gifts; Sweden, Denmark, and Spain all received Irish Wolfhounds as gifts from other royal families.
These brave and hardworking dogs were used for hunting not only boars and wolves but also stags and elk.
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What the Irish Wolfhound Looks Like
The Irish Wolfhound can reach seven feet when standing on its hind legs, though doing so is highly discouraged.
They are the size of a small pony on all fours.
Their large head is long, as is their muzzle.
An excited Wolfhound will prick up the small ears that lie back against the head of this extra-large canine.
This imposing dog has a shaggy and wiry coat, and the hair on its head is longer over the eyes and under the jaw.
The coat is usually rough to the touch.
An Irish Wolfhound can be gray, brindle, red, black, white, or fawn in color, with gray being the most common.
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How Much is the Irish Wolfhound Puppy?
The average price of a Irish Wolfhound puppy is $1730. The price of a Irish Wolfhound puppy ranges from $1000 to $2100.
A lot of factors determine the price of the Irish Wolfhound. These factors include what health records the Irish Wolfhound puppy has, the lineage of the Irish Wolfhound puppy, the US state the breeder is located in, etc.
To estimate how much you can expect to pay for a puppy Irish Wolfhound based on the many factors that determine the price of the Irish Wolfhound puppy, check out our calculator that lets you estimate how much you should expect to pay for the Irish Wolfhound puppy based on what you want in the puppy.
When looking to buy a puppy, look at buying a puppy only from well-established breeders that breed puppies primarily for the love of the Irish Wolfhound breed, and secondarily for profit. Do not buy a puppy from a puppy mill. Puppy mills mass-produce puppies in bad living conditions for maximum profit.
You may also consider adopting instead of buying a puppy. Adoption costs are very low compared to the price of a puppy.
Best Irish Wolfhound Breeders
We have researched reputable Irish Wolfhound breeders that you can buy a puppy.
Go to this page for our complete list of reputable Irish Wolfhound breeders in various states in the United States.
On this page, you will see how much these breeders sell their puppies for, and how many puppies they have available.
A few of these breeders are listed below.
Campfire Irish Wolfhound
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Olive Branch Irish Wolfhounds
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Balof`s k9 academy
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
O`Donoghue Irish Wolfhounds
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Bellemere/LOYALBELLE
Puppy Price: $2800.00
Adopting or Rescuing the Irish Wolfhound
You may consider adopting a dog instead of buying a puppy. Many dogs, Irish Wolfhounds included, are currently available for adoption in your local dog shelters.
These helpless but adorable dogs are waiting in dog shelters hoping that someday someone will rescue them. Dog adoption costs are lesser than the cost of a new puppy. Dog adoption costs are usually around $300 or even less.
In addition to your local dog shelter, another good place to find dogs that are available for adoption is petfinder.com.
Below is an adorable Male Irish Wolfhound named Lobo that is currently available for adoption on Petfinder.com. You can find other lovely Irish Wolfhounds like Lobo on pefinder.com.
Griswold is the name of another Irish Wolfhound (Male) on petfinder.com that is looking for a new forever home.
You can find more Irish Wolfhounds that are available for adoption on petfinder.
Irish Wolfhound Growth
New Irish Wolfhound owners need to know about the growth of their Irish Wolfhounds. This will help them plan their living spaces accordingly.
Also, knowing the typical growth pattern of the Irish Wolfhound will help new owners catch the abnormal growth of their Irish Wolfhound early.
See our calculator for predicting how big your Irish Wolfhound puppy will get. You will also learn about the typical weight of the Irish Wolfhound at different ages and how to catch abnormal growth in your Irish Wolfhound
The Temperament of the Irish Wolfhound
The temperament of the Irish Wolfhound based can be summarized as in the table below.
The table shows the scores of the Irish Wolfhound for 13 important dog behavioral factors.
We obtained these scores by analyzing raw data from the C-BARQ dog personality survey tool. The higher the score of a dog for a factor, the worse the temperament of the dog regarding that factor.
The C-BARQ tool was developed by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, and it is a scientific tool that is used worldwide for reliably measuring the temperament of dog breeds.
See our complete analysis of the temperament of the Irish Wolfhound here.
| Factor | Score |
|---|---|
| Owner Directed Aggression | 7.2 percent |
| Stranger Directed Aggression | 6.6 percent |
| Prey Drive | 53.5 percent |
| Stubbornness | 44.7 percent |
| Energy Level | 30.0 percent |
| Stranger Directed Fear | 3.5 percent |
| Excitability | 26.0 percent |
| Dog Rivalry | 22.1 percent |
| Attachment Attention Seeking | 21.1 percent |
| Nonsocial Fear | 18.7 percent |
| Dog Directed Fear | 17.6 percent |
| Separation Related Behavior | 16.6 percent |
| Touch Sensitivity | 16.6 percent |
| Dog Directed Aggression | 10.3 percent |
How Long Irish Wolfhounds Live
The lifespan of the Irish Wolfhound is typically from 6 to 8 years.
Moreover, a few years back, veterinarian researchers performed a scientific study to determine the lifespan of the Irish Wolfhound. In this study, the scientists collected data on how long 112 pet Irish Wolfhounds lived.
From the study, it was found that Irish Wolfhounds have an average lifespan of 7.04 years. Furthermore, the study found that it is not uncommon for Irish Wolfhounds to live as long as 11.8 years.
Note that you need to put in some effort if you want your Irish Wolfhound to live long.
Irish Wolfhounds live long if they eat well, drink well, exercise well, and visit the veterinarian regularly.
There are also dog supplements that you can give your Irish Wolfhound to improve your Irish Wolfhound`s quality of their life.
Click here to learn more about how to make your Irish Wolfhound live long.
Irish Wolfhound Litter Size
Researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science did a study where they counted the numbers of puppies in 15 different Irish Wolfhound birth litters.
From this study, the researchers found that the average number of puppies that Irish Wolfhounds can have is 6 puppies. Also, the Irish Wolfhound can have as few as 2 puppies per litter and as many as 14 puppies per litter.
The number of puppies that the Irish Wolfhound will have depends on factors such as the age of the Irish Wolfhound, the method of pregnancy, etc.
Click here to see our calculator for predicting how many puppies your Irish Wolfhound will have and how the litter size of the Irish Wolfhound compares to the litter size of other dog breeds.
How Fast Irish Wolfhounds Can Run
How fast a dog breed can run is a good measure of how athletic the dog breed is.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) regularly conducts dog running competitions. The AKC records the running speed of competing dogs in these competitions. These competitions are open to all dog breeds.
Based on our analysis of the speeds of 79 different Irish Wolfhounds, the average speed of the Irish Wolfhound is 21.8 mph (35.1 kmph).
The fastest speed on AKC record that the Irish Wolfhound ran in a race is 29.1 mph (46.8 kmph) and the minimum speed on record in a race for a Irish Wolfhound is 7.24 mph (11.7 kmph).
Click here to see how the speed of the Irish Wolfhound compares to the speed of other dogs and other mammals such as cats, horses, humans, etc.
Good Names for Irish Wolfhounds
Here are some really good names that are typical for the Irish Wolfhound ranked by popularity:
- Ace
- Buddy
- Oneal
- Griswold
- Tower
- Bark
- Murphy
- Frank
- Michael
- Irish
How Intelligent are Irish Wolfhounds?
| Irish Wolfhound | |
|---|---|
| Intelligence Rank | 41 out of 130 dog breeds |
| Trainability | Tend To Learn New Commands After 25 To 40 Repetitions |
According to Prof. Stanley Coren, a Canadian psychology professor/dog trainer, the total intelligence that a dog demonstrates is the addition of three types of intelligence. These intelligence types are:
- Instinctive Intelligence: This is the natural intelligence that comes from instinct. For example, dog breeds that have been historically bred to be guard dogs will have a high `guarding` intelligence compared to dogs that were not bred for guarding.
- Adaptive Intelligence (learning and problem-solving ability): This indicates what a dog can learn to do for himself or herself. Adaptive intelligence is specific to each dog, and not breed specific. You can improve your dog`s adaptive intelligence by investing time to train your dog.
- Working/Obedience Intelligence: This type of intelligence is breed-specific. Certain dog breeds tend to have higher working/obedience intelligence than some other breeds. This intelligence is the closest to what we might call school-learning ability and it is based upon what the dog can learn to do when instructed by humans. This type of intelligence can be measured for each dog breed and compared to that of other dog breeds.
Professor Stanley Coren measured and ranked the working intelligence of about 130 different dog breeds.
Prof. Coren found that the Irish Wolfhound has an obedience intelligence rank of 41 out of 130 dog breeds. Thus, Prof. Coren put Irish Wolfhounds in the `Average Working/Obedience Intelligence Dogs` category.
This means that Irish Wolfhounds tend to learn new commands after 25 to 40 repetitions.
However, we should mention that a dog should not be judged based on its intelligence alone. There are other important factors you need to consider when deciding on which dog breed to get. These other factors include sociability, adorability, and compatibility of the dog breed with your lifestyle.
See the intelligence ranking of some other dog breeds below:
| Breed | Intelligence Rank |
|---|---|
| Border Collie | 1 |
| Papillon | 8 |
| Belgian Tervuren | 14 |
| Collie | 16 |
| English Cocker Spaniel | 18 |
| Brittany | 19 |
| Pomeranian | 23 |
| Vizsla | 25 |
| Border Terrier | 30 |
| Welsh Springer Spaniel | 31 |
| Dalmatian | 39 |
| Bichon Frise | 45 |
| Rhodesian Ridgeback | 52 |
| French Bulldog | 58 |
| Italian Greyhound | 60 |
| Chinese Crested | 61 |
| Great Pyrenees | 64 |
| Bull Terrier | 66 |
| Basset Hound | 71 |
| Basenji | 78 |
How Popular are Irish Wolfhounds with New Dog Owners?
Every year, the American Kennel Club (AKC) publishes information on how popular a dog breed is in that particular year. The AKC gets the popularity information of a breed from how many dogs of that breed the owners register with the AKC every year. The AKC collects this data for about 200 dog breeds.
The graph below shows the popularity trend of the Irish Wolfhound.
The popularity of the Irish Wolfhound averaged over the years is Number 74 out of about 200 dog breeds.
Do not get a dog breed just because it is a popular dog breed. And do not reject a dog breed just because it is an unpopular breed.
Health Problems in Irish Wolfhounds and How to Prevent Them
Every dog breed has its own set of health problems that it tends to develop. There is nothing like a perfect dog breed.
The Irish Wolfhound is prone to certain genetic health conditions. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) is an organization that keeps track of genetic health problems in dog breeds.
From the extensive records that the OFA keeps, the OFA knows what health problems each dog breed is naturally prone to develop.
Hence, the OFA recommends which health screening breeders should perform on a dog breed to make sure that the breeders won`t breed `defective` dog parents that can pass down defective genes to their puppy offspring.
If you want a Irish Wolfhound puppy that will grow up to be healthy, make sure that your Irish Wolfhound breeder screens your puppy or your puppy`s parents for the health problems that the OFA recommends for your puppy`s breed. This will increase the chances that your puppy is free from genetic defects.
The following are the health tests that Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) recommends that breeders should screen Irish Wolfhounds for:
You can find out more about OFA`s recommended tests for Irish Wolfhounds here.
How to Take Care of Irish Wolfhound
To take good care of your Irish Wolfhound, you need to make sure that you groom your Irish Wolfhound regularly.
Secondly, you need to find a veterinarian in your area that will routinely check the health status of your Irish Wolfhound regularly, and give you appropriate recommendations on your Irish Wolfhound`s preventative care.
Thirdly, you need to commit some time to exercise your Irish Wolfhound daily. Regular exercise helps improve the health and quality of life of your Irish Wolfhound.
Also, you need to feed your Irish Wolfhound high-quality dog food, and the food should be of the right amount to prevent your Irish Wolfhound from getting overweight or underweight.
See our recommendations on what to feed the Irish Wolfhound and how much food to feed the Irish Wolfhound at different life stages.
Finally, you need to make sure that your Irish Wolfhound has access to clean water all the time. See our recommendations on how much water your Irish Wolfhound needs to drink at different ages.
Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Irish Wolfhounds
If you have not made up your mind on which dog breed to get, you may also want to consider some other dogs similar to the Irish Wolfhound.
We crunched the numbers and found that the following dog breeds that have similar behavior and temperament as the Irish Wolfhound:
- Bracco Italiano (74 percent match with Irish Wolfhound). Learn more about the Bracco Italiano here.
- Cavapoo (72 percent match with Irish Wolfhound). Learn more about the Cavapoo here.
Other Things to Know About Irish Wolfhounds
Here are some of the very important characteristics of the Irish Wolfhound that you need to know about the Irish Wolfhound breed: