Ibizan Hound

Podenco Ibicenco

In spite of all his fine qualities as a companion dog and his great hunting abilities, the Ibizan hound has lost his nobility over time. His pack is becoming increasingly rare, little known to the general public. Fortunately, some passionate breeders are still fighting to avoid his extinction, which would be a great loss for today's dog-lovers.

Height 60 to 72 cm
Weight 19 to 23 kg
Life expectancy 10 to 12 years
Home country Spain

Quick Overview of the Ibizan Hound

Temperament

  • Active, lively and sporty
  • Intelligent
  • Sensitive and loving
  • Easy to educate

Appearance

Health

  • Hardy, sturdy and very solid
  • Rarely ill
  • Generally enjoys good health
  • Good life expectancy

Temperament of the Ibizan Hound

Active, lively, sporty, intelligent, sensitive and affectionate, the Podenco Ibicenco is more of an accomplice than a dominated dog.

Intelligent and easy to train, his education does not generally pose any problem.

Very reserved and special, this magnificent specimen only offers his total confidence to his master. Even if he is quite docile and attached to his master, he does not have a very submissive temperament.

Hunting dog at heart, he loves his family but doesn't really like to play with children. Even if he gets along with them easily, he doesn't like to share their sometimes too unpredictable games. Not very feisty, he will walk away rather than get into an altercation with anyone.

podenco ibicenco personnalité

Breed Appearance

podenco ibicenco

Although he is part of  the group of so-called "primitive" dogs, his overall appearance, high on legs, and endowed with great finesse, is not unlike the Greyhound's.

Equal in size, his general appearance is average and symmetrical. At first glance, his silhouette seems slightly longer than tall. In spite of his finesse and apparent fragility, he is endowed with a robust and very solid constitution, without any fat. His beautiful musculature, as well as his solid bones, are easily visible under his skin.

Height

Between 66 and 72 cm (25.98 to 28.35 inches) for the male
Between 60 and 67 cm (23.62 to 26.38 inches) for the female

Weight

Between 19 and 23 kg (41.89 to 50.71 pounds) for the male
Between 19 and 23 kg (41.89 to 50.71 pounds) for the female

Color

The color of the coat is preferably red and white, or single-colored in white or red. Fawn is sometimes accepted, but in very exceptional cases.

Hair

His hair is found in two varieties; short and wiry. The short, glossy coat is non-silky and very resistant. The wiry hair is rather rough and abundant.

Morphology

His head is long and narrow, cone-shaped, truncated and rather dry. It has a very slight stop.

His beautiful light amber small eyes are oblique in shape. His erect and mobile ears resemble an elongated rhombus, a third of which is cut off.

His nose is flesh-color. His tail is sickle-shaped in action, while rather drooping at rest.

According to the FCI breeds nomenclature, this breed belongs to group 5, section 7 and is #89

Ibizan Hound puppies near me

Tips About this breed

He is never aggressive, and he prefers to walk away rather than use violence or aggression to take his place in the house.

Calm and very reserved by nature, he will become a wonderful accomplice, but will never let himself be dominated. The master must educate him as his accomplice, with a gentle education without an ounce of aggressiveness.

Violence and aggression are completely intolerable to him, discouraging him entirely. By setting the right rules the right way from the start, his education will be easy and trouble-free.

His hunting instinct make it sometimes risky to have him cohabit with other domestic animals.

His socialization must therefore be undertaken early, to enable him to socialize better with other species living in his household.

Compatible with all situations and types of owners, this very sporty dog must be able to go out regularly if he's a city dog in an apartment, or if he cannot benefit from a large garden where he let go his lively nature.

He can live indoors without any problem, as long as he can go out regularly and spend his energy.

Health of the Ibizan Hound

Despite his apparent fragility, this hardy hunting dog is robust and very solid. Rarely sick, he is generally in excellent health and has a long life expectancy.

The breed is not affected by any particular pathology or disease.

GROOMING

Regardless of the variety of coat hair, it is best to brush it regularly to keep it clean and healthy.

No other maintenance is really necessary, making his maintenance easy and not very time consuming.

History of this breed

Of very ancient origin, the ancestor of the Ibizan Hound is said to have arrived from Egypt with the Carthaginians, Greeks, Phoenicians and Egyptians. Even if he has been known in Egypt for a very long time, he would have made his entry in the Balearic Islands, probably around 1000 years BC.

This very old breed, about 3,400 years old, is a direct descendant of the Egyptian Greyhound. Numerous remains representing the breed were found on many museum pieces, from the tombs of ancient pharaohs.

It is a very old breed of dog, very primitive and hardy. Originally known as Charnegui, Charnegue, Majorquais, Xarnelo, Mallorqui and Balearic Dog, today he is officially recognized as Podenco Ibicenco in the regions of Provence, Roussillon, Valencia and Catalonia.

The Ibizan Hound, in fact, shares his ancestor with the Cirneco of Etna in Sicily, the Pharaoh's Dog on the island of Malta and the Podenco Canario of the Canary Islands. Their common ancestor, landed in the Mediterranean, is said to have evolved differently depending on the region where he was bred, giving birth to four different breeds, which are still closely related.

Used day and night for hunting rabbits without gun, the Ibizan Hound works as a retriever and fetcher. Being able to work even in places where vegetation is very abundant, he is used greatly for the finesse of his sense of smell, as well as his hearing, to recover game more easily.

Agile and very astute, he quickly captures his prey. Used for partridge, hare, rabbit and even big game, he hunts preferably in packs, and he can very well find and catch prey without any human intervention.

Endowed with marvelous hunting skills, he also possesses great qualities, making him an excellent companion dog. Highly prized by hunters, he is also appreciated as a life companion, being easily adaptable to many family situations.

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