They also tend to be smaller, lighter in build, have longer tails and have a very long, streamlined head that gives the impression of larger ears.

Galgos are good with children; they possess a calm temperament so there is less risk of a child being knocked over or jumped on than with a more excitable breed.

Although Galgos are large dogs, their history of selection as a working sighthound, their light weight, and their anatomy discourage hip dysplasia.

These dogs must run regularly and/or walk long distances to keep in perfect health, combined with their characteristic tendency to sleep the rest of the day.

The Spanish greyhound is thought by some popular writers to have descended from Egyptian dogs brought to the Iberian Peninsula by the Phoenicians nearly 3,000 years ago.

However the existence of the Celtic vertragus in Roman Iberia 2,000 years ago, as described by Arrian and Martial, suggests that it and its possible descendant the Galgo, may more likely be of Western European type in origin.

His description of hare hunting is very similar to that used with the Galgo nowadays in Spain, adding that it was a general Celtic tradition not related to social class.

In the 9th and 10th centuries, coinciding with the Reconquista, great spaces in Castile were colonized resulting in Christian military repossession of the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim control.

The mural paintings at the Hermitage of San Baudelio de Berlanga, in Soria, dating from the 12th century show a hunting scene with three Galgos apparently identical to the ones that we can see today.

'The Galgo appears to have developed first in the Castillian plains, both in the north (Valladolid, Zamora, Ávila Salamanca, Segovia, Soria, Burgos and Palencia) and the south (Toledo, Cuenca, Guadalajara, Madrid and Ciudad Real) of Castilla.

'In a village of La Mancha, the name of which I have no desire to call to mind, there lived not long since one of those gentlemen that keep a lance in the lance-rack, an old buckler, a lean hack, and a galgo for coursing.

In the first years of the 20th century, large scale crossbreeding occurred between the Galgo and the English Greyhound in order to create faster dogs for professional track racing.

The catastrophic events suffered by Spain during the 20th century, such as the Spanish Civil War and the 40-year-long fascist dictatorship of Francisco Franco, allowed the breed to be kept relatively unknown both inside and outside of its native country, at least until democracy led to greater social and cultural equality and development.

The breed faces the 21st century progressively more appreciated at home and abroad, as contemporary Spain becomes more conscious of the uniqueness and heritage of this animal.

Galgo coursing competitions generate annually in the order of sixty million euros [citation needed], a calculation which refers only to those aficionados which are members of the galgueras societies.

In Andalusia and many parts of La Mancha vineyards and olive groves dominate the landscape offering the hare plenty of cover.

All these factors will select a winning type of Galgo in this landscape which is smaller, with shorter and more rounded muscling, i.e., higher power in the hindquarters.

In Castile, with its large open spaces, the hare must travel greater distances in search of food and its only defense being away from cover are its legs, lungs and heart.

[11] They are eligible to compete in lure coursing events sanctioned by the American Sighthound Field Association, entered in the Limited class.

[14] Methods of killing reportedly include burning,[15] hanging, stoning, and poisoning, which according to Finnish politician Laura Huhtasaari is "based on the belief that the more painfully a dog dies, the better luck a hunter will have next year".

[18] For the reasons described above, associations in defense of the Galgo have appeared with the aim to save these dogs from a terrible fate, provide much needed rehabilitation and find them adoptive homes, usually in the cities.