When choosing a dog for your home, it’s important they match the environment that you’re bringing them into. Not every dog is going to have a personality that matches your active household or that of a home that has young children or other pets.
With that being said, what sort of temperament and personality does the giant breed, the Irish wolfhound, have?
There are a number of personality traits that define the Irish wolfhound. Whether you get Irish wolfhound puppies or you have found one to adopt as an adult dog, here are some of the personality traits you can expect from this breed.
Described as a gentle giant, the Irish wolfhound, despite its size, is highly suited for families who may have young children. It’s still always important to go by the rule of never leaving your dog with a child on its own. Even with an Irish wolfhound puppy, you don’t know how an accidental smack from a child might impact their growth into an adult.
Irish wolfhounds are highly sensitive, meaning they’ll take anything to heart, and that’s something you want to be considerate of when it comes to training, especially as they’re not always the best at taking orders. They have a big heart and would be described as wearing their heart on their paw!
With an easy-going nature, an Irish wolfhound is not highly strung and will happily potter around the home. However, Irish wolfhounds do need plenty of activity outside, so taking part in dog sports would be ideal.
The Irish wolfhound isn’t one that is always obedient, and that can make training challenging. As such, you need to be willing to put in the time and effort that they require in order to be trained properly and to ensure they are well-behaved around others.
Regarding your family and picking the right breed, this gentle giant is much more adaptable than most other dogs. As the Irish Wolfhound Club will attest, they’re a guard dog that would do well in many family households.
Regarding the Irish wolfhound and their ability to live with other dogs, it’s all about training and socialisation. Provided they’re given the right training, they will be very friendly with other dogs that you already have in your home. The Irish wolfhound, despite its hunting nature, has adapted into a family pet very well.
We’d certainly suggest that you limit the number of other dogs and pets you have on your property unless you have a lot of space and land to work with. The Irish wolfhound certainly takes up a lot of that space, but they can live in harmony with other pets.
Irish wolfhounds are great with kids of any age, so long as they’re socialised from an early age and have been trained with the right supervision, too. As a rule, no dog should be left alone to their own devices with children present. It’s always good for you to be in the room with them.
The main concern for most potential dog owners or those looking for a dog to join their brood is potential behavioural issues. But does an Irish wolfhound have any? The American Kennel Club (AKC) will tell you that expensive exposure is needed for the Irish wolfhound to get on with people, but their shyness does not make them ill-suited as companion animals.
As they’re suspicious canines, the Irish wolfhound gets aggressive or shy if they’re not socialised with humans and dogs of all kinds. Any dog breed can potentially have behavioural issues.
The Irish wolfhound has strong bonds with its owners and, therefore, doesn’t cope well with being left alone, even for short periods of time.
Compared to other dog breeds, the Irish wolfhound is one that won’t often bark.
The Irish wolfhound dog breed, despite its size, has low activity levels. Therefore, the Irish wolfhound breed should have about 40 minutes of daily exercise.
If you’re looking to get an Irish wolfhound, you want to be sure you’re approaching reputable breeders and considering at great lengths whether this is the right breed for you. That said, this lovely giant will be a perfect addition to your family.
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