Kangaroo dog
The kangaroo dog is an Australian type of sighthound purposely cross-bred from a variety of sighthound breeds to produce a hunting dog.
Kangaroo dogs were first bred by colonial settlers in Australia from as early as the 1830s, the aim being to create a sighthound fast, strong and robust enough to outrun, catch and hold a kangaroo without being injured or disembowelled by the powerful, clawed hind legs of the kangaroo. From the 1830s colonial hunting clubs were established across Australia's colonies, with native kangaroos, wallabies or dingos pursued by mounted hunters and their kangaroo dogs. Originally these dogs were bred from British sighthound breeds, principally Greyhound and Scottish Deerhound with occasional Irish Wolfhound blood, later the Borzoi was also used whilst more recently the Saluki.
Hunting of native species with sighthounds is now banned in Australia; kangaroo dogs are still bred for hunting invasive introduced species such as feral pig and fox.
