Greyhounds are among the fastest dogs, with top speeds typically around 45 mph (about 72 km/h) in short sprints. Key points
- Peak sprint speed: about 45 mph for elite Greyhounds, with some sources noting speeds in the low-to-mid 40s mph range.
- Common racing speeds: frequently around 36–38 mph during races, though individual dogs can exceed this briefly.
- Distance and endurance: Greyhounds are built for speed over short distances; they can sustain very high speeds for a brief stretch but are not endurance runners.
Context and caveats
- Speeds can vary by individual dog, track conditions, and measurement methods (GPS vs. timing gates).
- On larger scales, other animals may exceed canine speeds (e.g., cheetahs, peregrine falcons in different contexts), but among dogs, Greyhounds are typically the fastest.
If you’d like, I can pull up recent sources or comparisons for different distance benchmarks (e.g., 100 m sprint vs. longer distances) and provide a concise table.
