Silken Windhound

By Sophie Kininmonth · 23 Dec 2025 (updated 21 Jul 2026) ·6 min read

The Silken Windhound is a small-to-medium sighthound with a long, silky coat and a genuinely easygoing nature, which is a rare and welcome combination. It has the light, coursing build of a Whippet or Borzoi in miniature, and in the right home it tends to be quiet and affectionate indoors, then fast and graceful the moment it gets room to run. The breed is uncommon in Australia, so getting one takes patience. It is also still a sighthound, which means a real prey drive, sensitivity to harsh handling, and a need for secure fencing. Lead with the good parts, but plan for both sides.

History and Origin

The Silken Windhound is a modern American breed, first developed in Austin, Texas, in the 1980s. The earliest recognised litter was whelped in 1985 at Francie Stull's Kristull kennel, with the aim of producing a small-to-medium sighthound with a long, silky coat and real performance ability.³

The foundation is more involved than a simple Greyhound-crossed-with-Borzoi story. It ties back to Borzoi lines and Whippet-based lurchers, with later infusions of Borzoi and Whippets to improve structure and genetic diversity. DNA testing described by the Silken Windhound Club of America also points to Shetland Sheepdog ancestry in the foundation background.³ The International Silken Windhound Society (ISWS) was chartered in 1999 and maintains the original worldwide registry for the breed.⁴

On recognition, the breed is registered by the United Kennel Club (UKC) in the United States, accepted in 2011.⁴ It is not currently recognised by the American Kennel Club.² In Australia you may see dogs recorded through the ISWS registry, and some are dual-registered with other organisations depending on country and purpose. ISWS describes itself as the original registry and notes that organisations outside its listed partners are not regarded by the breed club as legitimate registries.⁴

Appearance and Physical Characteristics

At a glance the Silken Windhound reads as a compact coursing hound: fine-boned without being fragile, lightly muscled, and balanced for quick acceleration and clean turns. Under the UKC standard the overall impression should be one of grace, balance, strength and exceptional running ability.¹

The coat is the breed's signature. It is soft and silky, never woolly, and not so heavy that it hides the outline or gets in the way of running. Feathering appears along the legs, brisket, hindquarters, neck and tail, while the face and lower legs stay naturally short-coated.¹

Height: about 47 to 60 cm (18.5 to 23.5 in) at the shoulder¹
Weight: commonly around 10 to 25 kg, varying by sex and build, with some lighter or heavier²
Coat: moderately long, soft and silky, straight to wavy and sometimes lightly curly, with feathering¹
Colour: all colours and markings accepted under the UKC standard¹

Temperament and Personality

Well-bred Silkens are usually described as calm, affectionate companions in the house. The UKC standard notes a gentle, devoted nature at home and a strong prey drive in the field, with temperament faults including unwarranted timidity, nervousness, or hostility toward people or dogs.¹

That combination of soft indoors and switched-on outdoors shapes everything about living with one. They settle well at home once their exercise needs are met, and they can be startlingly quick outdoors. Many are friendly but reserved with strangers rather than instantly outgoing.

Is a Silken Windhound Right for You?

This is a good match for a home that can offer secure boundaries and calm, consistent handling. The breed does best with:

Secure fencing. Sighthounds can clear or slip through weak boundaries when something moves fast.
Lead manners and recall practice, while accepting that recall can fail once prey drive is triggered.
Calm handling. Heavy corrections often backfire with sensitive hounds.

Be realistic about prey drive if you have cats, pocket pets, or unfenced acreage. If you can plan the environment around the sighthound instincts rather than hoping training will erase them, this is one of the easier sighthounds to live with.

Training and Exercise

A Silken Windhound wants a steady rhythm rather than punishing mileage: daily walks, regular sniff-and-explore time, and occasional safe chances to run. Many thrive with sports that let them do what they were built for, such as lure coursing and other sprint-style activities, without the risks of free-running near traffic or wildlife.³

Silkens are typically intelligent and responsive, and they learn quickly when training is clear, reward-based, and short enough to stay enjoyable. The UKC standard describes an alert, friendly, intelligent expression.¹ Focus early on:

Loose-lead walking, so they do not rehearse lunging at moving targets.
Polite greetings, since many are friendly but reserved with strangers.
Handling skills such as brushing, nail trims and vet checks, paired with treats.
Impulse control games that do not rely on physical restraint.

Health and Lifespan

No breed is free of health concerns, and it is safer to treat a claim of no breed-specific issues as a red flag than as reassurance. Like many dogs, Silkens can experience inherited or complex conditions, and responsible breeders rely on health screening, careful mate selection, and long-term follow-up.

One emergency worth understanding is gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV), often called bloat. It is more common in large, deep-chested dogs, but any dog can be affected. Risk factors include eating quickly, large meals, family history, and exercise soon after eating.^{5, 6} Act fast if you ever see a suddenly distended abdomen, repeated unproductive retching, drooling, restlessness, or rapid collapse. GDV is a veterinary emergency.^{5, 6}

Grooming and Care

The Silken coat is easier to manage than it looks, but it still needs routine attention. Weekly brushing is a common baseline, with extra sessions during shedding or if your dog runs through burrs and grass seeds.² Keep the maintenance simple and regular:

Brush through the feathering on legs, behind the ears and along the tail before it mats.
Keep nails short enough for sound movement, since long nails change gait and can crack.
Check ears and teeth routinely, as with any breed.

Under the UKC standard, Silkens are shown in a natural coat with minimal trimming, which matches the breed's practical, field-ready origins.¹

A Few Things Worth Knowing

The breed is uncommon, so patience matters. A thoughtful breeder or rescue contact will ask you questions, not just take your deposit.
Ask about registration and verification. ISWS maintains the original registry and outlines its registration approach, including DNA requirements for certain processes and partnerships with other registries.⁴
Ask what health screening is done and why those tests were chosen for that pair.
Meet at least one parent if possible, and look for steady, environmentally confident behaviour.

The Bottom Line

A Silken Windhound is a small-to-medium sighthound with a true coursing build and a companion temperament that, in the right home, can feel remarkably easy: quiet feet on the floor, then a blur of movement when the world opens up.¹ Do right by the breed and you will plan for both sides, the silk-soft coat and the sprinting instincts, and build a life with secure fencing and calm routines around a dog designed to chase the wind.

References

Sophie Kininmonth

Dog lover and writer at My Pets Australia, sharing practical breed guides and care advice for Australian pet owners.