I often tell people that Silken Windhounds are like roommates, not dogs. They are dogs of course, and have dog behaviors, but they are very different than the kind of dogs that so many people are used to - retrievers or terriers for example.

They don't always wag their tails to communicate, there's a lot of staring to tell you what they want. They have prey drive so they may chase things and unless you work with them on recall, they often will just... run. Some have less or more prey drive for small animals. My Silkens are cat-safe but not all are.

If they don't want to do something (including training) they just won't. If they don't like something, they tend to be pretty dramatic (a yelp often is just complaining, while dead silence after a bad event is often a red flag).. They can be a bit stoic and hard to read at first. I got my first two Silkens as adults from a poor situation and they were flighty and weird and had to adjust for a long time. It took them each a full year to settle in, and any older Silken joining a new home will need that same patience.

They are sensitive and feed off on your emotions - if you stress, they stress. If you are calm, they're calm. If you're happy, they'll share in that too. They are also quite gentle - while with "normal" dogs you have to be stern when leading them, Silkens can be a bit soft and will shut down if you yell at them. They do recover very quickly when they get scared of things, so they are still pretty tough!

I tend to refer to them as malleable - they kind of become whatever you work with them for. My dogs are happy to hike or travel all weekend or sleep in bed all weekend. A puppy would obviously not be as chill (all of mine are adults now.) The puppies need a lot of free-run to fully develop, and it's great if they can play with other dogs to do so.

Socialization is incredibly important, as with most dogs. I do think Silkens thrive the most when they live with another sighthound - especially another Silken, but if you get more than one, I recommend waiting at least a year in between them for bonding and training purposes.

Some Silkens struggle with non-Silkens/sighthounds because they aren't always exposed to them. So definitely socialize with all breeds! We raised our pup, Sugar, with a Rough Collie and a Chihuahua/Dachshund mix, so she loves herding breeds and small dogs now. Other sighthounds are always the preferred because they practically speak a different language, just subtly.

Some Silkens have sensitive stomachs.. only one of mine can handle raw toppers. Prepare to tie their butt fur into pigtails to avoid diarrhea getting all over that beautiful fur when it does occur. The fur maintenance is pretty easy aside from that - just be sure to watch the back of their ears and butt fluff/tail/chest - that can get matted.

This is simply a dump of my feelings and experience, as I've had Silkens since 2018 and I am incredibly passionate about them! 

If you have any specific questions, feel free to send me an email.