The Cirneco dell'Etna is a small hound originally from Sicily. This dog breed was historically used to hunt rabbits and can work for hours without food or water. It resembles a Pharaoh Hound, but is smaller than that breed.

GENERAL APPEARANCE: primitive dog type of elegant and slender build, medium size, not cumbersome, but strong and hardy. The morphological conformation is a long/limbed dog of light construction, square outline; the coat is fine.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: length of body equal to the height at the withers (square outline). Depth of chest is slightly less than the height from ground to elbow. Length of the muzzle does not reach half the length of the head (the ratio skull-muzzle is of 10 to 8, but preference is given to dogs whose length of muzzle reaches that of the skull.

BEHAVIOR AND TEMPERAMENT: hunting dog, adapted to difficult terrain suitable especially to the hunting of wild rabbits; endowed with a strong temperament, it is at the same time gentle and affectionate.