Sloughi / Berber Greyhound, Sloughi Moghrebi

Breed history:

 It comes from North Africa and is considered to be the descendent of the Egyptian hound Aboker, which existed in Egypt thousands of years ago. It is the dog of the Berbere population in Morocco, Tunisia, Lybia and Algiers, of the Bedouins, who use it to hunt small and medium-sized animals. Compared to other dogs, which are seen as impure by Arabs, this dog is, for them, the most noble and precious animal, being loved and groomed carefully. It came to Europe only in mid 20th century, but it is not very widespread.

Description:

 It is a large-sized, brawny, slender, elegant, sturdy dog, with a long head, a flat skull, wider between the ears, a slightly pronounced stop, a long, conical muzzle, with a black or dark brown nose. The eyes are egg-shaped, medium-sized and dark. The ears are triangular, round-ended, not too big and drooping. It has a long and strong neck. The tail is long, thin, tampered, arched at the tip and carried low at rest and high when moving. The fur has short, soft, thick hair, which can be sand-coloured, reddish mixed with white and black, with or without a dark mask or white patches on the chest and the tip of the paws.

Personality:

 It is a very resistant, proud, independent, pretty stubborn, dynamic dog. It is affectionate and devoted to its master, but watchful and distrustful with strangers. If socialized from an early age with different people and places, it accepts children, other dogs and even some house hold animals, like cats.

Grooming:

 This dog's fur doesn't need too much grooming. A casual brushing is enough.

Living conditions:

 It is a dog which feels best in a fenced yard, where it can move freely, because it needs exercise. It is recommended to active people, with experience in raising dogs. It is not recommended to be taken out in public spaces without a leash, because it feels the need to hunt everything that moves. It needs socialization and training.

Training:

 The training of this dog must be done by a person with experience in raising dogs, with patience. With a firm, consistent, but not harsh training that creates a bond between the dog and the trainer, good results can be obtained. 

Usefulness:

 It is used for hunting small or large animals (gazelles, boars), as a watchdog for houses and as a companion dog.