Sloughi
The Sloughi is a medium sized breed of dog which originates from North Africa. It is a sighthound primarily. It was first discovered in the lands of Algeria, Morocco and Libya. They are more similar to the Azawakh than the Saluki (other breeds which also originated from similar areas). This is quite an old breed. It is though that the Sloughi came from the Orient or from Ethiopia. Some old pieces of earthenware from about 3000 BC have been found with pictures which look similar to the Sloughi. It has also sometime confused with the Afghan hound.
Appearance
This breed is between 72 to 61 cm to the withers and weights between 16 to 30 kg. The Sloughi has a short haired coat, it has droopy ears. If one were to describe this dogs expression the best word would be melancholy. This dog is built for speed. Its back is unusually straight. Normally the eyes of this type of dog are dark brown, second most common is amber. It's coat tends to go from red to sand coloured, it may include some element of brindle, black mask and/or black ears.
Temperament
The Sloughi could be characterized as a dog which is smart and alert, it be prone to be a little shy. They love to move and they are not keen on being in confined spaced. It should be noted that does not mean that they need great quantities of exercise. The Sloughi tends to be tightly bonded to his owner. They tend to be relatively easy to train. It should be noted that due to this dog being a bit sensitive training should not be overly aggressive as otherwise training will not go well. Punishment does not work well for this breed. This dog makes for a decent guard dog.
Grooming and care
The Sloughi has a very short single coat. It tends to be wonderfully free of the traditional dog smell which is prevalent in many other breeds. To groom these dogs take a rubber brush or grooming glove to remove any detritus. They shed about average for dogs. These dogs tend to love to have somewhere nice an homely to sleep they prefer a bed to the hard floor. These dogs love to run every day, so ideally a good jog with the dog running along works well. Ideally they should be let off the leash to run about and explore. It should be noted that a tall fence is required to keep these animals safe as otherwise they have been known to jump fences to chase a small animal. These types of dogs need adequate protection from the elements as due to their short coats and origins in warmer climes they do not have much protection against winter. So a coat may be appropriate.
Health
The average life expectancy of this breed is 10 to 15 years. This dog tends to not have too many problems when it comes to health. They do tend to have the issue of Progressive retinal atrophy, this can be tested for with a blood sample. As with other sighthounds, these dogs can have problems with anesthetics and can be very sensitive to them, such that care needs to be taken when administered or alternatives found.