Afghan Hound
The Afghan hound is a tall, slender hunting dog (Canis familiaris) with long, strong legs, a heavy, silky coat (although there are short-haired varieties of Afghans), and typically long ears. An adult stands about 70 centimeters at shoulders and weighs about 27 kilograms. Belonging to the hound group, Afghan hounds are supposedly related to greyhounds.
Afghan hounds originated in the Middle East and were used for hunting in mountainous regions of northern Afghanistan. Some have suggested that the breed was known in ancient Egypt as early as the third millennium BCE; the Egyptians certainly had some sort of hound at an early date. Afghans came to England with British soldiers who brought them back from the Indo-Afghanistan area in the late nineteenth century; the breed reached the United States in the early 1930s.
The Afghan dog's agility in covering difficult terrain made it a suitable companion for mountain-dwelling hunters mounted on horseback. An Afghan's long legs allow it to move with great speed in a characteristic, racehorse-like gallop. Like all sight hounds, such as the Borzoi or Russian wolfhound, the whippet, and the greyhound, the Afghan courses by sight rather than by smell; thus its swiftness lets it keep pace with and run down fast-moving game, and its agility enables it to follow its prey's evasive actions. Today Afghans are primarily companion dogs and show dogs rather than hunters, esteemed for their stylish lines and beautiful, tireless movement in all Western countries, where Afghan puppies command a high price.
Further Reading
Fogle, Bruce (1995) Encyclopedia of the Dog. New York: DK Publishing.
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