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History
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ANCIENT HISTORY Salukis, as a breed, date back to early Sumerian times and beyond.
Reputed to be at least 5,000 years old, from archaeological remains it seems quite possible that this is the greyhound of the Old Testament.
Indeed, it is the only greyhound breed known in biblical times. Originally derived from nomad tribes and worshiped as the Hound of Allah
for ordinary dogs were, and still are considered unclean, it was possible for their masters to eat any game killed by the hounds.
Indeed, on many occasions it was the Saluki only who stood between the Bedouin and starvation, as the Saluki is a very accomplished killer.
For much of history, Salukis being venerated as holy have been owned by only the highest-ranking families and officials.
Salukis were known as a royal dog Companion of the Kings.
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RECENT HISTORY
In the Western world, Salukis gained full recognition from the end of the World War I.
Recognized as a breed by the English Kennel Club in 1923, Salukis arrived in Sydney in the 1950s and Victoria in the 1960s.
Several of the dogs and bitches from subsequent breeding came to Western Australia around 1970.
In 1977 a dedicated band of Saluki followers formed the Saluki Club of WA. Some excellent Western Australian bred stock is now being produced.
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MOTION
Salukis long legs and long hare-like feet tell you that they are very fast runners.
According to the Guinness Book of Records, they are the fastest endurance dog in the world, meaning that not only are they quick,
but able to keep up speed for great distances. The long hare - like feet are partially webbed so that,
when the dog is hunting over its natural ground sand deserts and rock strewn hillsides the feet spread and act like snowshoes
so they don't sink into it as it runs. Salukis are beautiful to watch in motion.
Comparable to a cheetah at a slow walk, as they speed up to a trot, the movement becomes light and resembles a dancing motion,
almost as if it were airborne. Its true gait is an all-out gallop a long bounding type that covers ground so fast you stand and watch open-mouthed.
When leaping an object while running, its stretch at the top of the jump is as if it were actually flying ! Bred to chase gazelles and hares,
Salukis will chase anything that moves, including the kids ball or next doors cat !
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LIFESPAN
The average lifespan of a Saluki is 13-14 years.
So remember when choosing this breed, that your dog, complete with hunting instincts, will be with you for some considerable time.
A natural hunter with boundless energy, they must have exercise
they cannot be shut in a small yard without some time to run free or be walked.
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TEMPERAMENT
Different from almost any other dog, Salukis are far more cat-like and independent in their attitude
This can be quite bothersome when they're off and running and don't want to come back when called.
Their independent nature makes them difficult but not impossible to train for obedience work.
Sulkies learn obedience by training you first, to their way of thinking.
Once you grasp the fact that it owns you not the other way round, so you are more on its level of thinking, obedience sometimes comes quite unexpectedly.
Salukis tend to be shy and wary of strangers, sometimes ignoring them with an air of utter aloofness.
However, they thrive on human companionship and can become extremely affectionate and loyal to their owner, as well as being very good with children.
In the home, Salukis are very elegant dogs and loves to drape along your best couch, which they will not give up for visitors, as they don't acknowledge their presence.
Their attitude to people in this way makes them appear snobbish and arrogant which they are.
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MY HISTORY WITH SALUKIS
My love affair with the Saluki began when I was an adolescent 10-year-old.
Figuring I knew everything, as every 10-year-old does, I was absolutely stunned into rare silence when I opened a dog book I was given and bam !!!!!
There were two of the most beautiful creatures I'd ever seen. A White/Cream regally laying down in the sphinx position and a Black Tri color in the
sitting position looking as if she owned the world and all us humans in it, which I've experienced is how every Saluki sees life.
I immediately thought wow !!! What are they ??? That was when I started reading everything I could get my paws on about them.
A few years later I decided that as animals are my whole life I wanted a dog to give me away at my up and coming wedding
It was to be a real zoo affair with white doves, fish, horses and the likes. Considering the company there was only one breed of dog
that had the required talents to stand out and be aloof, sophisticated and without a doubt, regal. The Saluki.
Furthermore she had to be a girl and the purest white. Her name was Willow, a Champion - nonetheless - and an absolutely beautiful girl who is still alive today,
at a sprite 16 years old and kicking. She proved to be unneeded after all as there were no wedding bells.
My second devotion to the Saluki my first, being their disposition and beauty, was their intelligence which came to fruition when I started training in Obedience.
It was a hard task to teach something so intelligent to do something so repetitive without asking the question why.
This is probably where their superior self-image come into play when they wondered why we humans haven't learned something they learned 20 times ago
and we still insist they show us how to do it. Willow completed her Companion Dog Tittle in four trials with her highest score being 189 out of 200.
Willow then started her Companion Dog Excellence, however, she decided not to complete the tittle as she felt it was an injustice to hold a dumbbell in one's mouth !
Willow also did her endurance test and started tracking later in her life.
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MY SALUKI SYMPHONY
Started campaigning in Obedience but unfortunately she contracted a rare condition causing fluid on her lungs.
This condition caused her to have a 5-hour operation to have her ribcage broken so that the vet could tie off her tiny capillaries next to her lungs talk about expensive.
However the operation was not a success and with her only being 6kg, I was needless to say, worried.
It was thought that Symphony's lungs would have to be constantly drained otherwise she would die of asphyxiation. Due to the urgency,
I decided to try an herbalistic approach to medicine.
I was advised that if the herbal medication I was trying didn't work in three days then there was nothing that they could do.
After three days of treatment and drainage of her lung cavity, X-rays were performed and no sign of fluid was seen on the lungs.
As she has lung scarring and gets easily winded especially for a Saluki, Symphony will never complete her campaign in Obedience.
The outweighing plus-side is that Symphony is still alive and well today four years after the problem occurred, and is just as full of herself as she ever has been !
Which bring us to the present. I have a new puppy and she is destined for great things. My little Intensity.
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Behavior
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ANIMALS TRAINED
Over the last years of my life, I have trained a large variety of animals.
The first animal trained was a goldfish. Being six years old, I was the envy
of all the others kids with the goldfish swimming through my hands.
From there I was curious, eager and had an absolute passion for animals,
so it was only natural that, as a young girl, I trained other animals.
I will try to give you a quick overview.
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I have trained orange canaries to call on cue, doves to land on my shoulders and
budgies as show birds, at which I was quite successful. I found it easy to train
a pet kangaroo to come when called and wait for food.
The ease I found in training was because I was more open than other people
to the animal mind, therefore, understanding them more and making training easier.
By the age of 14, I trained two stray sheep to do tricks and respond on
command, two guinea pigs to come on a special queue, two pheasants to respond by
whistle and house trained rabbits.
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However, as I enjoyed training so much I wanted more. So it was at this
age I started with more difficult and serious training.
I had myself a gorgeous little fox terrier, which I trained to dress up
and put herself to bed and another one, which I started formal training with obedience.
She was a stubborn mule though and liked to go at her own pace, which happened to be the same as snails!
At 15, I became a handler showing Pomeranians in the show ring. After that I spent
four years training Pomeranians out of bad habits. I trained a Border Collie to
Companion Dog Excellence and partway through Utility before the dog retired with a bad hip.
I then wanted to try a more difficult breed so I trained a Saluki for Companion Dog.
She started her Companion Dog Excellence, but as you would have read in my history section,
she felt too superior to do demeaning tricks again and again. I then went on to train other people
for Utility Dog Trials and Companion Dog Trials.
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After a short while, I went back to underwater creatures.
I had a ribbon eel come on cue, fish to post or present at a particular position,
several octopus in such tasks as opening jars, pushing buttons on/off, turning mirrors
and occasionally going through filter systems in reverse to get to me if I wasn?t there for training.
I don't know how he did it, but by the time he made it through the filter system and out on the carpet,
the poor thing only had one leg left !!!
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I have also trained fish to be examined for vet checks and measurements,
a cat to show and several others to do their private excretory business on a toilet without making a mess.
My cats have been taught to walk on leads, jump on cue, pose for photos
and to be unfazed by things that may startle them basically bomb proofing.
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Research
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RESEARCH EXPERIMENTS
The difference with reaction time training octopus to open and close things.
My findings varied on the age of the octopus and the time of exposure to the
text. In a nutshell though, the younger the octopus, the quicker the response,
but the older the octopus, the quicker the learning.
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Taught dogs and dolphins to tell me with a square or triangular object,
as a yes or no answer if something was out there in the distance that a
human could not see or smell. I registered how long it took them to figure
out if something was there or not. I concluded that the dolphins reaction
time and sonar ability was far superior to a dog's scent system.
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Affecting factors in fish breeding. Use of breeding Discus fish, I varied different
groups with light or dark, vibration and light brighter than normal.
I also had a constant in there. I concluded that vibration could trigger
mating they breed more often. Excessive light tended to retard breeding,
otherwise light or no light made any difference.
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Methods of Training
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Ice -
assists in delayed positive enforcement.
Food -
immediate positive enforcement commonly used for most animals.
Clicker -
positive sound reaction behavior, used in praising from a distance.
Gentle Leader / Head Directional Collar -
I commonly use with second collar to guide and re-educate.
Positive Enforcement -
15 to 20 minute touch exercise, very good for bonding and re-association and remove fearfulness.
Harness and Movement / Multiple Lead Sequences -
extremely useful for corrective training.
Whistle / Sound Variation -
useful in small timid animals that cannot use other forms of training due to submissiveness.
Variation of Sound Training -
good for self-confidence in animal.
Body Language -
good for minor behavioral adjustment.
Light Variation -
good for bonding and concentration, heightens awareness.
Physical Familiarization -
technique used for skittish or nervous animals.
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Saluki-Related References:
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BOOKS
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Saluki: Companion of Kings
Author: Vera Watkins, Windswift Salukis
ISBN 0 903879 10 7
http://members.aol.com/bigsaluki
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Book of the Breed: The Complete Saluki
Authors: Ken and Diana Allan
ISBN 0-948955-76-7
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Hutchinson on Sighthounds
Author: Walter Hutchinson
Sighthound sections
reprinted in 1976 by Donald R. Hoflin
Arvada, Colorado 80003
http://www.hoflin.com
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Gazehounds and Coursing
Author: Dutch Salmon
ISBN 0-87839-024-3
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Hounds, Hares and Other Creatures:
The Complete Book of Coursing
Author: Steve Copold
Published February 1977
by Donald R. Hoflin
Arvada, Colorado 80003
http://www.hoflin.com
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The Ways of the Desert
Author: General E. Daumas
ISBN 0-292-70087-3
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The Arab of the Desert:
A Glimpse into Badawin
Life in Kuwait and Sau'di Arabia
Author: H.R.P. Dickson
Second edition published
in 1951 by George Allen and Unwin Ltd.
40 Museum Street, London
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SALUKIS
Author: Virginia M. Burch
Printed by T.F.H. Publications,
INC. T.F.H. Plaza Third and Union Aves.
Neptune City, NJ 07753
ISBN 0-86622-771-7
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The Saluki in History, Art, and Sport
Authors: Hope and David Waters
Reprinted by Donald R. Hoflin
Arvada, Colorado 80003
http://www.hoflin.com
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THE SALUQI COURSING HOUND OF THE EAST
Author/Editor: Gail Goodman
MIDBAR, INC., 10326 E. Bramble Ave.,
Apache Junction, Arizona, USA, 85220
http://pages.prodigy.com/SALUQI/saluqi.htm
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How to Raise and Train Salukis
Author: M. Burch
With a Chapter on Coursing by
Winafred B. Lucas, Ph.D
Printed by T.F.H. Publications Inc.
P.O. Box 27 Neptune City, NJ 07753
ISBN 0-87666-377-3
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Bedouins of Qatar: The Carlsberg
Foundation's Nomad Research Project
Author: Klaus Ferdinand
Library of Congress Catalog
Card Number: 92-82026
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Saluki Special Rare Breed Editin
Author: Ann Chamberlain
A Complete Canine Compendium
Illustrated with full - Colour Photography
History, Characteristics, Breed Standard,
Your Puppy, Everyday Care, Training, Health Care,
Your Senior Saluki and Showing Your SAluki.
Printed by PetLove Vincent Lane,
Dorking Surrey RH3 3YX, England
ISBN 1-903098-89-0
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General - Interest Annual Publication
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Interesting Publication I Recommend
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Links
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Interesting Australian Saluki sites
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Interesting Finland Saluki sites
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Interesting United Kingdom Saluki sites
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Interesting America Saluki sites
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Interesting Swedish Saluki sites
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Interesting Canadan Saluki sites
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Interesting German Saluki sites
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Interesting Lure Coursing sites
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Interesting Saluki Book and Magazine sites
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Interesting Saluki Sighthound Club sites
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Interesting Saluki Gift Products
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Interesting Veterinary Dog Sites
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Interesting Saluki Chat Groups
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