Page 88 - THE SLOUGHI REVIEW Issue 15

T H E S L O U G H I R E V I E W 8 8

The first question is therefore the taxonomic question of the extent to which the subspecies
of Canis Lupus (the wolf): Canis lupus familiaris, the dog, is basically all the same, when there
are clear differences in the historical "landraces". If they have developed a certain type
through sexual isolation with largely free mate choice (Zimen), which remains constant
despite the questionable influence of humans. The questionable influence of humans on a
landrace must be seen in such a way that cross-mating certainly occurred, as some authors
tell us, starting with Xenophon.

However, the type of dog or the "landrace" has historically developed in a stable manner,
without it being possible to speak of targeted mating with a functional background. This only
took place before the intellectual basis for establishing a standard. This was not the case until
the beginning of the 20th century.

The landrace is therefore a product of the particular living conditions of the people with
whom the individuals of this landrace live. Without these groups of people having deliberately
and purposefully practised selective breeding for a particular phenotypic "product", whether
functional or aesthetic. A monofunctional specialisation, a one-sided idea of improvement,

which at the same time would have meant considerable restrictions in other areas, would not
have been desirable and economically unfeasible. Obviously they were selectively bred for
appearance and hunting excellence, but not in the sense of breeding for one-sided
characteristics. The working dog remained versatile.

Breeding for a particular "improvement" over generations is an absolute luxury. As we see
with the modern type of Greyhound, it took eight generations of mixing a Galgo type dog
with an English bulldog to produce a sprinting type for sporting competitions. Whether this
competition dog was also a suitable hunting dog is unlikely.

However, an improvement in certain respects towards broad goals such as successful hunting
or reliable herding dogs may always have meant a general development of a new type of dog.

Secondly. The improvement of a breed bred to a standard. To "improve" its characteristics or

to maintain its good characteristics.

As we see above, Oechslin emphasises that the Sloughis of the 1970s were still very coarse
and not very elegant. In order to obtain a better gait, various breeders had bred Salukis from
Syria and the Arabian Peninsula into their Sloughis in the spirit of Xavier Przezdziecki and his
wife Agnès Rey and, in their opinion, achieved a significantly better breeding result, especially
through Jenna; the dogs were faster at competitions.

Oechslin's idea that you could make a sighthound out of any village dog seems historically
incomprehensible. It takes many generations of dogs in a particular environment to get
anywhere near a usable sighthound.