Extract taken from
"Dogs Their History and Development"
by Edward C Ash 1927
We can go back to when Lieutenant Younghusband of the Guides, took back with him, with the regiment on its move to India, some Afghan Hounds to use for coursing at Marden. It is quite possible, as a well-known authority suggested to me, that the Saluki was brought into Afghanistan by the Syrians and developed to greater strength and heavier coat.
Information as to the earlier history of the breed is rare, The Hon. Mountstuart Elphinstone, in 1815, in his "Account of the Kingdom Of Caubul and its Dependencies" writes - "The dogs of Afghanistan deserve to be mentioned. Their greyhounds are excellent they are bred in great numbers, particularly among the pastoral tribes, who are much attracted to hunting". Major Lumsden, of the Guides, also later mentions that the Afghans kept a variety of Greyhound in the appendix of his book. But otherwise works examined dealing with Afghanistan contain no mention of these hounds, and there is considerable difficulty in obtaining information from the Afghans.
The hound is of a distinctive type of the Eastern group of the Greyhound family, a heavier and somewhat altered one, but clearly of the same family containing the Saluki of the Sahara.
The puppies when young show no signs of the heavy, fleecy coat of the adult. The long type of head. Mrs. Amps writes me, starts to develop at 9 month old in the East, but in England the development may be slower
The Afghan was exhibited for the firs time at Crufts in 1910 in the "Foreign and other variety class". "Zardin" who appeared there, caused considerable comment, on account of his strange appearance, no such coat had been seen before.
The coat varies according to the season. The shedding of the coat is gradual in the spring, and becomes thicker with the approach of winter, and it was found that when moving hounds from the warmer parts of India into the hills, that within a month the coats had perceptibly thickened (Mrs Amps). The bitch carries more coat than the dog, and the coat of both is of fine, silky wool. They are exceptionally hardy under conditions which would try most other varieties. In a letter to me, Mrs Amps writes that on trekking to Lesser Thibet 20 or 30 miles daily at altitudes varying from 3,000 to 17,000 feet, the dogs showed no signs of fatigue, and when crossing the Yarnbeur Pass, at the end of a long journey, they dashed up the mountain side after marmot.
The history of the breed is unknown. They have been kept by the Afghan Shikaria and used by the maleks and governors of the towns and villages when hunting. The Afghans will tell you with all seriousness that it was their breed taken into the Ark by Noah. As far as can be ascertained, the type has not altered within the memory of man. They vary according to district, in some places heavier or lighter, depending on whether they are required for small or large game.
There are certain differences between the Afghan hound and the Saluki. Afghan hounds are much heavier and more sturdily build, carrying a stronger and more profuse coat. The feathering on the ears and legs and tail is distinctive, and there is also the topknot of long silky hair, which the Saluki does not possess. The head on examination has very little stop.
The Afghan hounds are also known as Cabaul dogs, or Barukhzy. The suffix "zai" means "son of", The Barakzai are an important family in Afghan History.
The native chiefs and shikaria have so carefully guarded the breed that it is said that their present shyness as the outcome. Kepi in seclusion and carefully looked after as if they were Arabian mares, they have in consequence become timid, but this timidity is not exactly lack of courage.
The Afghan dog stands about 29 inches high at the shoulder, the bitch 26 inches, the dog weights about 66 lbs.
If brought to England under a year old, Afghan hounds are sometimes affected in their development (Mrs Amps)
The points of Afghan Hound according to the latest ruling, are:
Skull oval, little or no stop, occiput bone pronounced, jaw long, neck long, strong and arched, shoulders sloping an set well back. Back strong slightly arched, well ribbed and tucked up under loin. Great strength between elbow and ankle, hip and hock. Feet long. Coat on hindquarters, flanks, on ribs and forequarters, distinctly heavy on back short and coarser, on head long silky, tufty on feet long and soft. Colour brindle, fawn, red, cream, white. Black muzzle and black tips to feathering of ears frequent in brindles, fawns and reds.
Extract from The Practical Dog Book by Edward Ash 1931
The Hyland Painting
The Origins Section
The Barukhzy (Afghan) And Allied Eastern Hounds. (Extract) by W. D. Drury 1903
Robert Leighton on Mrs Amps Ghazni 1926
UK - KAF (Bell Murray) Afghan Hounds, A Croxton Smith,
Country Life 1926 (extract)
The Barukhzy (Afghan) And Allied Eastern Hounds (Extract) from "British Dogs,
Their Points, Selection, And Show Preparation", by W. D. Drury 1903
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