Afghan Hound. Bryony Harcourt-Brown
or undershot; eyes round or bulgy or light in color; exaggerated Roman nose; head not surmounted with topknot.
Neck: The neck is of good length, strong and arched, running in a curve to the shoulders which are long and sloping and well laid back. Faults—Neck too short or too thick; a ewe neck; a goose neck; a neck lacking in substance.
Body: The back line appearing practically level from the shoulders to the loin. Strong and powerful loin and slightly arched, falling away toward the stern, with the hipbones very pronounced; well ribbed and tucked up in flanks. The height at the shoulders equals the distance from the chest to the buttocks; the brisket well let down, and of medium width. Faults—Roach back, swayback, goose rump, slack loin; lack of prominence of hipbones; too much width of brisket, causing interference with elbows.
Tail: Tail set not too high on the body, having a ring, or a curve on the end; should never be curled over, or rest on the back, or be carried sideways; and should never be bushy.
Legs: Forelegs are straight and strong with great length between elbow and pastern; elbows well held in; forefeet large in both length and width; toes well arched; feet covered with long thick hair; fine in texture; pasterns long and straight; pads of feet unusually large and well down on the ground. Shoulders have plenty of angulation so that the legs are well set underneath the dog. Too much straightness of shoulder causes the dog to break down in the pasterns, and this is a serious fault. All four feet of the Afghan Hound are in line with the body, turning neither in nor out. The hind feet are broad and of good length; the toes arched, and covered with long thick hair; hindquarters powerful and well muscled, with great length between hip and hock; hocks are well let down; good angulation of both stifle and hock; slightly bowed from hock to crotch. Faults—Front or back feet thrown outward or inward; pads of feet not thick enough; or feet too small; or any other evidence of weakness in feet; weak or broken down pasterns; too straight in stifle; too long in hock.
Incorrect tail, curled over the back.
Correct tail with ring at end.
Correct level back.
Rear too high; over-angulated stifle.
A show trot, confident and graceful.
Bad gait; pacing.
Coat: Hindquarters, flanks, ribs, forequarters and legs well covered with thick, silky hair, very fine in texture; ears and all four feet well feathered; from in front of the shoulders; and also backwards from the shoulders along the saddle from the flanks and the ribs upwards, the hair is short and close, forming a smooth back in mature dogs—this is a traditional characteristic of the Afghan Hound. The Afghan Hound should be shown in its natural state; the coat is not clipped or trimmed; the head is surmounted (in the full sense of the word) with a topknot of long, silky hair—that is also an outstanding characteristic of the Afghan Hound. Showing of short hair on cuffs on either front or back legs is permissible. Fault—Lack of shorthaired saddle in mature dogs.
Height: Dogs, 27 inches, plus or minus one inch; bitches, 25 inches, plus or minus one inch.
Weight: Dogs, about 60 pounds; bitches, about 50 pounds.
Color: All colors are permissible, but color or color combinations are pleasing; white markings, especially on the head, are undesirable.
The scissors bite is not penalized in the Afghan Hound although the AKC standard states a preference for a level bite.
Gait: When running free, the Afghan Hound moves at a gallop, showing great elasticity and spring in his smooth, powerful stride. When on a loose lead, the Afghan can trot at a fast pace; stepping along, he has the appearance of placing the hind feet directly in the foot prints of the front feet, both thrown straight ahead. Moving with head and tail high, the whole appearance of the Afghan Hound is one of great style and beauty.
Temperament: Aloof and dignified, yet gay. Faults—Sharpness or shyness.
Approved September 14, 1948
A correct foot; pastern of correct angulation for power.
Weak foot with straight pastern.
A pup will be a pup! Be prepared for the mischief, antics and, of course, fun that comes with a new puppy.
Newborn Afghan Hound puppies are remarkably dissimilar to the adult version. When first faced with a newborn puppy, many people find it extremely hard to believe that the pup is actually an Afghan Hound. In fact, when our veterinarian came to check over our first litter of Afghan Hounds, he told my mother that he was sure that the dam must have been mismated by a Labrador. One of the reasons for this apparent disguise is the coloring of baby puppies. Even puppies that will eventually turn into palest cream gold in adulthood can be born almost black in appearance. One way to determine the potential color is to turn the coat back with one finger, and the pale coloring will be found at the roots of the hairs. Another way to predict the future color is to look at the color of the coat under the base of the newborn puppy’s tail. Black and tan puppies will also often look black all over; the tan markings on the face, forelegs and hindlegs will be found, again, at the roots of the hairs.
Another reason that the newborn Afghan Hound looks so strange to the inexperienced eye is the difference in head between the puppy and adult. The baby puppy has a foreface that is almost rounded in appearance at the muzzle, belying the long, refined head to come. Although the trained eye will see through this and experienced breeders will be able to recognize a quality head from an early age, to the inexperienced eye a baby puppy head will perhaps look as if it belongs to a different breed.
SIGNS OF A HEALTHY PUPPY
Healthy puppies are robust little fellows who are alert and active, sporting shiny coats and supple skin. They should not appear lethargic, bloated or pot-bellied, nor should they have flaky skin or runny or crusted eyes or noses. Their stools should be firm and well formed, with no evidence of blood or mucus.
The Afghan Hound puppy is born with a short coat, which will continue to look short for many weeks. This gives the young puppy a rather gangly look from around the age you may first go to see the litter until 12 to 20 weeks or more. As the puppy’s legs elongate and the puppy goes through all sorts of ungainly phases, you may wonder about the chances of your young puppy ever maturing into the elegant Afghan Hound of your dreams. However, with coat growth and body maturity, a lot of “gawky” youngsters have turned into elegant adults.
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