This breed is also known as the Afghan Greyhound, or more simply as the Afghan. Among breeders it is usually referred to as the Affie. In Germany it is the Afghanischer Windhund; in France the Lévrieir Afghan, in Spain the Lebrel Afgano. Earlier names for it include the Balkh Greyhound, the Baluchi Hound, the Barukzie Hound, the Barukhzy Greyhound, the Barukhzy Hound, the Barakzai Hound, the Kurram Valley Hound, the Kabuli Hound, the Kabul Hound and the Cabul Dog. In Russia they recognize two variants of the Afghan — the show dog, which they call the Afghan Decorative, and the working dog, which they call the Afghan Aboriginal. The latter is itself subdivided into two forms, the Bakhmul, Bakhmull, Bakmull or Makhmal, and the Khalag Tazy. The Afghan Hound was originally developed for chasing mammalian prey in the mountainous regions of its native Afghanistan.
This is without doubt the most spectacular of all the sighthounds. The greyhound may be the archetype, but the Afghan is the star performer. With its long, swishing coat, its thick ‘trousers’, and its lively, prancing gait, it is a dramatic show-stopper at any dog contest. In fact, its glamorous appearance has made it almost too popular, to the extent that it is often owned by people who, seduced by its looks, ignore its special needs.
In origin, this is probably a descendant of the Saluki, brought to Afghanistan from neighbouring Persia. Once there, it gradually developed a longer coat as a protection from the harsh environment of the mountains, where it was employed to pursue a variety of prey including everything from hare and fox, to deer and gazelle, to jackal and wolf, and even snow leopard. In a secondary role it also acted as a guard for the nomadic tribes and their livestock. These dogs were highly prized by the nomads and each year were brought down from the hills for a special festival at which they were decorated with traditional necklaces and flowers.
We have no idea concerning the antiquity of this breed. There are no reliable records of it before the 19th century, but this may mean only that Afghan nomads were poor record-keepers. The earliest certain picture of an Afghan Hound dates from 1813. Afghans first arrived in Britain in the 1920s and their rise to stardom was rapid. The breed was recognized by the Kennel Club in 1926.
In modern times, European-owned Afghans have been tried out on greyhound racetracks, with mixed results. Unfortunately, some of the animals are too intelligent to bother racing around the track in pursuit of the mechanical hare and instead simply take a short cut across the central area to pounce on the hare as it comes round the bend towards them. This intelligent approach to the problem of high-speed chasing may well reflect the cunning that is needed by this breed when pursuing fleet-footed game on irregular mountain slopes.
With the recent arrival of the loathsome Taliban regime in Afghanistan, the future of this breed in its native home may well be at risk. One can only hope that enough of these magnificent dogs will be hidden away in such remote areas of the country that the breed as a whole will manage to survive the present cultural chaos. Fortunately, the range of the Afghan spreads slightly beyond the national boundaries of its home country and into parts of northern India, where it should be safe enough. In those regions it is referred to, not as the Afghan, but as the Barakzai (variants: Barukhzy, Barukzie) or the Kurram Valley Hound.
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