A hairless terrier and an ancient North African hound are
ready to run with the pack of dog breeds recognized by the American Kennel
Club.
The organization announced Tuesday that the American
hairless terrier and the sloughi have joined 187 other recognized breeds. The
newcomers can now compete in most AKC shows and competitions, though not at the
prominent Westminster Kennel Club show until next year.
Many American hairless terriers are, as advertised, bare-skinned,
though others have short coats but carry the hairless gene. Their rise began
when a hairless puppy emerged in a litter of rat terriers in the 1970s, wowing
a Louisiana couple and leading to deliberate breeding of the hairless dogs,
according to the American Hairless Terrier Club of America.
The lively, inquisitive terriers can do well at canine
sports and as pets for people with dog-hair allergies.
"They're terrier-smart" but somewhat calmer than
some other terrier breeds, said club secretary Lynn Poston of Fontana,
California. "They're very easy to live with because they're very
trainable."
The sloughi (pronounced SLOO-ghee), also called the Arabian
greyhound, was developed to hunt game as big as gazelles. The lean, leggy dogs
have some similarities to salukis, another hound breed from North Africa.
Sloughis are known for speed, endurance, grace and rather
reserved demeanors.
"They are very attentive to their family, but they are
not the kind of dog that will jump on your lap - they are not after you all the
time," says Ermine Moreau-Sipiere of Como, Texas, president of the
American Sloughi Association. She has owned them for nearly 40 years.
The dogs need patient training, opportunities to exercise,
and a substantial fence if they're allowed to be loose in a yard because they
may follow their hunting instinct far and wide if they spy prey, she said.
Criteria for AKC recognition include having several hundred
dogs of the breed nationwide.
Some animal-rights advocates are critical of dog breeding
and emphasize that many mixed-breed dogs need adoption. The AKC says breed
characteristics help owners anticipate a dog's characteristics and make an
enduring match.
This undated photo provided by the American Kennel Club (AKC)
shows an American Hairless Terrier, one of two newcomers recognized by the AKC
that can now compete in most of the organizations shows and competitions,
though not at the prominent Westminster Kennel Club show until next year. The
two new breeds announced Tuesday, Jan 5, 2016, are the hairless terrier and a
sloughi, also called the Arabian greyhound. (American Kennel Club via AP)
This undated photo provided by the American Kennel Club
(AKC) shows a sloughi, also called the Arabian greyhound, one of two newcomers
recognized by the AKC that can now compete in most of the organizations shows
and competitions, though not at the prominent Westminster Kennel Club show
until next year. The two new breeds announced Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016, are the
sloughi and the American hairless terrier. (American Kennel Club via AP)
