National Purebred Dog Day #MFRWAuthor

Yeah I know, this was earlier in the month. May 1 to be exact. But for some of us every day is purebred dog day. Every. Single. Day. We wake up thinking about what we’re going to do with our dogs and fall into bed hours later snuggled up to those dogs. Which isn’t much different from the way most people feel about their dogs. So what makes purebred dogs so special.

Other than — when you choose to own a dog of a specific breed, you’ll know in advance how they will look and act, at least within a reasonable range. If you’re looking at, say, Collies, you won’t be expecting a drop ear or a close coat such as you’d find with a Spaniel.

But there’s more.

This weekend hundreds of dogs descend upon Albuquerque with their people. Dogs in all shapes and sizes and levels of energy. If you ask any of the people ‘why’…why THIS dog why THIS breed, they will all tell you ‘because.’ Because this breed is obviously the most perfect breed ever developed. Because it’s the perfect size, the perfect shape, and fits perfectly under their chin when hugged.

From the start my heart was drawn to the long legged grace of the Sighthound, in particular the Saluki. In 1972 a black and tan boy joined my life and the breed has been a part of me ever since. Seven generations later, in 2009, these nine precious babies occurred.

They quickly grew into these wiggly squiggly beasties:

And a few years later, we had:

six of the nine plus mom and dad. Photo Warren Cook

And you’ve already met some of them throughout the years. Heck most of them. Salukis have helped grow my chosen family and have supported me throughout my life. Which is in no way over yet!!!

Heading into our future…photo Shiri Hoshen