Azawakh breed guide

The Azawakh is both highly intelligent and fiercely independent, so AKC says training must start early with a trainer who takes a positive approach. It has an great amount of dignity and does not respond well to harsh or punishment-based training, which can produce a hound broken in spirit or aggressive and unmanageable.

Azawakhs live 12 to 15 years. Breeders screen for hypothyroidism, seizures, cardiac problems and autoimmune-mediated disease.

The thin skin lets bone structure and muscle show, so AKC says owners should learn what an Azawakh in good weight and condition looks like.

The short fine coat needs minimal upkeep: a weekly once-over with a soft bristle brush, rubber grooming mitt or hound glove. Azawakhs have no doggy odor, so frequent bathing is unnecessary and a muddy hound may only need to dry before being brushed.

An active breed, it needs daily exercise: adults make great running companions or a daily half-hour play session in a well-fenced field, park or yard works. Left alone in the yard, an Azawakh will not exercise itself and gets more activity with its owner or another dog.

The Azawakh's homeland is the arid south Sahara and the Sahel, with the Azawakh Valley on the border of Mali and Niger at its center. The blue-clad Tuareg nomads traditionally own the dogs and call them idii n' illeli, sighthound of the free people.

Azawakhs live under the same roof as their families and protect the encampment and flocks from invaders. They are passionate hunters that provide meat. AKC names hare and antelope among the preferred prey.