Borzoi breed guide

In their quiet, catlike way Borzoi may be stubborn. AKC says training works best with patience, consistency and good humor. They are intelligent and very affectionate with their owners but independent.

Large as they are, they are graceful, athletic animals that make good housedogs.

Borzoi live 9 to 14 years. Breeders screen for elbow and hip dysplasia, osteochondritis dissecans and progressive retinal atrophy.

Like other large deep-chested dogs, Borzoi may get bloat, a sudden life-threatening stomach condition and sighthounds as a group are more sensitive to anesthesia.

Like any long-coated dog the Borzoi sheds a bit, so a quick brushing every day or two with a pin brush, slicker brush or comb removes loose hair and dirt. About once a year it sheds more heavily for several weeks and grooming then needs to be more frequent.

Daily exercise means long walks or running in a securely fenced yard. Being sighthounds, Borzoi are apt to chase anything that moves, so they should always be in an enclosed area or on a leash.

Under the Romanovs, wolf hunting was an all-consuming passion of the Russian aristocracy and nobles staged ritualized hunts on vast estates with guests, horses and hounds brought in on special hunt trains. A hundred Borzoi and as many servants were not unusual at such affairs, which ended with a great feast at the manor house.

A breed historian describes the grand scale and magnificence to which the gentle Borzoi is heir.