Azawakh

The Azawakh is a tall, dry-coated sighthound from the Sahel, especially the border region of Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso called the Azawagh. Kept by Tuareg and other pastoral peoples, it has been used to guard camps and livestock as well as to course hare and gazelle. The outline is long-legged, short-backed, fine-skinned, and lean, with visible muscle and bone and an elastic gallop. Coat colors and white markings vary by registry, but the sparse coat and lean frame reflect desert and semi-arid conditions.

Living with an Azawakh calls for secure space to run and a household that respects its reserved, deeply bonded nature. It may be warm with its own people but aloof with strangers, so calm socialization is more useful than forcing attention. Like other sighthounds, it should not be trusted loose near roads or unfenced wildlife areas. Thin skin, low body fat, and short hair make cold-weather management important. Responsible breeders pay attention to sound movement, temperament, and inherited issues reported in the breed.

Colors: Apricot, Bicolor, Black, Black and Tan, Black and White, Black Mask, Blue, Blue and Tan, Blue Merle, Blue Roan, Blue Tick, Brindle, Brown, Brown and Tan, Brown and White, Chocolate, Cream, Dapple, Domino, Fawn, Fawn and White, Gold, Gray, Grizzle, Harlequin, Irish Marked, Liver, Liver Mask, Mantle, Mask, Merle, Mottled, Parti-Color, Piebald, Red, Red and White, Red Merle, Red Roan, Red Tick, Reverse Brindle, Roan, Sable, Saddle, Sand, Silver, Speckled, Spotted, Tan, Ticked, Tricolor, Tuxedo, White, White and Fawn, White and Red, White and Sand, Yellow