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Everyone, welcome to the new website for Domiko Kennel. I am so excited to have created this forum as a space to where all of us can learn and engage in open dialogue about the breed that has stolen my heart, the Azawakh. And, Im also happy to share this forum to learn more and share information on our new breed here at Domiko, the Standard Poodle.
My purpose in creating this website is to share my experiences with living with, showing, breeding and raising Azawakh with correct temperaments suited for life as companion animals for over 25 years. And yes, I knew going into this endeavor that I would receive criticism from many of the breeders who claim to strive to preserve African temperaments. I challenge all of those people who have lived in either the Americas or Europe to move to the Sahel in Africa and let me know if they do not have to change to adapt to a different way of life. If we are honest, we will admit that it isn't possible just as keeping Azawakh here isn't possible without working to adapt temperaments to lives as companion animals rather than animals considered as livestock.
You may have read on some sites from self proclaimed "animal behaviorists" who have been in the breed for basically 5 minutes that socialization is the key to correct Azawakh temperaments. I'd advise you to be cautious when listening to the advice given from these so called experts. You will also read from those same "behaviorists" that some Azawakh need to be euthanized because they are too far gone and socialization alone cannot correct some behavioral issues, and unfortunately in some cases this may be the only option. What you won't hear from these "behavior experts" is that socialization alone is not the key to correct temperaments in this breed. It is my opinion that for far too long we have focused on breeding pretty dogs that exude breed type - and make no mistake I also love Azawakh who exude the breed type that excels in the show ring - but we haven't taken enough consideration into temperaments when making breeding decisions. This has resulted in us having some gorgeous Azawakh to look at but that are a challenge to live with. And, far too many are put down due to this. I believe that if we breed to both type and temperament we can produce azawakh that are more suited to life in the the world we have brought them to when we removed them from life as livestock in Africa.
I look forward to sharing information here and learning from others as a result of the creation of this website. I believe there is a vast repository of information out there from people who have been devoted to this breed for decades and my goal is to use this forum to give those of us with this experience a chance to share.
Doug