Dog Breed Guide

Borzoi

Profile

Size

Large

Country of origin

Russia

Origin

16th century

Bred for

Hunting wolves and foxes

Height

male 75 - 85cm (30 - 33in), female 68 - 78cm (27 - 31in)

Weight

male 34 - 48kg (75 - 106lb), female 27 - 39kg (60 - 86lb)

Life span

10 - 12 years

A large, aristocratic sighthound with a long, refined head, a long, silky, wavy coat and long, supple legs. Almost every color is accepted, including white with patches of color.

Calm, quiet and composed, the Borzoi is affectionate with its family but has a cat-like independence and does not much like being fussed over. It is reserved with strangers and seldom barks without reason.

When it spots prey it gives chase at astonishing speed, so never let it off the leash except in a safe place. Indoors it often lounges and sleeps, but it also needs time to run flat out. The long coat needs regular brushing.

Good to know

The Russian aristocracy bred this dog to hunt wolves, and it was once called the Russian Wolfhound. It is said that Borzoi were not bought and sold but could only be obtained as a gift from the tsar.

In the late 19th century, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich maintained a vast kennel at Perchino near Moscow, which at its peak held as many as 130 adult dogs and 60 puppies. Grand hunts with large packs of hounds and horses were a symbol of the glittering culture of the Russian nobility.

In the Russian Revolution of 1917, however, many Borzoi were killed as symbols of the aristocracy, and the breed all but disappeared from Russia. It survived only because dogs had been given as gifts abroad before then.