About
Vision
Our vision is a world where the Azawakh thrive, both now and forever; a world in which people of diverse cultures work together to achieve shared goals concerning the welfare of the Azawakh, and where all challenges to the preservation of the Azawakh are overcome.
Form
We are a benevolent organization where the beneficiaries are first and foremost the Azawakh, and secondarily the members ourselves.
Mission
Our mission is the preservation, welfare and advancement of the Azawakh–the sighthound of Africa’s Sahel. One of our goals is to disseminate information regarding the history of the Azawakh and of the Azawakh as they exist today both in and outside the Sahel: through education and cooperation in a non-competitive social climate, to share this information with others through our website and other publications.
Overview
Azawakh are African sighthounds forged over millennia into creatures possessing unique physical, mental and aesthetic qualities which to this day enable them to serve three distinct and often inextricably interrelated functions: guardian, hunter and status symbol.
Aboriginal to the Sahel zone of the countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, they are bred by the various ethnicities and tribes of the Kel Tamasheq, the confederation of tribes and ethnicities who speak Tamasheq.
In appearance they are at once familiar and mysterious: almond eyed, lean and graceful…moving with collected, elastic articulation…their demeanor is guarded and untamed. There are of course variances in type from the most rustic to the most refined, but the basic structure–that of a short-backed, long-legged sighthound–is consistent.
Their temperament is complex and opaque, a striking counterpoint to the simplicity of their external format. Thousands of years of domestication cannot completely mask their primitive underpinnings.
Highly alert and suspicious, they are also fiercely territorial and loyal. They typically form an attachment to one master. With their master and those they trust they are independent, playful and gentle. With strangers and in unfamiliar situations they can be avoidant to the point of unnaproachability.
In Africa Azawakh are rarely treated as pets or companions. Outside Africa they are primarily appreciated for their companionship. Their inherent resilience and adaptability more than qualifies them to assume this role.
The Azawakh Club of America, Inc. (AZCA) was founded by Corine Lundqvist in 1998 to promote the Azawakh and unite enthusiasts committed to the Club’s core mission.
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