When I made my reservations in late January to go to the
Silken Windhound Specialty Show near Sacramento, March seemed like
the distant future. It was the middle of winter after all, and March is the
beginning of spring. Anyhow, it arrived before I knew it!
It was a two-day event located in Rio Linda, California hosted by Rarities Inc.
I had hoped to see several rare sighthound breeds, in addition to the Windhounds.
Although there was not one solitary Azawakh, Sloughi, Chart Polski, Galgo
or Tazi, there were plenty of Silken Windhounds in attendance!
Like other sighthound breeds, Silken Windhounds come in a wide array
of colors and coat patterns. There were Silkens at the shows in virtually every color
possible. I must admit that photos of the brindle Windhounds do not do them
justice. Especially in the sunshine, there are many shades/tones in the brindle coats
with highlights we mere humans have to chemically add to our own hair. My favorite
Silken colors I saw at the shows were a stunning silver/grey brindle and a gorgeous
sandy/tan brindle. Those are just my own, very non-technical color descriptions.
My favorite Silken coat patterns are spotted & extreme white.
After spending most of my life with Springer Spaniels, I assumed it would be
difficult to adjust to the aloof personality of a sighthound. However, I was very pleased
to discover first-hand that the Silkens I met have friendly, gregarious personalities!
If you can imagine, it gets even better.... The "Silken Windhound people"
are just as friendly as their canines! It was wonderful meeting everyone, and to become
an unofficial member of the "Silken family". I even had a life-long dream come true
when I was honored to handle a couple Silken Windhounds in the show ring!
It was definitely an experience I will never forget!
You can visit my wonderful weekend of Windhounds in my Yahoo! photo album.
I eagerly awaited for October to arrive which brought time for ~BooFest 2005~
~ WINDHOUND-RELATED LINKS ~
My Yahoo! Silken Windhound Photo Albums
Rarities, Inc.
International All Breed Canine Assoc.
The Silken Windhound Magazine International
The Silken Windhound Magazine Online
California Silken Windhounds
Northwest Silken Windhound Association
Western Silkens Yahoo Group
