Na jednoj izložbi pasa, spiker je najavljivao pojedine pasmine. Kad su došli na red hrtovi, opisao ih je ovako: ”Sljedeću grupu ne mogu najaviti kao psi ti i ti … jer oni nisu samo psi. Zato ću samo reći, slijede hrtovi”.

I doista, oni se razlikuju od svih ostalih pasa. Oni su jedinstveni. Iako se ljubitelji drugih pasmina sa mnom neće složiti, za mene su to najelegantniji i najljepši psi . Ali pustimo na stranu ljepotu, jer u psećem svijetu ima mnogo lijepih pasa. Ruski hrtovi su jedinstveni po svojoj naravi. Svatko tko do sada još nije upoznao ni jednog ”rusa”, a htio bi ga imati, treba dobro razmisliti o nabavci. Jer to nije pas za svakoga.

Ako želite psa koji će vas u stopu pratiti, ”kao pas”, gurati vam u krilo svoje igračke, stalno tražiti vašu pažnju i željeti igru, tada borzoi nije za vas. To su mirni i nenametljivi psi. U kući, stanu – smješteni na ugodnom naslonjaču ili mekanom krevetu – mogu provesti sate i sate. Ali nemojte misliti da ne sudjeluju u svemu što se u kući zbiva. Njihove prekrasne oči, kao dvije velike porculanske pikule, stalno su u pokretu i prate vas. Samo pušteni u prirodi pokazuju svoj živahni temperament. Naravno, da uvijek postoje iznimke, pa tako i kod Borzoja ima i onih koji odstupaju od navedenih karakteristika.

Isto tako ne očekujte od borzoja da donosi bačeni štap. Oni nisu aporteri. Ne kažem da ih se ne može naučiti vračati bačene igračke, samo će vam za to trebati malo više vremena. Njima je u krvi da ulove, a vi onda sami dođite po štap. Ali ako baš želite, za vašu ljubav, naučit će vračati bačeno.

Ako ste temperamentna osoba, glasna i puno gestikulirate, ni tada, borzoj nije za vas. Buka i metež im smetaju, oni trebaju mirne, staložene vlasnike i ugodnu atmosferu. Isto tako ne bih vam ga preporučila kao prvog psa. Iako se po karakteru razlikuju od ostalih pasmina, iskustvo življenja s psom je poželjno.

Borzoi dobro podnose djecu. Pogotovo ako su s njima odrasli. Ali ipak ih ne bih preporučila onima s posve malom djecom. Radije pričekajte da dijete odraste do dobi kad mu se može objasniti da borzoi nije igračka koju do besvijesti mogu natezati, čupati za dlaku, gurati i pokraj njih vrištati. Od takvih malih napasti, borzoj će se uljudno maknuti, ali djeca to uzmicanje rijetko kada shvaćaju kao – ostavi me na miru-. Većoj djeci koja razumiju njihovu narav, poštuju njihovu osobnost i pravilno se prema njima odnose, borzoi može biti divan prijatelj i obožavat će ih kao i svaki drugi pas.

Borzoi je ponosan, dostojanstven i inteligentan. Oni koji se po pitanju inteligencije ne bi složili sa mnom, ne znaju ili zaboravljaju činjenicu da borzoji kao i sve velike pasmine, kasno sazrijevaju. Fizičku i psihičku zrelost postižu tek sa tri godine. Za razliku od pasa malih pasmina, koji su zreli psi sa godinom dana. Moja mala mješanka Nera vrlo rano je sama naučila otvarati sva vrata u kući. Lona to nije naučila, ali zna dozvati Neru da ih otvori umjesto nje.

Veoma su emotivni i osjetljivi na grubu riječ ili postupak. Jednom kada sam Lonu zatekla u krađi i strogo ukorila, nakon pet minuta povratila je sve što je tog dana pojela. Toliko je teško primila srcu moj ukor. Da, znaju biti i vješti kradljivci. Zbog svoje visine imaju dobar pregled svega što se nalazi na stolu, pa tko da odoli. Hrtica od poznanika naučila je otvarati vrata hladnjaka. Kad je poznanik jednom došao doma, cijeli je stan mirisao po sarmi, a njegova kujica zadovoljno je ležala na krevetu okićena rezancima kiselog zelja. Pojela je nekoliko sarmi , popila mlijeko, nekoliko sirnih namaza i… nije joj bilo zlo, niti je imala drugih probavnih problema. To s hladnjakom se ponovilo još jednom, i nakon toga je poznanik prilikom odlaska iz stana, na hladnjak naslanjao stol. Da li to i dalje radi, ne znam. Psi koje sam imala prije Lone također su ponešto ukrali, ali sam ih uspješno od toga odvikla. Lonu ne. Postigla sam jedino to, da je sad opreznija. Kako svako zlo ima svoje dobro, otkako imam Lonu, moja kuhinja je urednija, sve se sa stola sprema. Osim ponekad. Tada Lona pospremi.

Svaka grubost u odgoju borzoja, posve je neprimjerena. Fizičke kazne, ” cukanje ” povodnikom i slično, zaboravite. Uvijek morate imati na umu da su oni veoma samostalni. Stoljećima uzgajani za lov sami su morali donositi odluke. S takvim psima treba imati puno strpljenja i učenje bazirati na nagradama za poticanje pozitivnog ponašanja. Uz mnogo nježnosti i lijepih riječi. Najbolja se pokazuje metoda učenja s klikerom (Vindor škola). Moja Lona je prošla tu školu i postigli smo da je dobro ”odgojen ” pas. Tijekom školovanja primjećivala se razlika u naravi između mog i ostalih pasa. Jedna od vježbi sastojala se u tome da voditelj drži psa na povodniku, a vlasnik se udalji dvadesetak koraka, počne zvati svog psa, na što voditelj pušta povodnik. Ostali psi su u brzom trku dotrčali svojim vlasnicima i bacili im se na ruke, samo je moja Lona lagano dokasala do mene i nježno mi dotakla ruku.

Borzoji ne prilaze strancima veselo mašući repom tražeći milovanje. Pruži li netko prema njima ruku, pogotovo ako to učini neočekivano i naglo, ustuknut će. Vrlo su plahi, što nikako ne smijemo miješati sa strašljivošću. Naprotiv, vrlo su srčani psi, ali nepovjerljivi. Suzdržani su čak i prema osobama koje poznaju. Onaj kome veselo priđu, može se smatrati veoma povlaštenim. Njihovi izljevi emocija, također rijetki, rezervirani su samo za najuži dio ljudskog čopora. Iako ne uskaču vlasniku ujutro u krevet budeći ga vlažnim njuškicama, iako ponekad osjećate da nisu oduševljeni vašim maženjem – ali da to stoički podnose, iako ponekad okrenu glavu kada ih želite zagrliti, vi im predstavljate centar svijeta i obožavaju vas na sebi svojstven način. Odvajkada su bili lovci, samostalni i nenaviknuti na maženje, pa je takvo ponašanje razumljivo. Što je stotinjak godina u vijeku jedne drevne pasmine kao što je to Borzoi? Jer tek su toliko godina kućni ljubimci, bez prava na lov.

Iako lovci u svojoj duši i genima, stoljećima uzgajani za tu svrhu, danas, AKC ih kao takve ne priznaje i svrstava ih u 10. skupinu, pod zasebnim nazivom Hrtovi. Prema tome, niti naš Zakon o lovstvu ne priznaje hrtove kao lovce, dapače, lov s hrtovima je zabranjen (članak 63, stavak 7). Pošto ih ne svrstavaju u lovne pse, kod nas ne postoji ni radni ispit za njih. Danas se s borzojima lovi jedino u Rusiji.

Vremena se mijenjaju, a mi se prilagođavamo. Tako i naše ”lovce” trebamo prilagoditi ”modernoj civilizaciji” i raznim situacijama s kojima ćemo se susresti u našem suživotu. Po gradu i malim zelenim površinama treba ih voditi na povodniku. Tek kad ocijenimo da smo dovoljno udaljeni od prometnica, možemo ih pustiti da slobodno trče. Pazite! Ono što nama predstavlja dovoljnu udaljenost, za njih je sitnica, u trenu pretrče park, i mogu doći na prometnu cestu. Veoma je važno od malena ih učiti da ne obraćaju pažnju na mačke i ptice i socijalizirati ih s ostalim psima. U pravilu nisu agresivni i vole se igrati, pogotovo s pripadnicima svoje pasmine. Problemi mogu nastati s vlasnicima malih pasa koji se – i vlasnici i psi – uplaše borzojeve veličine, pa mogu nervozno reagirati. Mali pas od straha počne lajati i cviljeti i teško je tada vlasniku objasniti da se vaš samo igra i da njihovome ništa nije na žao učinjeno. Inače, potrebna im je kao i svim drugim aktivnim psima svakodnevna šetnja i po mogućnosti barem jednom tjedno slobodno trčanje nekom velikom livadom. Nakon aktivne šetnje, mirno i zadovoljno će provesti ostatak dana. Ja imam takvu sreću da s Lonom mogu dolaziti u ured. Veoma je mirna i nikome ne smeta, tako da ponekad kolege niti ne znaju da je ona pored mene.

Upravo zbog njihove veličine, specifičnog oblika tijela i predivne dlake, biti ćete na šetnjama primijećeni, zaustavljani i zapitkivani od prolaznika. Čut ćete i negativna mišljenja i razna nadijevanja imena. Prolaznici borzoje najčešće zamjenjuju s afganistanskim hrtom, za neke su dugodlake doge, za neke koze, a za djecu mali konjići. Međutim, većina će vam prići s osmjehom divljenja i mnogo pitanja. Gdje god se pojavili, uvijek ćete privlačiti pozornost, na to morate biti spremni. To može biti ugodno, ali ponekad i ne. Doživjela sam u jednom gradu u susjednoj državi, da su četiri borzoja zaustavili cestovni promet. Vozači su jednostavno zaustavili automobile nasred ceste i gledali nas. Sa zanimanjem i divljenjem. Ali kada za šetnje gradom desetci ruku žele pogladiti vašeg psa, to može biti pomalo naporno.

Borzoi u svojoj punoj ljepoti, plijeni poglede veličinom, linijom i prekrasnom svilenom, valovitom dlakom. Ali ta divna dlaka može biti još jedan razlog, zašto da se ne odlučite za ovu pasminu. Jer barem jednom na godinu, mora otpasti. Ako volite izuzetno uredan stan, zaboravite na borzoja. Ženke se počinju linjati 3-3,5 mjeseci nakon tjeranja koja se javljaju svakih 6 – 8 mjeseci. Neke imaju duži ciklus, 8 – 12 mjeseci i njihovi vlasnici se mogu smatrati sretnicima. Ako su sterilizirane, mijenjati će dlaku kao i mužjaci, sezonski, 2 puta godišnje. Kad jednom krene, to je kao da u kući imate još jedan tepih povrh starog. U to vrijeme, vaš hrt neće biti baš onako lijep kao inače. No, ubrzo počinje rasti nova dlaka, čija mekoća i svileni dodir bacaju u zaborav sve muke oko čišćenja. Osim uživanja u pogledu na novu dlaku, dodirujući je biti ćete i zdraviji. Glađenjem pseće dlake stvara se pozitivni elektricitet koji iscjeljuje umorno ili bolesno srce, smanjuje se krvni tlak, pada temperatura kože i usporava bilo. Sve su to fizičke promjene koje su se dešavale nekad davno kad smo dodirivali majku.

I na kraju, borzoj košta, njihova oprema, prehrana, cijepljenja. Ali ništa više nego ostali psi velikih pasmina. Zato prije nabave psa razmislite dopušta li vaš kućni budžet novog člana obitelji sljedećih 10 – 12 godina. Za malog psa npr. trebate mali ležaj, za borzoja veliki, jer vrlo brzo raste i jednog dana će biti visok 75 -85 cm (ženke 5 cm manje) i težit će 30–40 kg ženke, 37 – 47 kg mužjaci. I njihova prehrana košta više nego za malog psa. A upravo prehrani trebate posvetiti veliku pažnju i na njoj nikako ne smijete štedjeti. Pogotovo u vrijeme rasta. Tijekom prvih mjeseci života štene troši nevjerojatnu količinu energije, s obzirom na to da u prvih 18 mjeseci naraste koliko i dijete u prvih 14 godina. Zato im u prve dvije godine treba osigurati najbolju prehranu, uravnoteženu i prilagođenu brzini njihovog rasta. Izuzetno je važan pravilan omjer energije i kalcija za zdrav razvoj njihovih dugih kostiju i zglobova. Izbor najbolje prehrane ključ je za dug i zdrav život i moja je preporuka da se u određivanje potrebnih količina hranjiva i njihov međusobni omjer ne upuštate sami, već da to prepustite stručnjacima. Svi moji psi odrasli su na dehidriranoj, super premium hrani Eukanuba, u koju imam potpuno povjerenje. Odrasli borzoi ne trebaju toliko hrane koliko bi na prvi pogled pomislili s obzirom na njihovu veličinu. Sve ovisi o tome koliko su aktivni.

Ako se niste obeshrabrili i ako ste nakon ovih mojih uputa zaključili da je borzoj kao stvoren za vas, želim vam dobrodošlicu u društvo ljubitelja ove nevjerojatne pasmine. Borzoj će u vaš život unijeti toliko mnogo vedrine i ljubavi da će vam život postati puno bogatiji i sretniji. Samo jedan pogled na ova predivna bića, donijeti će osmjeh na vaše lice i uljepšati dan. Moja prijateljica, kad sam joj poslala e-mailom slike Lone i familije, otpisala mi je:

”Kad bi vidjeli moju facu prije fotkica i poslije, ne bi vjerovali da se radi o istoj osobi”.

While announcing Borzois on a certain dog show the speaker said: “I cannot announce next group the same as other dogs,… because they are not just dogs. That’s why I find it sufficient to say: Borzois come next.”

He was right. Borzois are different from other dog breeds. They are unique. Although lovers of other breeds probably won’t agree with me, I find them the most elegant and beautiful among dogs. Beauty is not so important because there are many good looking dogs. What makes Borzois unique is their character. Whoever hasn’t met Borzoi, but wants one, has to think twice about getting it, because that particular dog breed is not for everyone.

If you want a dog with typical “dog behavior”: a dog who will folloresw you, who will put his toys in your lap, who will want your constant attention, or who will want to play frequently, then Borzoi is not the dog for you. They are calm and unobtrusive dogs. They can spend hours laying on comfortable sofa or soft bed either in house or in apartment. Although they will look disinterested, they will follow everything what is happening around them. Their beautiful eyes, like two porcelain pebbles, are constantly following your actions. Their lively temperament is expressed only when they are allowed to roam free in nature. Of course, there are always exceptions, and even among Borzois there are some who won’t have those characteristics.

Don’t expect from Borzoi to fetch. They are not aporters. They can learn to fetch, but it will take time to learn that skill. In past, they were trained to hunt, and hunters (owners) role was to pick up what Borzois caught. But, if you insist, they will learn to fetch for you.

If you are strongly emotional person, loud, or gesticulate much with your hands, then Borzoi is not a dog for you. They are annoyed by noise and chaos. Their owners need to have calm and composed personalities, while their homes need pleasant atmosphere. They are also not recommendable as first dog to own. Although their character is different from other dogs, it is better to have experience with dogs in your home before purchasing Borzoi.

Borzoi s are good with kids, especially if they grew up with them. I wouldn’t recommend them to people with infants. It is better to wait for the infant to grow up a bit, when it can be explained to him that Borzoi is not a toy which can be bothered, kicked and screamed at. Borzoi will always move away from trouble, but it can be a problem if infant doesn’t understand the meaning of Borzois action. To bigger kids, who can understand the dogs’ behavior, who respect their nature, and treats the dog right, Borzoi can be great friend, and will adore them as any other dog.

They are very proud, dignified and intelligent. There are people who doubt their intelligence, but they don’t know, or forget the fact that Borzois are maturing later, as all great breeds. They achieve physical and psychical maturity with 3 years, unlike smaller breeds, who reach their maturity after only 1 year. My little mongrel Nera learned how to open all the doors in the house very early. Lona; Borzoi, never learned the trick, but she learned how to call Nera to do it for her.

Borzois are very emotional, and they respond to any harsh word or action the owner refers towards them. Once I reprimanded Lona when I caught her stealing, and she was so sorry that she threw up everything she ate during that day. Because of their height they have good view of the contents on the table, so it is very hard for them to resist the temptation.

My friends Borzoi learned to open the door of the refrigerator. Once when he came home, whole apartment smelled like meat rolls with cabbage, and his dog was lying happy and careless on the bed decorated with shreds of cabbage. She ate few meat rolls with cabbage, drank some milk, ate few soft cheeses… and she didn’t have any digestion problems. She repeated her stunt few more times, and it all ended with my friend blocking the fridge door with kitchen table every time before he went out. I don’t know if he still does that.

The Dogs I had before Lona were successfully trained not to steal, but not her. I only managed to make her more careful. As a result my kitchen is very tidy, and nothing is ever on the table. If it is, Lona puts it away.

Roughness is completely unsuitable in Borzoi upbringing. You must forget physical punishments, sudden leash pulling and so on. You must bear in mind that they are very independent. For hundreds of years they were brought up for hunting where they had to make their own decisions. With dogs like that, owner must have lots of patience, and learning must be based on prizes which will encourage positive behavior, along with gentleness and kind words. Vindor school was proven best for Borzois. My Lona finished that school, and she behaves perfectly. During school, one could notice the difference in character between Lona and other dogs. During one lesson, owners had to give their dogs leash to trainer, move away from them some 20 steps, and then call them back. Trainer would then release their leashes, and all dogs ran to their owners. All accept Lona, who elegantly walked back to me and gently touched my hand, unlike other dogs that jumped all over their owners.

Borzois don’t come to strangers fawning their tails, wanting to be petted. They will surely flinch if someone abruptly pushes her hand towards them. They are very timid, but not cowardly. They are very bold, but untrustworthy. They are restrained even towards familiar people. There are very few people to whom Borzoi come open hearted. Their rare emotional outbursts are reserved for only the closest members of human pack. Sometimes they don’t like to be petted, and they will never wake you up by jumping onto your bed. But you must remember that you are the center of their world, and they love you in their unique way, even when they turn their head when you want to hug them. They were always hunters, independent and unused to petting, so that kind of behavior is to be expected. What is a hundred years in the life of ancient breed like Borzoi? And that is how long they are pets, without hunting rights.

They are hunters in their souls and their genes, bred especially for that purpose. Today, AKC doesn’t recognize them as hunters, and puts them in 10th group under its own name: Borzoi. Croatian Hunting law doesn’t recognize them as hunters either. Hunting with Borzoi is strictly forbidden (article 63, paragraph 7). Since they are not considered hunting breed; hunting exam doesn’t exist as well. Today, only place where one can hunt with Borzoi is Russia.

Times are changing and we are adapting. We need to adapt our “hunters” to “modern civilization”, and situations with which they will face in real life. They have to be leashed in the city, and in small parks. They can be unleashed only when we are far enough from roads and traffic, but be aware: What we consider “far”, for fast Borzois is nothing but a few seconds of run. It is very important to teach them not to pay attention to birds and cats, and to socialize them with other dogs. They are not aggressive, and they love to play with other dogs, especially their own breed. Problems can be found with small dogs and their owners, who both get scared by Borzois size, and they can react very nervously. Little dogs tend to bark and whimper, and it is difficult to explain to their owners that dogs were “just playing”.

They need long walks and at least once a week good run in natural environment. After active walk, they will be calm and peaceful for the rest of the day. I consider myself very lucky, because I can bring Lona to my work. She is very calm, and doesn’t bother anyone, so sometimes my work colleagues don’t know she is even there.

When walking, because of their size, looks and hair, you will be stopped, noticed and questioned by other people. You will hear good and bad comments, and plenty of names for your dog. Borzois are commonly mistaken with Afghanistan greyhound, some other people call them “longhaired doga???” goats, or little horses – the last one is mostly by children. But most people will give smile of admiration to your dog and lots of questions to you. Wherever you go, you got to be ready for attention you will get. Sometimes it is pleasant, but sometimes it can be bothersome. Once I saw 4 Borzois stop the traffic. Drivers were stopping their cars in the middle of the road to stare at us, bewitched by dogs’ looks. Sometimes it can be very annoying, when dozens of hands want to touch your dog.

Borzois are distinguished by their size, overall looks, and silky, silver hair. But, that hair can be one big reason for not buying the dog, because at least once a year it has to fall off. If you like clean apartments, forget about Borzois. Females start to lose their hair 3 to 3.5 months after estrous cycle, which occur every 6 to 8 months. Some have longer cycle (8 to 12 months) and their owners can consider themselves lucky. If females are sterilized, they will change their coating like males: two times per year.

When Borzois start to change their coating sometimes it will look like you have new carpet on top of your old one.  Dog will also lose some of his/ her looks, but soon new hair will start to grow, and its beauty will make you soon forget about all the trouble you had with cleaning. Enjoying your dogs’ new hair will make you proud, and you will be healthier by touching it: by touching the dogs’ hair you make electricity which soothes the heart, lessens the blood pressure, lowers skin temperature, and slows down the pulse. All those changes were also happening while we touched our mothers when we were toddlers.

In the end, Borzoi cost lots and lots of money: dog itself, food, equipment, vaccines, but no more than other big breeds. Before buying the dog, you must realize if your budget can sustain new family member for the next 10 to 12 years. For little dog you need little bed, but for Borzoi big one, because he grows fast, and one day he will be 75 to 85 cm tall (females 5 cm lower), and they will weigh 37 to 47 kg (males) or 30 to 40 kg (females). Their food is also more expensive then little dogs’ food.

Nourishment is the most important thing for Borzoi, and you must never save money on it, especially while the dog is still growing. Puppy is spending incredible amounts of energy during first few months. To compare it with humans: Borzoi will grow in 18 months the same as human child in 14 years! In first 2 years they need to have the best nourishment you can get, and it needs to be adjusted to their growth rate. The most important mineral in their food is calcium, because of their long bones and joints. The food is important for long and healthy life, so the best option is to let the experts tell you your dogs’ diet. All my dogs grew up on dehydrated, super premium Eukanuba dog food, in which I have my full trust. Mature Borzoi mostly don’t need huge amounts of food, it depends on their active lifestyle.

If you were not discouraged and if you decided after reading my instructions that Borzoi is the dog for you, I welcome you to the club of Borzoi lovers. They will bring happiness and love into your personal life. Only one look on these beautiful beings will bring smiles on your faces and make your day. When I sent email with pictures of my family and Lona to my friend she wrote back:

“If you could see my face before and after I saw the photos, you wouldn’t believe it the same person”.