Editing Saluki (section)

==Description==
[[File:Long-haired Saluki from Qatar.jpg|thumb|150px|"Feathered" Saluki from Qatar.|alt=]]
[[File:Saluki dog breed.jpg|thumb|150px|Saluki with a dark colored coat.]]

Salukis are sighthounds – hunting by sight more than scent or sound – and run their quarry down to kill or retrieve it. The normal size range for the modern breed is {{convert|23|-|28|in|cm|order=flip}} high at the [[withers]] and {{convert|35|-|70|lb|kg|order=flip}} in weight.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The dog encyclopedia|publisher=DK Publishing, Inc.|others=Dennis-Bryan, Kim, Baggaley, Ann, John, Katie|isbn=9781465421166|edition= First American |location=New York|oclc=859155647|date = 2013-10-01}}</ref> Female Salukis are slightly smaller than males.<ref name="palika342">[[#Palika2007|Palika (2007)]]: p. 342</ref> The head is long and narrow with large eyes and drop ears.<ref name="palika342"/> The tail of the breed is long and curved.<ref name="palika342"/> It has the typical deep-chested, long-legged body of sighthounds.<ref name="behavior">{{cite book|last=Case|first=Linda P.|title=The Dog: Its Behavior, Nutrition, and Health |date=2005 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-0-8138-1254-0|page=24|url={{Google books|plainurl=yes|id=FQijE4uIGGoC|page=24}}}}</ref> The coat comes in a variety of colors including white, cream, fawn, red, grizzle/tan, black/tan, and tri-color (white, black and tan).<ref>{{cite book|last=Hale|first=Rachel|title=Dogs: 101 Adorable Breeds|date=2008|publisher=Andrews McMeel|isbn=978-0-7407-7342-6|url=https://archive.org/details/dogs101adorableb0000mcke}}</ref>

The overall appearance of the Saluki is grace and symmetry. Two coat types – smooth and "feathered" – are evident in the breed's gene pool. The latter variety has light fluffing on the back of the legs, thighs, ears, and sometimes the throat.<ref name=behavior /> The fur on both types is silky<ref name=toptotail /> and is low-shedding when compared to other breeds.<ref name=meetsalukis /> Salukis bred in the Middle East most commonly have short hair.

There is a type called "desert Saluki" or "Sinai Saluki" or "Hijazi Saluki", which descends from bloodlines brought directly from the original region of the breed. It exists in the entire Middle Eastern region but the origin is West of the Arabian Peninsula. In Israel the type is known as the "Negev Saluki".<ref name="israel">{{cite web |url=http://www.qashani.com/as_israel.html |title=Aavikkosalukit Israelissa |publisher=Qashani Saluqis |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-date=14 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414084245/http://qashani.com/as_israel.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The desert Saluki does not have influence of western lines and it tends to have a more primitive appearance. It often has a broader skull, shorter muzzle, shorter and more compact body, broader chest, less angulations, and shorter tail than the western equivalent. Some desert Salukis imported from the original region have cropped ears because of the common tradition in countries such as Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Syria. However, it is difficult to strictly determine what desert Salukis originated from due to the "original" bloodlines being bred in the Western world for 4 to 5 generations.<ref name="desert">{{cite web |url=http://www.qashani.com/aavikkosaluki.html |title=Aavikkosaluki: Mikä ja miksi |publisher=Qashani Saluqis |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-date=9 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181209124706/http://www.qashani.com/aavikkosaluki.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The breed existed in the US by the 1980s and there has been breeding in France since the 1990s. The first desert Salukis in Finland were imported from Israel in February 2000.<ref name="finland">{{cite web |url=http://www.qashani.com/findex.html |title=Suomen ensimmäiset aavikkosalukit |publisher=Qashani Saluqis |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200814211738/http://qashani.com/findex.html |url-status=live }}</ref> After that, more have been imported from countries such as Syria, Oman, Qatar, and Turkey. In addition to their countries of birth, they have for example Iranian, Moroccan, Bahraini, and Saudi Arabian "Bedouin Saluki" dogs in their background.