Rampur Hound - The Exotic Indian Breed faces extinction

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The Rampur Hound is a rare and smooth-haired Sighthound from North India. It evolved in the fiefdom of Rampur, which lies between Delhi and Bareilly. The ruler of Rampur, Ahmed Ali Khan Bahadur, wanted to create a swift and fierce breed for the dangerous past-time of hunting wild boars, and so interbred good native dogs with foreign breeds like Tazis, Afghans, and English Greyhounds. The result of these intermixtures was the Rampur Hound. The Rampur Hound far exceeded the Ruler's expectations. From its Tazi and Afghan ancestors, it got its looks and stalwart character and from the English Greyhound it got its speed. Here was a dog that would seldomly back down in confrontations, and could more or less keep up with the fastest prey. It was also extremely intelligent to deal with the wily and formidable boars, and, even when severely injured, was not known to give up the chase. The boar was brought down eventually, but, several times, the Rampur Hound too died, either during the Hunt or later of the sustained injuries. The Rampur Hound was also used to hunt vermin, jackals, and deer. It was so powerful it was even capable of bringing down a full-grown bull. It also had excellent tracking skills and could track wounded game over long distances. The Rampur Hound is still a commanding breed and makes an excellent guard-dog. It is fiercely protective of its family, although it tends to be a one-person dog and will usually obey only one master. Within the family circle, especially with the children, it is dependably gentle and sensitive. It is advisable, of course, to supervise interactions and see that the children don't take undue advantage of this innate good nature. It is also a large dog, it must be remembered, and, with a surfeit of affection, is capable of, however unintentionally, knocking over both kids and grown-ups. The distinct penchant of the Rampur Hound of starting – and, more often than not, ending – fights with other dogs is another factor that needs watching. Rampur Hounds are sheer poetry in motion, somebody told me, and they're not far wrong. This is one beautiful breed to watch, especially racing across wide-spaced fields, or jumping a high fence; they are known to have speeds equalling to almost 60 km/h and can easily clear fences six feet tall. The Rampur Hound is a tall, elegant dog, powerfully-built with a deep though not broad chest, a slim, high waist, and long, straight legs. The feet of the Rampur Hound are its most distinctive feature – they have long, arched, and webbed toes, with powerful claws. Such feet give the Rampur Hound a good, cat-like grip and facilitate its speed too. The tail, which is long, thin, and tapering, is carried low to the ground with an upward sweep towards its end. The Rampur Hound has small, dark-rimmed eyes that are usually light-coloured, small, curved ears, and a broad head. The muzzle, another distictive feature, is long, narrow, and pointed. The jaws have a powerful grip. The coat comes in several colors – grey, brindle, fawn, brown, white, black, piebald, but black is the color usually preferred by the native breeders. Rampur Hound males stand around 18-27 inches tall and weigh around 38-40 kg. The females stand around 15-25 inches tall and weigh around 36-38 kg. We must protect this exotic breed what do u think guys..