Articolo

all were the representatives of one breed, but already in our century selection in the " national selection " has differentiated them a bit. Thus Chortaya - Polish and Russian -  today in Poland are obviously considered as one breed, as seen by constant attempts of the Polish breeders to import dogs from Russia for their breeding stock. Differences in the exterior of Polish and Russian Chortaya are completely insignificant. Hungarian stock differs slightly, which, probably is connected with the hybridization with Greyhounds.
Among Polish and Russian Chortaya  are two distinct types: large, with the height of more than 70-75 cm, with the more massive bone, and  the smaller sizes, with a height of 60-65 cm, with  finer bone, is more elegant. There is reason to believe that the larger type historically was formed nearer to the northern boundaries of the region (in Russia - this is Rostov and Tambovo regions), and small - in the more southern zones (in Russia - Stavropol). There is another version: larger dogs contain the larger percentage of the blood of Borzoi. Most likely both are valid. To deny influence of Borzoi on the modern breeding of Chortaya is absurd.

But one ought not to forget that the frequency of an occurrence of the specific type of working dogs testifies about its advantages under the given conditions. Such advantages can be expressed differently: the high percentage of the viability of one form in comparison with another under the given conditions - either the large duration of the season of work with dogs of one of the types or the best external parameters of the dogs, grown in this locality.
As a clear example of this advantage can serve the results of repeated introduction of theBorzoi  in Stavropol - the age-old region of the Chortaya. Many hunters attempted to introduce Borzoi, since they frequently show very good results on the fox. Furthermore, because of the activity of their owners Borzoi were advertised considerably more than any other breed. Finally, this is simply a beautiful dog.

Introduced Borzoi perished from different reasons: from infectious diseases,  poisonings. the introduced Borzoi, bred in Stavropol were usually inferior to their more northern relatives. The season of hunting with them was considerably shorter: during the too warm days hounds did not show high results and even they perished from the heatstroke. Finally, the considerble part of thm, that fell into the hands of hunters, that grew accustomed to hunting with another breed, did not show a good work ethic and were resold and even destroyed. The maintenance in the primitive conditions led also to the fact that the dogs from the excellent Central-European breeders were far less beautiful than their relatives, bred in Moscow.

But what are the differences between Borzoi and Chortaya? First of all, Borzoi is specialized, Chortaya - is extremely universal.  In it there is not one feature of addition which would not be directly connected with the work carried out by it. In this laconicism, in spite of utility, there is also beauty. Further, as the less large dog, Chortaya is more precocious, and that means it can achieve from an earlier age success in hunting. The Chortaya never  required features of addition, not simply which interfere, but also which do not help to work - the main factor of selection was always the hunting; therefore hunting passion in them is manifested earlier and it is easier than in the Borzoi. Finally, Chortaya in Russia thus far are used exclusively as working hunting dogs, and therefore the probability of the appearance of behavioral deviations is blocked automatically: nonworking dogs, fortunately practically do not participate in the breeding. And finally as the less known in the comparison with the initial type of Borzoi beeds, Chortaya are by and large more active and it is more viable than the forms which undergo the prolonged selection: in them were preserved numerous features from the mongrel, that will survive itself and will help to make them the master.

This fleet breed hunts the hare, the fox, saiga, less frequently - the wolf. Chortaya are excellently adapted to the hot weather, they do not lose fitness for work, even with a temperature decrease, but they begin to get chilled. The smooth coat, to which sticks neither contamination nor prickles, makes it possible to hunt with them and on the tillage and in the weeds. And finally Chortayae are very hardy, and many of them combine endurance with the excellent sportiness and playfullness.

This breed of the aboriginal borzoi of the southwestern part of Russia was described and standardized in 50th years of our century because of the works of two almost forgotten cinologists and zoologists - Esmonda and Lerkhe. They measured and analyzed sepcimens of several hundred dogs, belonging to hunters in Rostov and Stavropol regions. The standard, which barely changed from that time, was comprised on the basis of their verbal and digital descriptions.

Certainly, the history of the breed  began much earlier, but in Russia  these dogs did not have written descriptions. Chortaya as distinguished from Greyhound in appearance and by origin we find in Machevarianova (1861) and Gubina (1890)mentions them, Reutt (1846), mentions them in the magazine  " nature and the hunting " Around the years of the 1870's was discussed the expediency of adopting an independent standard for them.

However, existence of the description of the breed of Polish Charty in those years probably deprived the breeders of interest in the south Russian version, one ought not to forget that Poland for many decades entered into the composition of the state of Russia, and therefore the distinction between of Polish and Russian Chortaya did not make sense.

On the other hand, the historical area of these dogs icludes - Rostov, those are territories in which the owners of dogs in are essence spread out. In central Russia in view of objective geographic reasons gives advantage to the Borzoi, to which was directed the interest of the owners of large kennels. For long years Chortaya remain out of sight of dog breeders, but nevertheless they exist.

At the moment of acceptance of the standard prepared by Esmonda and Lerche, the area chortaya included Stavropol, Rostov, in part the Volgograd, Tambov, Lipetsk areas. The numbers were composed of several tens of thousands of dogs, whose overwhelming majority were deprived of genealogical pedigrees, but they were comparatively of the same type and had excellent working qualities. At the same time there was a significant group clearly mixed with Borzoi and it is generally unknown with which dogs they were bred.
As we already mentioned, for a long time the Chortaya remained outside of the attention of the owners of large hunting kennels, they were actually [pol'zovatel'nymi]. But to their merit - the working ability of these dogs was and still remains the main factor of selection. Their exterior is determined not by the taste of the breeder, but by the ability to mark, to reach and to take quarry.

Heavy field work, and not just tests or hunting for pleasure was and, we shall hope, remain a primary factor of formation of shape and all properties of the Chortaya. They were created in the steppe zone, where the dog must work on the fox that flashed at the horizon, instead of those expelled by (gonchimi) scenthounds, on the hare, that differs from the the typical hunt in  the wooded regions by high speed and by endurance, as on Saiga, that reaches the speed of 90 km/h. Thus the dogs must maintain multikilometer roaming not far from the riding hunter instead of to stand in an ambush under island. The number and the extent of the gallops, which the dog must make, are limited only to the length of light day. The hunting season is considerably increased in comparison with the same for the Central areas. After returning home, master will not have to wash the dog foot to tail to rid the stuck brush and the prickles, clean of the burdocks as in the large kennels with a kennel crew as was done with the Borzoi.
Finally, the professional hunter is interested, first of all, in the capture of the hunt and not just in a beautiful gallop. These factors in combination with the climate have predetermined the formation of the type of sleek haired Chortaya with the tight ear [rose ear] in the southwest of Russia.

Amongst the ignorant owners of Chortaya quite often there is a version about influence greyhoundâ on modern chortaya. They should take into account, that all Greyhounds, which were being brought into Russia before the revolution and, even more, after it, it would be insufficient for forming so numerous an amount of Chortaya in the remote regions, where they were formed and were preserved (even in the largest hunting  kennel of the great prince, there were only 15 Greyhounds).

Moreover, there are other considerations. First of all, difference in the work: Greyhounds for more than a hundred years are not required to hunt live game. Coursing  tests on live game, which are conducted in England - the basic of that which is required from greyhounds -  is to approach an animal but to not catch it. The Greyhound was formed as a dog for high-speed sprints. It is well documented on tests with greyhounds: dogs can get to a hare easily, but trap poorly, with difficulty [after one or two bites?]. True, after intensive training Greyhounds can learn better hunting skills. On the contrary, for Chortaya it's usual to approach the beast smoothly and take it with two - three [ugonkami] or even in sometimes without them. Such differences in the specific character of work predetermined the difference in the additions: in Greyhounds and Chortaya have a  fundamentally different distribution of muscular masses on the body, i.e., [porodospetsificheskimi] criteria became the different development of separate muscular groups. Furthermore, there are clear differences in the type, the form, the proportions of head. Finally, the spectrum of coat color [okrasov] of Greyhounds and Chortaya is different: in Chortaya is not encountered the range of smoke-colored- bluish, lilac-tinged- tiger (izabella) colors, while in Greyhounds are not observed  the spectrum of sulfur -spotted, silver, are black& tan, which are typical for Chortaya. If systematic cross-breeding between these breeds sometimes occurred, then the spectrum of coat color as a selectively neutral criterion, would be uniform.

But is also common between chortaya and greyhound: both breeds are representatives of ecological type sleek-haired breed with the tightened [rose] ear, including the whippetâ and galgo, the Hungarian agars and Polish Chortaya. All these breeds developed in parallel, but  not all of them were [vzaymoformiruyushchimi] as greyhound and whippet, Russian borzoi and chortaya.

The destiny of chortaya in the USSR developed uneasily. A fter acceptance of the standard the basic numbers of dogs remained in hands [promislovikov] in the countryside. In the 1960s when the Polish breeders have started to restore the Polish Chart, the best representatives of  the breed bought for nothing from rural hunters, were taken to Poland. Also in the beginning of the 70's  there were changes in rules of hunting then the chortaya numbers were reduced almost ten times: the rural hunter was deprived rights without registration of special documents to hunt with the breed. In result by the end of 70s almost all recording of chortich in the All-Russia stud book completely has stopped. In the Tambov and Rostov areas at exhibitions appeared only two - three chortaya of doubtful quality,  in Moscow there were none at all. Any specimens of dogs was kept in Stavropol, but, in unanimous opinion of conducting cynophiles, the breed was on the verge of disappearance.

Now their position is a little more stabilized. Efforts, with the breeding of these dogs in Moscow was possible to create the Moscow fans of this breed. Successes of Moscow and Stavropol chortaya on the All-Russia competitions shows where they many years invariable are winners, have caused inflow of interest to hunters. Now the centers of cultivation of this breed exist in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, the Volgograd, Rostov areas, in Stavropol, in  Byelorussia and in Ukraine.