Temperament of Sighthounds- from “Our Levriers” by Xavier Przezdziecki
-Thousand of years of companionship with the hunters of the steppes have led the Levrier to share the life of the human family and yet safeguard a fundamental independence inherited from his forebears in the wild. Somewhat paradoxically in juxtaposition to the Levrier’s need for independence, there is an equal need for affection from man whose presence the Levrier constantly seeks- as if those hunting and sporting activities so important to physical development are in need of a complementary element vouchsafed by a serene family environment.
Even living in a group, the Levrier recognizes the prerogative of a man as a master, observant, wary, keen and obedient according to circumstance, he retains a latent predatory temperament without which the Levrier would not be a Levrier. Sociability and behaviour as adults will depend on their contact with humans during the first weeks of their lives. To make the point once more: the first weeks, those earliest months, are the determining phases.-
