Thursday, January 05, 2006

...and of Almaty

My ornithologist friend Andrey Kovalenko in Almaty, Kazakhstan, who bred my Kiran, sent me this picture of brindle Lashyn's grandfather Sherkhan standing on the steppes with the Tian Shan behind, by our friend (and pro photographer) Oleg Belyalov.


I wish I had the "real" computer working so I could show you the drawing from the Russian magazine "Oxota"-- by Vadim Gorbatov of course-- which shows Oleg being mauled by a leopard in Turkmenistan. Later, perhaps...

Lashyn is a "Semirichenski" or Seven Rivers tazi and a taller, more rawboned type than the Almaty and Turkmeni strains, as was her grandfather. She was born in Kiev, but all her ancestors were Kazakh.

And Kiran's father has had a great honor-- he was chosen to portray the Kazakh tazi on a first- day cover and stamp.


The boy looks just like his dad.

2 comments:

Chas S. Clifton said...

I think I'll always want to call Kiran "Prince Hamlet." Or possibly "Orlando." He looks like an Orlando. Instead of a spiked anti-wolf color, he needs one of those 16th-century starched ruffs, don't you think? And a black velvet cape.

Steve Bodio said...

Works for me! Though "Kiran" or (like the movie) "Kyran"-- "Golden" as in the eagle, ain't bad either...