Registration and the Desert Bred Saluki

Once upon a time when we spoke of desert breds, it was just assumed that the Salukis in question were not registered and there was no way they were going to be. Times have changed - for the better, we think- and now there are several ways a Saluki either from a country of origin (COO) or descended from imports from
COO, can achieve AKC registration.

In those simpler times, not so very long ago, when we spoke of direct imports, we spoke of Salukis about whom nothing verifiable was known. We knew they looked like Salukis, and there may have been some record of their sire and dam, but nothing that could be accepted as fact. These were the generation 0 hounds. At that time generation 0 always meant a direct import, and a direct import always meant it was generation 0.

There are now two established registries in countries of origin - one in Israel, which is recognized by the AKC; and one in Bahrain, which is an FCI associate member, but is not recognized by the AKC. With these two registries, it is now possible that an import from either of these countries will come with a generation 0, 1, 2, or even a complete generation 3 pedigree. Direct import no longer always means generation 0, although a generation 0 hound is always going to be a direct import. A generation 0 hound is still an unknown quantity
about which all we know for sure is that it looks like a Saluki and it is from a country in which the Saluki is indigenous.

The Society for the Perpetuation of Desert Bred Salukis (SPDBS) serves as a domestic registry recognized by the AKC. Through a critique process, SPDBS can register generation 0 through 3 desert bred and direct desert descent Salukis, including Salukis with incomplete pedigrees from reciprocating registries. Generation 3 Salukis registered with SPDBS that are whelped in the United States can apply for AKC registration.

So, lets count the ways AKC registration can happen for a direct desert descent Saluki:

1.  It has a complete, 3 generation pedigree, it is whelped in the US, and it is critiqued into the SPDBS registry.
2.  It has a complete, 3 generation pedigree, it is whelped and registered in Israel and is imported into the US following the AKC's rules for imports.
3.  It has a complete, 3 generation pedigree, it is whelped and registered in any country with a registry the AKC recognizes, and it is imported into the US following the AKC's rules for imports. The pedigree can contain hounds from a registry that the exporting country recognizes, but that the AKC may not, i.e., Bahrain, which is an FCI associate member and is accepted by most FCI countries.