An “Afghan Women’s Walking Dog” ..the daughter of a “fighting dog”….

My dog, ChooChay (little one) has been with us a year and a half…I take her for a walk periodically and I am unlucky if I do it when the high school gets out. I am just fluent enough in Dari to understand the casual comments obnoxious, high spirited school boys make about me and my dog….dogs in Afghanistan are feared, persecuted, admired and I always raise comment when I walk her. Afghans have what are called “fighting dogs” or “Sahgee-Jangee” that are expensive and magnificent. We have one around the corner that stands almost to my chest-who waltzes out for his walk with his fierce Pushtun owner in smart red boots. They are bred for fighting and having one is quite fashionable as well as speaks well for ones courage. Pictured here is “Palang”
or Tiger –a fighting dog we encountered on our walk today.
One day on a walk with my Choochay, a couple of neighborhood high school boys saw her and sniggered in an offensive way. I was just irritable enough to turn on them and ask them what they were looking at…..”Your dog, it is a bad dog” they commented.
“Why do you say that? I asked.
“Well she has no chest, and is not big enough to win a fight. She is a small poor example of a dog”.
“Oh” I answered.” But you are mistaken. She is not a fighting dog. Men do not even have permission to walk her….in fact, she is an “Afghan Women’s Walking Dog”.
They looked at Choochay with astonishment having never conceived of such a dog, or in fact of Afghan women ever walking dogs.
“She protects me.” I said smugly.
“Oh!” they said " in this case she is a very beautiful dog…and it is right that she is with you…”
I could hear them as they walked away...agreeing that an Afghan Women's Walking Dog is an imminently sensible idea-if you could get an Afghan women to agree to get near a dog enough to walk with one.

This success in establishing the usefulness and beauty of my dog in the neighbor boys eyes has gone to my head....I am now dead bent on getting some henna so I can dip her paws and make them red…the ultimate sign of regard for a dog…after red boots.