Ever since the Borzoi first came to this country people have argued about what this dog was and where it came from. Joseph B. Thomas is thought by many to be the father of the Borzoi breed in this country. Thomas states in his book that the Borzoi is no more a wolfhound than is the English greyhound. Because the  Americans called this breed the Russian Wolfhound, many Americans insist that the Borzoi is a wolfhound. The historical evidence does not support this idea. For more information on the name of the breed and how they were used in hunting see our article WHAT'S IN A NAME?.
There are  references in the literature to an old Russian hound used to hunt wolves and wild boar. This was said to be a large hound much like the Irish greyhound, with a rough, stiff coat. This hound was dark brown or black. In the 18th century the Russians crossed to the Bearded Borzoi producing the Kurlyandskaya Psovaya. This could very well have been a true Russian Wolfhound but in no way was this breed the modern Borzoi.

   Mr. Thomas brought Borzoi to the US from the Bolderoff and Perchino kennels. Artem Bolderoff took over the hunt of his uncle in 1896. This was just 7 years before Joseph Thomas went to Russia and brought back Bolderoff dogs. Artem's Uncle's preferred type were the Ermolov dogs. Nikolai Arkadievitch Bolderoff was Artem's uncle. He began his hunt in 1866, so he had been breeding for 30 years when Artem took over. N. A. Bolderoff was the president of the Imperial Society in 1892. He was also a well known judge. Most of the dogs in his hunt go back to the Ermolov dogs. Joseph Thomas acquired dogs from Artem Bolderoff, descendants of the Ermolov dogs, which he brought to the US. Also the Perchino dogs of  Waltzoff  breeding come from Ermolov lines. Therefore, the Ermolov stock is what our dogs here today go back to.

    In the 1840's Ermolov bred out to the Mountain Borzoi, twice. He did this to get more ribspring, endurance and strength in the Borzoi. At this same time another breeder, Machevarianoff, also bred out to the Mountain Borzoi for the same reasons. This was done because of the changing hare hunting conditions in Russia at that time. See our article, WHICH CAME FIRST: THE STANDARD OR THE DOG?. In the 1870's these two men combined their blood lines. So why is this important? Because Mr. Ermolov and Mr. Machevarianoff are the fathers of the modern Borzoi breed. As Ermolov said in 1888 " This is how the unforgettable M. Machevarianoff and I highly rate those solitary hunters, Russian harehounds, which were produced by crossing with Mountain Borzoi."

     Machevarianoff died in 1888 and a man named Walzoff took up the work of  Mr. Ermolov and Mr. Machevarianoff by producing a Borzoi with greater strength and endurance to successfully hunt the brown hare. (A point to make here. If the Borzoi were originally bred to hunt wolves then why in the 1800's were the breeders trying to increase the dogs abilities at hare coursing?) Walzoff later became the kennel manager at Perchino and used the resources of the Grand Duke Nicholas (the owner of Perchino) to complete the work of Ermolov and Machevarianoff. All the foundation dogs of  Perchino go back to the Machevarianoff lines, and thus to Ermolov's breeding. The Grand Duke started the Perchino hunt in 1887, only 16 years before Thomas visited and brought Perchino dogs here. The Perchino hunt was only on its third generation when thomas first visited the hunt. Therefore what Thomas brought to the US, from both Perchino and from Bolderoff,
was not far removed at all from Ermolov's stock.

    Because of all this and more you could say that all the modern Borzoi are Ermolov dogs and thus are really, as Ermolov stated "Russian Harehounds". So Ermolov was much more that just one breeder.

    The Grand Duke had bred Borzoi for only 16 years by 1903 when Thomas visited, Artem Bolderoff for only 7 years, his uncle for 30 years before him and the Ermolov family for over 200 years. Just think this means back to the 1600's and it is also twice as long as the entire history of the Borzoi breed in the US. This may help give perspective to the role of the Ermolov dogs within the breed.
 
 

Home