Sloughi Care: Safe Exercise, Training and Health Checks

By Dr Duncan Houston

The Sloughi is a North African sighthound built for speed and pursuit. Its lean outline and often reserved manner call for thoughtful care, not assumptions that it needs either constant running or firm handling.

The priorities are secure exercise, a comfortable home and health decisions based on the individual dog.

Quick Answer

Sloughis need regular activity, safe opportunities to run when appropriate, reward-based training and respectful social introductions. Review parental specialist eye examinations and relevant progressive retinal atrophy testing. Do not assume desert ancestry prevents heatstroke or that a sighthound's normal lean build means every thin dog is healthy.

Understand the breed without stereotyping the dog

The AKC breed profile describes a swift North African coursing hound. Sloughis are distinct from Salukis, despite similar-sounding names and shared sighthound features.

Some dogs are reserved with strangers and affectionate with familiar people. Allow voluntary approach, avoid crowding and teach visitors to respect space. A quiet dog may be relaxed or uncomfortable; look at the whole body and whether the dog chooses to stay.

Supervise children and assess compatibility with other animals individually. A dog who lives peacefully with one household cat may still chase unfamiliar small animals outdoors.

How to exercise a fast dog safely

Provide daily walks, sniffing and training, with secure running opportunities for a mature, healthy dog. Check an enclosure for holes, hazards and adequate fencing before releasing the dog. Open countryside is not automatically safe because it looks spacious.

Build conditioning gradually and avoid sudden hard sprinting in an unfit dog. Puppies need self-paced movement and rest. For older dogs, stiffness or poor recovery should prompt a health review and an adjusted plan.

Practise recall with valuable rewards, but maintain physical management near roads, livestock and wildlife. A chase response can override a well-rehearsed cue. Use well-fitted equipment suited to a narrow-headed dog and check that it cannot slip off.

Training should build confidence

Teach useful skills in short sessions: name response, coming away, standing for examination and settling on a comfortable bed. Reward cooperation rather than escalating pressure when the dog hesitates.

Introduce new places and people at a pace that allows calm observation. Flooding a worried dog with busy environments can strengthen fear. If behaviour changes suddenly, consider pain or illness before assuming breed aloofness.

Practise manageable separations. A dog who paces, vocalises or tries to escape throughout an absence needs support rather than being left to become exhausted.

Feeding and coat care

Feed complete life-stage food and adjust portions to body condition and actual work. A pet Sloughi does not automatically need a high-calorie performance ration. Ask your vet to assess muscle and fat coverage if you are uncertain about the breed's naturally lean outline.

Unplanned weight loss, poor appetite or declining muscle needs investigation. Do not assume it is simply a sighthound trait.

The short coat benefits from regular gentle brushing and skin checks. Provide soft resting surfaces and protection from cold or wet conditions when needed. In hot weather, use shade, water, cooler activity times and appropriate cooling; ancestry is not protection from overheating.

Maintain nails, inspect ears and brush teeth daily. Clean or medicate ears only when indicated, not according to an automatic weekly rule.

Health screening and anaesthesia

Published Sloughi screening recommendations include specialist eye examination and DNA testing for the Sloughi-associated form of progressive retinal atrophy. Ask for the actual parental results and relevant family history.

A clear DNA test for one retinal disease does not exclude all eye problems. Vision change, squinting or redness still requires examination.

Tell the veterinary team the dog's breed and previous anaesthetic history. AAHA anaesthesia guidance supports individual assessment, drug selection and monitoring. There is no single special protocol suitable for every sighthound, and appropriate anaesthesia should not be avoided when necessary care depends on it.

When is veterinary attention urgent?

Common mistakes

• Testing recall for the first time around running wildlife.
• Assuming every thin dog has an appropriate sighthound body condition.
• Forcing a reserved dog to greet people.
• Prescribing annual Addison's testing without a clinical reason.

Frequently asked questions

Is a Sloughi the same as a Saluki?

No. They are distinct breeds with different backgrounds and breed standards.

Must a Sloughi run off lead daily?

No universal schedule applies. Safe activity, fitness and welfare matter more than a fixed rule.

Can Sloughis live in a flat?

Potentially, if exercise, toileting and comfortable rest are practical.

Are Sloughis unsafe to anaesthetise?

No. They need an individual veterinary plan and appropriate monitoring, as every patient does.

Respect a Sloughi's speed and sensitivity while watching for real changes in comfort. Secure freedom and careful observation make daily life safer.

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For help preparing your Sloughi's care questions, explore ASK A VET™. Sudden collapse or breathing difficulty needs immediate veterinary assessment.