You have been warned.

Two Afghan Hounds strolling down a street near my home in Fukushima City. Oh my goodness, I feel like I stepped out of a picture book!  I talked to their owner human friend and she said she and they come from Iizaka Town (a small town just outside of Fukushima City.)

I told her that there is a Borzoi that lives in our neighborhood. She was impressed.

Google just told me that, while there are several languages in Afghanistan, the most common one is Dari (Afghan Persian.) In Persian (or Farsi) “dog” is “sag.”

And in Japanese, “dog” is “inu.”

The two dogs were very friendly. I asked if it was okay to pet them, and she said yes, they don’t mind at all. They were sweet! And just as soft as they look. (They are obviously well-groomed.)

Are Afghan Hounds really from Afghanistan? Google says yes–Middle East, Persia, and Afghanistan. But the modern ones in western society descended from Afghan Hounds which were brought to the United Kingdom.

Even though the photo looks like the Mr. and Mrs. are out on a walk, I was told by their human friend that they are both male, and the one with the wrap over his head is wearing it due to some sort of ear problem (or maybe not a problem, exactly. The dog’s ears are very long.)