About
Timaru Salukis
 Dual Ch. Timaru Nocturne |
Timaru Salukis are
located in Northern California, on a 400-acre ranch on
the Sonoma coast. Lesley has been showing dogs since
the early 1960's, starting with Shetland Sheepdogs and
then gravitating to Salukis in 1967. John "married into" the breed when he
met Lesley in 1978. After buying the
ranch in 2007, they added Anatolian
Shepherds to the team as livestock protectors
and have been successfully showing and breeding
them as well. At Timaru, we strongly believe that dogs should not only look like what the Standard calls for, but that they should be capable of doing what they were bred to do. In Salukis, that means a dog that is beautiful to look at, competent in the field and a trustworthy companion. We bred our first Saluki litter in 1982 and have developed a line from the old Jen Araby and Burydown/Almanza bloodlines. Although we breed only occasionally, Timaru Salukis are recognized around the world for their distinctive type, sound movement, good temperament and success in the ring, the field and in the home. |
 BISS Dual Ch. Timaru Victoria's Secret, CD, CC, CM, FCh. |
 Am/Can Ch. Timaru Vaya Lorrequer |
From experience, we
know Salukis are not for everyone. As a result, we
screen each potential home before placing our puppies
to ensure the best possible fit for everyone. We
consider temperament, health and longevity essential
when selecting breeding stock and all puppies undergo
health and temperament testing prior to leaving us.
Buyers are given a lifetime warranty against specified
genetic conditions should
the unforeseen happen at any time during the life of
the dog. Furthermore, we are available as
ongoing consultants to new owners and are happy to
advise on anything from feeding to training to
behavior to competition. We want our puppies to grow
up to be happy, healthy dogs with happy, satisfied
owners. We are often asked how we chose the Timaru prefix. John is from New Zealand and when it came time to choose a name for our line of Salukis, we decided to use a Maori word, the Maoris being indigenous to New Zealand. Timaru means "a place of shelter under the cabbage tree". (A cabbage tree looks a lot like a Joshua tree, a native to the California Mohave Desert.) We wanted Timaru to be a place of shelter for our Salukis. |
 Ch. Timaru Napoleon |
 Am/Can Ch. Timaru Vaya Lorrequer |
Lesley has
served on the Boards and Committees of the Saluki Club
of America, the American Saluki Association and the
Saluki Club of Greater San Francisco. Through
the years, she has written for numerous breed
publications in the U.S. and England and was an invited speaker at the Festival
of the Saluki, a worldwide congress held in England in
September of 2007. She was awarded the
AKC's Outstanding Sportsmanship of the Year Award by
the Saluki Club of America in 2007 for her work in
combating anti-dog and anti-hunting legislation and is
licensed to judge Salukis and Ibizan Hounds. She has
had Specialty assignments all over the U.S. as well as
in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, England, Sweden and
Finland. She holds a
Masters degree in Psychology and after serving as
Executive Director of a health-related nonprofit
for over a decade, now works full time on the
family's 400 acre certified organic ranch in
Bodega, CA. John holds a PhD in Engineering and
serves as CEO of an eye research institute in San
Francisco. They are both hoping he can retire soon
and stop his crazy commute so he can have more
time to enjoy life on the ranch! |
 Ch. Timaru Zinfandel, |