Jaaram Nubia
© Jack McGuffin

    The Nubia Memorial Cup is a perpetual trophy presented annually by the Sloughi Fanciers Association of America to the Sloughi dog or bitch which has most shown itself to excel in the field during a given year.  This determination is made by a tally of all points earned in any combination of sanctioned field events.

     The first Nubia Cup was presented in 1995 and was donated by Jack McGuffin in memory of his lovely red brindle Sloughia,  Jaaram Nubia.  Nubia was one of a litter of twelve, sired by the handsome Dutch-bred, Farhan of Mumtaz-i-Javanadmi out of the French-bred bitch, Tounsia Kahloul de la Treille.  Nubia became somewhat of a ‘poster girl’ for the breed when she became the first Sloughi to participate in the premiere Rare Breed Exhibition of the Kennel Club of Beverly Hills in 1987.  She was of course nearly always the sole exhibit for the breed in matches and shows in those early days, but did gather her share of Group wins at the limited number of events available to her.   But the show ring was not Nubia’s passion.  Her delight was out in the open desert of the Mojave, hunting with her packmates.  She loved nothing more than to go for an early morning expedition with some of her buddies, working the desert in her effortless, light-footed trot, back and forth out in front of her master, until she might have her desires met by kicking up a strong desert jack to chase.

     Her passions for the chase aside, Nubia was a very stoic, elegantly built bitch with a soft and gentle nature.  She chose her friends discriminatingly, and spent most of her time at home quietly perched in ‘her’ corner of the sofa, surveying contentedly whatever might be happening in the household.  Her additional vocation as a watch dog of her domain, despite her generally soft nature, she also took quite seriously.  Several times each day she found it necessary to perk her always attentive ears to a somehow peculiar sound  outdoors and trot hurriedly through the dog door to investigate what might require her services. Horses going by with their riders she found of great interest and would ‘yodel’ to them.  But strange dogs who might be roaming by were especially not to be tolerated and she invariably let them know beyond question when they had come too close to her pack’s territory, as she did with strangers who had not been given the sanction of being invited by her master.  She was a beautifully devoted companion.  She was a beloved credit to her breed.

     By interesting coincidence, all winners of the Nubia Memorial Cup to date have been related to Nubia, being cousins through a sister of Nubia’s dam, Tounsia, by the name of Tililane Kahloul de la Treille, maternal great-grandam of the ‘95, ‘96, and ‘97 Cup winners.  These dogs have continued to exemplify the qualities desired in a well-rounded Sloughi and two of the winners are also multi-International and World conformation Champions, an additional testament to their sound repertoire.

The first ever Nubia Memorial Cup Winner
Amir Shi'Rayân
© 1995 Alex Smith

     The Nubia Memorial Cup was established in the hope that Sloughi fanciers in the future will continue to pursue activities which might help insure that the dogs retain their natural athletic abilities and characteristics.  The Sloughi was designed to be, first and foremost, a dog capable of performing intended functions.  Of this we must not lose sight.