i think Whippets were one side of the family, but i forget where the fine-haired, feathered coat came from -
do U know, nicky?

they need not be in-bred - they should be able to back-cross to the parent breeds for several generations, using un-related dogs that are similar in type to their founding pair, in order to broaden the gene pool.
the California Spangle (a cat breed) used 5 breeds as founding stock, specifically to avoid a founders-bottleneck genetically.
good thinking - but complex breeding, too, and not cheap.
cheers,
--- terry

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terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007