About the Borzoi Heritage Database

May 13, 2007
In the mid 1980's Bonnie Dalzell, MA (that's me) began compiling a Borzoi Pedigree Database. Initially this was done using RCI Software's CompuPed program to assemble a database of Borzoi information.

In December of 1999 the author of CompuPed, Larry Ritter, suddenly died. Problems that I encountered during the months after Larry's death convinced me that I did not want to tie the fate my database to a record format that was exclusive to one particular database management program. For one thing it was impossible to do a complete, clean export of the data. This ment that a lot of work had to be done with the data once exported from CompuPed before it could even be loaded into a simple spreadsheet or database program.

From May of 2000 through to now I have spent time writing a pedigree database management program called WebPed, which manages the Borzoi Heritage Database (and any other pedigree database that one might wish to enter into it.)

WebPed makes nice pedigree reports from a csv file in a variety of useful formats, including a color coded pedigree in which each ancestor occuring more than once in the pedigree is highlighted in a unique color.

WebPed allows the pedigree data to be accessed easily so that pedigrees, lists of descendents, sib lists and other useful information about Borzoi history can be generated. In addition WebPed data can be cleanly exported into a simple spreadsheet loadable format so that the person working with a WebPed created database can make other uses of the data.

Many, many Borzoi fanciers have shared information with me. This generosity has greatly aided the compilation of this database. It has also been a lot of fun writing to them and speaking with them. These helpful people include (in no particular order): Mrs Margaret Davis (Australia) Jean Grush (Vera), Aatis Lillstrom (windhound), Phyllis Brettell (Phantom Lake), Cecelia Barnett, Kanne Earl (Kilkan), Lena Tamboer (Tam Boer), Sandy Holley Mckelvey (Shady Luck), Fern Lockrem (Pickle Hill), Mrs Dudley (England, Ukrania Borzoi), Shirley Rhinehold (Ghranger), Mary Childs (Wind'n Satin), Carol Kubiak (Phaedras), Denise Como (Wolfwind), Vickie Sharp (Carbonel), Patti Neale (Sylvan), Dulcie Long (Dolce), Edwina Berg (Krasalov), Louenna Avery (Kostenov), Francie Stull.

As of May 2007 the database contains over 46,000 records. Most of these records have been entered from studbooks rather than secondary sources such as advertisements and yearbooks.

Although by no means a complete entry of all the studbooks on Borzoi, an attempt has been made to enter information for all dogs who have modern descendents. This is an ongoing project. I have a complete set of US Studbooks but the English and German Studbooks are missing crucial pages in the early 1930's, early 1940's and late 1940's to mid 1950's.

To date the main studbooks used are the AKC, English Kennel Club (KCR), Deutsches Barsoi Zuchbuch (DWB), Deutsches Windhund Zuchbuch (DWZ), Dutch Borzoi Studbook (NHSB), Swiss Borzoi Studbook (SHSB). I also have some Soviet studbooks although I have not completed transliteration of them. There are however almost 1000 entries for Russian and Soviet Borzoi.

In 1996 through 1999 Jennifer Frank, of Anwnn Borzoi in Michigan, helped with this project. She obtained numerous catalogues from Scandanavian sources,

Pedigrees from the Borzoi Database are available on line at Borzoi Pedigree Info for no charge.

The entire Borzoi database can be purchased directly from me, Bonnie Dalzell as a csv file. New purchase of the current database is $200 and it has 46,000+ records. Purchases of the Database help to support the online Borzoi Heritage Pedigree website which costs $260 a year in server fees. Obviously you can get most of the information from the website, purchasing the database is a voluntary gesture to support this online resource. Sadly server space is not free.

People who purchased the Borzoi Database before 2000 may receive a copy of the 2000 csv file from me at no additional charge. Many of the current pedigree programs include an import function and can import data from a csv file. The csv file does not include the breeders and owners, nor the notes records, nor the miscellaneous records that were in the CompuPed 4 database. I had to "hand export" and hand edit a lot of the material from the CompuPed 4 database since it had a built in protection scheme that blocked making a clean export with its own export tool.

If you were an owner of CompPed 4 and still have your CompuPed records you should be able to import them into the new CompuPed Millenium. You will have to purchase that program from the current owner of the RCI intellectual property. If your database has dogs with Euro characters in the names you may need to go through it and change the Euro characters to their nearest English equivalents. I have not run CompuPed Millenium because it appears it cannot install under the OS I now use (Linux) so I cannot give you advice on using it. I can tell you how to install and run your old CompuPed 4 successfully with FreeDOS should you still own CompuPed 4 and be willing to run a dual boot system (Linux and FreeDos, Mac OSx and FreeDos or Windows and FreeDos).

As of May 2007 CompuPed 4 encounters errors when you try to run it in a DosEmu window under Linux.

If you are an owner of an earlier version of the database contact Bonnie Dalzell about upgrade information

You should return and check this Borzois.com Pedigree Database page for further information about the database and instructions and hints on using the database. I have more information to post.

Borzois.com home page The Index of Borzoi pedigrees Silkenswift Borzoi Pages The Great Coursing Borzoi Darkness and her battle with osteosarcoma WebPed Home Pages(c)