She breeds, trains, and participates with Kyrgyz Tygans—a very ancient breed traditionally popular in rural areas—in various hunting competitions and festivals, all of which takes place in her private home in the city.
Turmush conducted an interview with her. Together with her husband, Zhyldyz raises four children: two of them are already adults, and two are younger. "My little daughters help me: they go with me to training and take care of the dogs when I am away. The older children support us financially. Since childhood, I have been a big animal lover, I loved horseback riding, and then I became interested in shepherd dogs, wanting to raise and train them. I had seen Tygans before but didn't pay them much attention. Everything changed when my friend's son bought a Tygans puppy. I saw his photo and was amazed. A year later, the thought came to me: we have dogs from Switzerland, Japan, and Siberia, why not breed our unique Tygans? These dogs are truly beautiful and exceptional," she said.
Unfortunately, the breed is at risk of extinction. I started asking my son's friend about the puppy he got, and after three months, I managed to find a Tygans for purchase. I wrote to his owner through social media, and to my surprise, he agreed to sell. I ordered a gray Tygans ("boz"), and the owner said that such a color is very rare. After contacting a well-known breeder, Mayrambek Asaniev, I saw his magnificent Tygans and became even more interested. In the end, my son gifted me a puppy, which we named Barbayán," she added.
Zhyldyz has been breeding Tygans for three years. "There were no hunters or people associated with hunting dogs in my family. We are all medical workers, and I once worked in this field, but then I left. At first, I only had Barbayán, and soon I realized that Tygans need companionship, so I took a second one. Tygans should live in pairs to play and communicate. One of them can get bored and stop being active. Two Tygans happily chase each other. Over time, I acquired another Tygans from a well-known hunter, Munarbek. Now I have seven dogs: five Tygans, one Laika, and one Belgian Shepherd. We registered our kennel with an international organization, and experts come to us. If they give a high rating, we receive a title. In recent years, the number of titled Tygans in the country has significantly increased," the breeder shared.
Tynalieva also spoke about the differences between urban and rural Tygans. "My Tygans live in the city, and taking them out for training every day is quite challenging. In the village, it's easier for them: they can run around the yard and fields. You can take a Tygans with you hunting. In the city, however, there is a risk of them being hit by cars or stolen. Tygans need a lot of space to run. But urban Tygans have their advantages: they are not afraid of cars, crowds, and city noise—they are used to all of this. We take them to the outskirts—to fields and mountains—so they can run and play. Sometimes, when I walk with the Tygans, people don't even know that this is a Kyrgyz breed. They say, 'That's a Russian Borzoi' or confuse them with other breeds," she added.
Tynalieva noted the unique qualities of Kyrgyz Tygans that are not found in other breeds. "I have kept various breeds, but indigenous dogs, especially Tygans, are much more resilient. We start training puppies at the age of 4-5 months, and they can run all day without getting tired. Other breeds cannot withstand that. I have observed this in practice. Puppies of other breeds can die if they run without rest. Tygans are like wild animals, yet they are domesticated. We create shelter for them from bad weather, but even in harsh conditions, they sleep peacefully outside. When hunting, they do not eat the prey but bring it to their owner. These dogs are very smart and proud, like our people. They do not obey commands like shepherds, but if trained from childhood, they will follow commands, although not immediately," she explained.
Zhyldyz shared how her Tygans demonstrated their intelligence. "My Barbayán can open and close doors in the house. That's why we always lock the gates. Once, when I went out for a walk with another dog and returned, I couldn't open the gate because Barbayán had locked it from the inside. We have a tall fence, and he couldn't climb over it. I told him, 'Open the door, please, or you'll be left alone in the yard.' And suddenly, I heard a rustling sound, but without any metal noise. I slowly opened the gate, and it opened. Barbayán was standing in front of me, and I was amazed by his agility," she shared.
According to Tynalieva, when the puppies were small, they were invited to the Almaz Akun competitions. "At that time, I didn't even know about the existence of the 'Salburun' organization. One day, I met Almaz, and he asked why I didn't bring my Tygans. I am grateful to him, as he did a lot for uniting Tygans. He gifted me a saiga skin for training the dogs, and we went to the competition. My Tygans participated in such an event for the first time, and none of us knew how it would go. I was worried: how would they be able to run in muzzles? But, can you imagine, my Tygans was the first to grab the saiga skin and carried it away, not letting anyone near. It was an amazing competition, and I was thrilled by the atmosphere and the people. We watched hunters, falconers, berkutchis, and Tygans. I had a great time and am very grateful to the organizers. We come to such events like a holiday. Participation is almost free, and local authorities help with travel expenses. I would like the government to pay more attention and support to this sport, as not all Tygans and berkutchis are wealthy people, and many lack funds to participate," she concluded.
"In the Chuy region, there is the 'Mergen Fest,' where my Tygans also take prize places. We even went to Kazakhstan, where everything was also well organized. Recently, the 'Mergen Fest' took place again in the Chuy region, organized by Talai Shukurov, who divided all the Tygans by gender and age. They brought a large wolf, and each of us entered one Tygans for the contest. My Tygans took first place; he did not leave the wolf and constantly resisted, biting several times. Of course, there are more experienced and stronger Tygans, but I continue to work on getting my Tygans to their level," Zhyldyz Tynalieva shared.
