Egyptian Homer

The Egyptian Homer — a long-established Egyptian messenger breed, distinct from the European Racing Homer in both make-up and standard, kept in Egypt for show and ornament alongside its history of carrying messages. Note that it is not one of the Ghuzar houses but a separate Egyptian breed in its own right. Standard: head shaped like a half circle, sloping to the rear; beak long and thick following the curve of the head, in two forms — the round beak, which slopes with the curve of the head, and the khayari beak, which slopes forward. The beak must be white in every colour except the black, where a black tip is required as a mark of purity; the upper mandible is slightly shorter than the lower. Eye round and wide, white banded with a light red — except in the white, whose eye is bakma. Eyelids fine and white. Body strongly built, short in length and broad in the breast, with a distinctive stance: the chest lifted and the tail carried close to the ground. Legs short. The breed divides into foundation houses (white, black, blue/Ezazi, Bidairi and Hamri) and non-foundation ones (Mofassas, Ingilizi, Sabouni and Hadidi).