No no. Nothing like that.
They used to be the Russian Empire's royal family's dog and it was considered a great honour to be gifted a breeding pair. Entire estates were traded for them.
Then the filthy jew commies took over and butchered a whole lot of them. Since they were a symbol of the Tsar they went out of their way to try and snuff them out. The best of the breed was lost this way. What is left are remnants and echoes. Similar to the fate of the Russian aristocracy, ironic when you think about it.