CK: The proper English translation of sobaka is bitch.
Russian word for "bitch" is suka (cf. sukin
syn, "son of a bitch;" kobel' is "husband of a bitch"). Although
feminine, sobaka is not necessarily "female dog"
(pyos is always "male dog").
Igor Stravinsky (the author of Firebird, etc.) was a
friend of Nicolas Nabokov (the composer, author of charming memoirs
Bagazh, VN's cousin).
Alexey Sklyarenko