Posted by Jeanne on December 22, 2008
Elvis Presley may have made hound dogs popular with his 1956 remake of the song, “Hound Dog,” but ancient literature is replete with reference to Hounds. Zenophon the Greek discoursed at length on the care of hounds. This blog post highlights the breeds included officially in the Hound Show Group. There are many more hound breeds throughout the world but space does not permit mention of them.
A general grouping falls in three classifications — trailing hounds, coursing hounds, and miscellaneous.
Dachshund has Hunting Desire
Trail Hounds, as the name indicates, are keen to follow a trail or ground scent in the field. I can group the short-legged, long-backed breeds here: basset hound (a French breed), the dachshund, (really French in origin just as the poodle is German in origin). Do not be misled by the clowning dachs — he has a keen nose and usually delights to follow a game trail in the woods.
Beagle has Baritone Bark
The foxhound group is a familiar one. There are both American and English foxhounds. President Washington was a devout fancier of the foxhound and the chase. The harrier is a medium-sized foxhound. The beagle, belonging to the same general family, is the smallest, and perhaps with his baritone bay, the most melodious of all breeds.
Bloodhound: A Gentle Breed
The black-and-tan coonhound is the only one of a half dozen distinct coonhound varieties recognized for show and stud book (although there are minor stud books that embrace all coonhounds). The bloodhound is among the oldest of purebreeds, not at all bloody or vicious as his name implies; and his bloodlines have been used to modify or create other breeds. There is bloodhound blood somewhere along the line in coonhounds and bassets.
Use Sight in Preference to Nose
Coursing Hounds, having swiftness of action, pursue or course their game by sight rather than by the slower method of following the aura of scent. This does not mean they do not have scenting ability. The general greyhound family, perhaps the oldest of distinct canine families, includes the greyhound proper, the medium sized greyhound or whippet, and the toy size, the Italian greyhound.
Many Members of Greyhound Family
But the family is large and includes long-coated breeds. Among these are the afghan, the saluki or gazelle hound, perhaps the most graceful-moving of all breeds. The borzoi or Russian wolfhound. Scottish deerhound: and its large cousin the Irish Wolfhound, tallest and longest of all breeds.
The Miscellaneous Group brings together an interesting assembly of breeds. The basenji or barkless (but not noiseless) dog from the African Congo. Norwegian elkhound, an all-purpose dog in its native Norway and really not too much at home in the hound group. The otterhound, a rough and-ready water dog, ancestor of the airedale.
Ridgeback is from Africa
And the latest addition to the so-called royal canine family—the Rhodesian ridgeback, a medium to large-sized, short-coated, tan-colored hunting dog from Rhodesia, getting its name from this African area and from a ribbon of hair about one and a half inches wide, which runs along and on the backbone from base of shoulders to the rump but in the opposite direction to the ‘lay’ of hair, that is, it points toward the head.
Posted by Jeanne on November 18, 2008
Basset Hounds are the slowest of all hunting dogs but are possessed of very keen scenting powers. They are noted for their musical tongues and lack of unity on trail, each following his own line. They are generally used in packs on hare and rabbit but occasionally in hunting larger animals, such as fox and deer. With their extremely short legs, they are particularly valuable in hunting in dense cover.
- Head – The head should be large, the skull narrow and of good length, the peak being very fully developed, a very characteristic point of the head, which should be free from any appearance of, or inclination to, cheek bumps. It is most perfect when it closest resembles the head of a bloodhound, with heavy flews and fore head wrinkled to the eyes. The expression when sitting or when still should be very sad, full of reposeful dignity. The whole of the head should be covered with loose skin, so loose in fact, that when the hound brings its nose to the ground the skin over the head and cheeks should fall forward and wrinkle sensibly.
- Jaws – The nose itself should be strong and free from snipiness, while the teeth of the upper and lower jaws should meet, a pig-jawed hound, or one that is underhung, being distinctly objectionable.
- Ears – The ears are very long, and when drawn forward folding well over the nose. They are set on the head as low as is possible and hang loose in folds like drapery, the ends inward curling, in texture thin and velvety.
- Eyes – The eyes should be deeply sunken, showing a prominent haw, and in color they should be a deep brown.
Neck and Shoulders – The neck should be powerful with heavy dewlaps set on sloping shoulders.
- Forelegs – The forelegs should be short, very powerful, very heavy in bone, close fitting to the chest with a crooked knee and wrinkled ankle, ending in a massive paw. A hound must not be “out at elbows” which is a bad fault.
Feet – He must stand perfectly sound and true on his feet that should be thick and massive, and the weight of the forepart of the body should be borne equally by each toe of the fore feet so far as it is compatible with the crook of the legs. Unsoundness in legs or feet should absolutely disqualify a hound from taking a prize.
- Chest and Body – The chest should be deep and full. The body should be long and low and well ribbed up. Slackness of loin, flatsidedness and a roach or razor back are all bad faults.
- Hocks – A hound should not be straight on his hocks, nor should he measure more over his quarters than he does at his shoulder. Cowhocks, straight hocks, or weak hocks, are all bad faults.
- Quarters – The quarters should be full of muscle, which stands out so that when one looks at the dog from behind, it gives him a round, barrel-like effect, with quarters “round as an apple.” He should be what is known as “a good dog to follow,” and when trotting away from you, his hocks should bend well and he should move true all round.
- Stern – The stern is coarse underneath and carried “gayly” in hound fashion.
- Coat – The coat should be similar to that of the foxhound, not too fine and not too coarse, but yet of sufficient strength to be of use in bad weather. The skin loose and elastic.
- Color – No good hound is a bad color, so that any recognized foxhound color should be acceptable to the judge’s eye, and only in the very closest competition should the color of a hound have any weight with a judge’s decision.