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104-600: The bloodhound is a large scent hound , originally bred for hunting deer , wild boar , rabbits , and since the Middle Ages , for tracking people. Believed to be descended from hounds once kept at the Abbey of Saint-Hubert, Belgium , in French it is called, le chien de Saint-Hubert . This breed is famed for its ability to discern human scent over great distances, even days later. Its extraordinarily keen sense of smell

208-418: A scent trail —is deep and booming and can be distinct from their barking voice, which itself can have variations in tone, from excited to nervous or fearful. As they are bred to "give voice" when excited, scent hounds may bark much more frequently than other dog breeds. Although this can be a nuisance in settled areas, it is a valuable trait that allows the dog's handler to follow the dog or pack of dogs during

312-447: A 'blanket' black and tan (see the section on colour types above). To De Fouilloux, the 'pure black' was the best of this mixed breed. Both writers thought them only useful as leash hounds. They both refer to a white hound, also a St. Hubert, which by their time had disappeared, having been interbred with another white hound, the greffier, to produce the king's preferred pack hound, sometimes called le chien blanc du roi , "the white dog of

416-421: A blond coat and, therefore, produce offspring looking unlike their parents. Starting in 2007, genetic analysis has become available to the public. The companies claim their DNA -based diagnostic test can genetically determine the breed composition of mixed-breed dogs. These tests are still limited in scope because only a small number of the hundreds of dog breeds have been validated against the tests, and because

520-654: A common foundational breed, making them difficult to separate genetically. For example, Labrador Retrievers , Flat-coated Retrievers , Chesapeake Bay Retrievers , and Newfoundland dogs share a common ancestry with the St. John's water dog – a now-extinct naturally occurring dog landrace from the island of Newfoundland. The theory of hybrid vigor suggests that as a group, dogs of varied ancestry will be generally healthier than their purebred counterparts. In purebred dogs, intentionally breeding dogs of very similar appearance over several generations produces animals that carry many of

624-528: A cross to a Dumfriesshire Black and Tan Foxhound into his Peak Bloodhounds. Generally, masters of Bloodhounds since then maintain a level of out-cross breeding in their packs to improve speed and agility, while retaining Bloodhound type. These packs hunt the clean boot and are followed by a field on horseback. Grafton was the Bloodhound in Landseer's famous painting Dignity and Impudence . Both dogs in

728-616: A desired physical trait. The genetic health of hybrids tends to be higher. Healthy traits have been lost in many purebred dog lines because many breeders of showdogs are more interested in conformation – the physical attributes of the dogs in relation to the breed standard – than in the health and working temperament for which the dog was originally bred. Populations are vulnerable when the dogs bred are closely related. Inbreeding among purebreds has exposed various genetic health problems not always readily apparent in less uniform populations. Mixed-breed dogs are more genetically diverse due to

832-402: A family member whom the puppy sees walk away, at first remaining visible, and later going out of sight. Even though familiar with the scent of the 'runner', the dog can be given a scent article to sniff, and given the command to follow. The dog can also be introduced to the tracking harness, which is put on just before the trail starts, and removed as soon as it is finished. On reaching the runner,

936-557: A few deer parks and by a few enthusiasts, with some variation in type, until its popularity began to increase again with the rise of dog shows in the 19th century. Numbers, however, have remained low in Britain. Very few survived the Second World War , but the gene pool has gradually been replenished with imports from America. Nevertheless, because of UK quarantine restrictions, importing was expensive and difficult throughout

1040-441: A given group. Scent hounds specialize in following a smell or scent. Most of these breeds have long, drooping ears. One theory says that this trait helps to collect scent from the air and keep it near the dog's face and nose. They also have large nasal cavities, which helps them scent better. Their typically loose, moist lips are said to assist in trapping scent particles. Because scent hounds tend to walk or run with their noses to

1144-460: A good distance away from the actual footsteps of the quarry, which can enable them to cut corners and reach the end of the trail more quickly. In America, sticking close to the footsteps is called 'tracking', while the freer method is known as 'trailing' (in the UK, 'hunting'), and is held to reflect the Bloodhound's concentration on the individual human scent, rather than that of, say, vegetation crushed by

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1248-728: A hound inherits the black allele (variant) from either parent, it has a black nose, eye rims, and paw pads, and if it has a saddle, it is black. The other allele suppresses black pigment and is recessive, so it must be inherited from both parents. It produces liver noses, eye rims, paw pads, and saddles. The second gene determines the coat pattern. It can produce animals with no saddle (essentially all-tan, but called 'red' in Bloodhounds), ones with saddle-marking, or ones largely covered with darker (black or liver) pigment, except for tan lips, eyebrows, forechest, and lower legs. These last are sometimes referred to as 'blanket' or 'full-coat' types. In

1352-567: A hunt even when they are out of sight, such as when following a fox or raccoon through woodland. The Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) places scent hounds into their classification "Group 6". This includes a subdivision, "Section 2, Leash Hounds", some examples of which are the Bavarian Mountain Hound (Bayrischer Gebirgsschweisshund, no. 217), the Hanover Hound (Hannover'scher Schweisshund, no. 213), and

1456-473: A hunting hound go back to medieval books on hunting. All dogs used in the hunting field were 'gentle', that is of good breeding (not necessarily pure breeding), and parents were carefully chosen to maintain and improve conformation . In 1896, making some use of wording found in earlier descriptions, Edwin Brough and Dr. J. Sidney Turner published Points and Characteristics of the Bloodhound or Sleuth-Hound . This

1560-661: A life expectancy of 9.3 years for the breed compared to an average of 12.7 for purebreeds and 12 for crossbreeds . In a 2004 Kennel Club survey the most common cause of death was gastric dilatation volvulusat 34%, the second leading cause of death in the study was cancer, at 27%. The St. Hubert Hound was, according to legend, first bred ca. AD 1000 by monks at the Saint-Hubert Monastery in Belgium; its likely origins are in France, home of many of modern hounds . It

1664-468: A mix of breeds , differ from mongrels in being intentionally bred. At other times, the word mongrel has been applied to informally purpose-bred dogs such as curs , which were created at least in part from mongrels, especially if the breed is not officially recognized. Although mongrels are viewed as of less commercial value than intentionally bred dogs, they are thought to be less susceptible to genetic health problems associated with inbreeding (based on

1768-503: A pack, because each liked to follow the scent on his own. Eventually, many were sold to Le Couteulx de Canteleu and taken to France. Around the start of the 20th century, several packs existed briefly, following either deer, or the 'clean boot' – individual human scent without any enhancement such as animal blood or aniseed. Since the Second World War there have been several packs, including that of Eric Furness, who introduced

1872-416: A pioneering study in 1969, Dennis Piper suggested five alleles in the pattern-marking gene, producing variants from the red or saddleless hound through three different types of progressively greater saddle marking to the 'blanket' type. However, more modern study attributes the variation to three different alleles of the agouti gene . A produces the non saddle-marked "red" hound, A produces saddle-marking, and

1976-420: A produces the blanket or full-coated hound. Of these A is dominant, and a is recessive to the others. The interaction of these variants of the two genes produces the six basic types shown below. Another source does not recognise a as a separate variant. Instead, it says "a includes tan point and saddle tan, both of which look tan point at birth. Modifier genes in saddle tan puppies cause a gradual reduction of

2080-473: A quite different layout and wording. The AKC standard has hardly been altered from the original of 1896, the principal change being that the colours, 'black and tan', 'red and tan', and 'tawny', have been renamed as 'black and tan', 'liver and tan', and 'red', but the British KC has made considerable changes. Some of these were simply matters of presentation and did not affect content. However, responding to

2184-496: A scent and follow it for long distances over rough terrain. The best scent hounds can follow a scent trail even across running water and even when it is several days old. Most scent hounds are used for hunting in packs of multiple dogs. Longer-legged hounds run more quickly and usually require that the hunters follow on horseback; shorter-legged hounds allow hunters to follow on foot. Hunting with some breeds, such as German Bracke , American Foxhounds , or coonhounds , involves allowing

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2288-429: A scent article which has not been handled by anyone in the area, so that the hound will learn to indicate to a handler that the required scent is not there. If the hound is becoming discouraged they can revert to simpler tasks to recover enthusiasm. Canine identification of a suspect can help police with their inquiries, and evidence of identification is accepted in some courts. The most approved method of identification

2392-427: A scent hound, is hard and composed of fur alone, with no admixture of hair. This breed is reported to be gentle and is tireless when following a scent. Because of its strong tracking instinct, it can be willful and somewhat difficult to obedience train and handle on a leash. Bloodhounds are known to have an affectionate and even-tempered nature to humans, with them considered to be excellent family pets. Up to at least

2496-432: A single recognized breed. Unlike mixed-breeds, crossbreed dogs are often the product of artificial selection – intentionally created by humans, whereas the term mongrel specifically refers to dogs that develop by natural selection , without the planned intervention of humans. The words cur , tyke , mutt , and mongrel are used, sometimes in a derogatory manner. There are also regional terms for mixed-breed dogs. In

2600-453: A special reward from the carcass. It also seems that from the earliest times the Bloodhound was used to track people. There are stories written in medieval Scotland of Robert the Bruce (in 1307), and William Wallace (1270–1305) being followed by 'sleuth hounds'. Whether true or not, these stories show that the sleuth hound was already known as a man-trailer, and it later becomes clear that

2704-423: A test showing they will not bother livestock, especially sheep. Special prizes are on offer for identification and voice ('speaking to the line'). The best hounds may be invited to take part in special stakes, the most difficult being 3 miles long, 24 hours cold. The medieval Bloodhound was not primarily a pack hound, but a leash hound, though there may have been packs in different places or at different times. Up to

2808-609: Is prekoplotski avlijaner ( over-the-fence yard-dweller ). In Russia , a colloquial term дворняга (yard-dweller) is used most commonly. In the Philippines , mixed-breed street dogs are often called askal , a Tagalog -derived contraction of asong kalye (”street dog"), while in Singapore, they are known as Singapore Specials. In Puerto Rico , they are known as satos ; in Venezuela they are called yusos or cacris ,

2912-515: Is vira-lata ( trash-can tipper ) because of homeless dogs who knock over trash cans to reach discarded food. In Newfoundland , a smaller mixed-breed dog is known as a cracky , hence the colloquial expression "saucy as a cracky" for someone with a sharp tongue. Guessing a mixed-breed's ancestry can be difficult even for knowledgeable dog observers, because mixed-breeds have much more genetic variation than purebreds. For example, two black mixed-breed dogs might each have recessive genes that produce

3016-401: Is among the most impressive of hound voices. When hunting in a pack, they are expected to be in full cry. They are more likely to 'give tongue,' 'throw their tongue,' or 'speak' when hunting in a pack than when hunting singly, and more when hunting free than when on the leash. The quality of 'speaking to the line', that is giving tongue when on the correct scent while remaining silent when off it,

3120-451: Is because current accepted breeding practices within the pedigreed dog community result in a reduction in genetic diversity, and can result in physical characteristics that lead to health issues. Studies have shown that crossbreed dogs have a number of desirable reproductive traits. Scott and Fuller found that crossbreed dogs were superior mothers compared to purebred mothers, producing more milk and giving better care. These advantages led to

3224-732: Is combined with a strong and tenacious tracking instinct, producing the ideal scent hound, and it is used by police and law enforcement all over the world to track escaped prisoners, missing people, and lost pets. Bloodhounds weigh from 36 to 72 kg (80 to 160 lbs). They are 58 to 70 cm (23 to 27 inches) tall at the withers . According to the AKC standard for the breed, larger dogs are preferred by conformation judges. Acceptable colors for bloodhounds are black, liver, and red. Bloodhounds possess an unusually large skeletal structure with most of their weight concentrated in their bones, which are very thick for their length. The coat, typical for

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3328-404: Is for the hound to jump up, and place its paws on the subject's chest. In the case of a lost person or a known fugitive identification will not be significant, and in the case of a potentially violent, possibly armed, fugitive, a Bloodhound handler will not want their dog to approach the quarry for fear of injury to the Bloodhound. Many Bloodhounds reaching the end of a trail will show no interest in

3432-413: Is held to be the ancestor of several other breeds, like the extinct Norman Hound , and Saintongeois , and the modern Grand Bleu de Gascogne , Gascon Saintongeois , Ariegeois and Artois Normande , as well as the Bloodhound. It has been suggested that it was a dog of mixed breeding , not at all uniform in type. Whether they originated there, or what their ancestry was, is uncertain, but from ca. 1200,

3536-478: Is known as a feist . Slang terms are also common. Heinz 57 , Heinz, or Heinz Hound is often used for dogs of uncertain ancestry, in a playful reference to the "57 Varieties" slogan of the H. J. Heinz Company . In some countries, such as Australia, bitsa (or bitzer ) is sometimes used, meaning "bits o' this, bits o' that". In Brazil and the Dominican Republic , the name for mixed-breed dogs

3640-425: Is led along the 'trail', and if they show an inclination to go to the wrong person, they are chastised, but they get the liver if they go to the right one. When the hound goes to the right person almost infallibly, the number of people is increased, making the choice more difficult, and eventually the brief walks are extended into full trails. A common misconception is that Bloodhounds are employed in packs; while this

3744-401: Is not found before the late 18th century. Before then, 'bloodhound' had been taken to mean, 'hound for blood', or 'blood-seeking hound'. This was the explanation put forward by John Caius, who was one of the most learned men of his time, and had an interest in etymology, in the 16th century. It is supported by considerable historical linguistic evidence, which can be gleaned from such sources as

3848-589: Is not known. Bloodhounds were used to track runaway slaves before the American Civil War , but it has been questioned whether the dogs used were genuine Bloodhounds. However, in the later part of the 19th century, and in the next, more pure Bloodhounds were introduced from Britain and bred in America, especially after 1888, when the English breeder, Edwin Brough, brought three of his hounds to exhibit at

3952-535: Is referred to as Trailing Scenthounds, and includes dogs used for tracking of humans, reputedly descended from the St. Hubert Hounds. Mongrel A mongrel , mutt , or mixed-breed dog is a dog that does not belong to one officially recognized breed , including those that result from intentional breeding . Although the term mixed-breed dog is sometimes preferred, many mongrels have no known purebred ancestors. Crossbreed dogs, and " designer dogs ", while also

4056-466: Is sometimes the case in Britain, where foxhound blood is mixed into them to increase speed, in North America, Bloodhounds are used as solitary trackers. When they are on a trail, they are usually silent and do not give voice as do other scent hounds. The original use of the Bloodhound as a leash-hound, to find but not disturb animals, would require silent trailing. Nevertheless, the Bloodhound bay

4160-496: Is valued in British Bloodhound circles, on aesthetic grounds and because it makes it very easy to 'read' the hound's tracking behaviour. As a result, special trophies for speaking to the correct line are on offer at British working trials (where hounds hunt singly), although rarely awarded. Bloodhound Working Trials, first held in 1898, take place in Britain four times a year, under Kennel Club rules, organised by either

4264-498: Is very big, from 69 cm to 80 cm (27½–31½in) high. This does not accord with the 16th century descriptions of the St. Hubert given above, nor with the FCI standard, but the idea that the St. Hubert is much bigger (up to 91.5 cm, 36 in) than the Bloodhound persisted well into the 20th century, even among some St. Hubert enthusiasts. When the first Bloodhounds were exported to the US

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4368-574: The Oxford English Dictionary ( OED ): the fact that first uses of the word 'blood' to refer to good breeding in an animal postdate the first use of 'bloodhound'; that other comparable uses, as in 'blood horse' and 'blood stock' appear many centuries later; and that derogatory uses of the word 'bloodhound', which any suggestion of noble breeding would sadly weaken, appear from as early as c. 1400. Other early sources tell us that hounds were supposed to have an interest in blood, and that

4472-669: The Alpine Dachsbracke (Alpenländische Dachsbracke, no. 254). In addition, the Dalmatian and the Rhodesian Ridgeback are placed in Group 6 as "Related breeds". Genetic studies indicate that the scent hounds are more closely related to each other than they are with other branches on the dog family tree. The scent hound type includes the following breeds: The Scenthound Group is the group category used by

4576-623: The United Kennel Club (US), which it divides into two categories. The first includes the American hunting dogs known as coonhounds and the European hounds from which they were developed. These are referred to as Tree Hounds. The category also includes curs , American dogs bred for hunting a variety of game, such as squirrels , raccoons , opossums , bobcats , cougars , American black bears , and feral pigs . The second category

4680-626: The United Kingdom , mongrel is the unique technical word for a mixed-breed dog. North Americans generally prefer the term mix or mixed-breed . Mutt is also commonly used in the United States and Canada . Some American registries and dog clubs that accept mixed-breed dogs use the term All-American to describe mixed-breed dogs. There are also names for mixed-breeds based on geography, behavior, or food. In Hawaii, mixes are referred to as poi dogs, although they are not related to

4784-590: The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City. He went into partnership with Mr. J. L. Winchell who, with other Americans, imported more stock from Britain. Bloodhounds in America have been more widely used in tracking lost people and criminals – often with brilliant success – than in Britain, and the history of the Bloodhound in America is full of the man-trailing exploits of outstanding Bloodhounds and their expert handlers,

4888-485: The dun hound and the Southern Hound , as well as pack hounds, have also been supposed to have contributed to its make-up. Some writers doubt whether anything certain can be said about specific breed ancestry beyond the last few centuries. The picture given by Le Couteulx and D'Yauville of the St. Hubert was that it changed considerably through mixed breeding, and perhaps degenerated, before its disappearance, while

4992-415: The 17th century, Bloodhounds were of all colors, but in modern times the colours range has become more restricted. The colors are usually listed as black and tan, liver and tan, and red. White is not uncommon on the chest and sometimes appears on the feet. Genetically, the main types are determined by the action of two genes, found in many species. One produces an alternation between black and brown (liver). If

5096-537: The 19th century, a single hound or a brace was used on deer parks, to find deer for the gun. However, mid-century two packs appeared, that of Thomas Neville, who hunted in the New Forest area, and who preferred very black hounds, and that of Lord Wolverton . Both of these hunted semi-domesticated deer ('carted deer'), which were recaptured on being brought to bay and returned home. It was said of Lord Wolverton's hounds that he found it difficult to get them to hunt as

5200-463: The 19th century, which has been enthusiastically and uncritically espoused by later writers, perhaps because it absolved this undoubtedly good-natured dog from suggestions of bloodthirstiness. Neither Le Couteulx nor anyone since has offered any historical evidence to support this view . The suggestion sometimes seen that the word derives from 'blooded hound' is without basis, as the expression does not appear in early English, and 'blooded' in this meaning

5304-441: The 20th century, and in the post-war period exports to the US, and to Europe where the population had also been affected by the war, considerably exceeded imports. During the later 19th century, numbers of Bloodhounds were imported from Britain by French enthusiasts, who regretted the extinction of the ancient St. Hubert. They wished to re-establish it, using the Bloodhound, which, despite its developments in Britain, they regarded as

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5408-553: The Ardennes were so crossbred that they had lost the characteristics of the breed. Writers on the Bloodhound in the last two centuries generally agreed that the original St. Hubert strain died out in the 19th century, and that the European St. Hubert owes its present existence to the development of the Bloodhound. References to Bloodhounds first appear in English writing in the early to mid-14th century, in contexts that suggest

5512-540: The Association of Bloodhound Breeders Archived 2014-07-23 at the Wayback Machine , or The Bloodhound Club . They are run over farm land by permission of the landowners. A line walker (runner) is given a map, and sets off to follow a course marked on it, leaving a scent article ('smeller') attached to a flag marking the beginning of the trail. A hound and its handler start a set time later, and try to follow

5616-469: The Bloodhound appears as the Chien de St. Hubert, although the pictures illustrating the standard are all of British Bloodhounds, many of them those of Edwin Brough. The book was revised and reprinted in four languages in 1904, and in this edition the English text of the standard is that of the Association of Bloodhound Breeders, while the French text is closely based on it. However, the present FCI standard uses

5720-405: The Bloodhound was used to follow the trail of a wounded animal. In the absence of anything in early usage, or any historical evidence whatsoever, to support the modern explanation, the older must be regarded as correct. The Bloodhound's physical characteristics account for its ability to follow a scent trail left several days in the past. The olfactory bulb in dogs is roughly 40 times bigger than

5824-489: The Bloodhound which replaced it preserved its original character. However, it is apparent from 16th century pictures that the Bloodhound itself has changed considerably. The modern St. Hubert is the English Bloodhound, in descent and type. Generally, national and regional variants of hounds, terriers, spaniels, etc. have been recognised as separate breeds, France in particular having many regional breeds of hound;

5928-433: The Bloodhound's identification as the St. Hubert makes it an anomaly in this respect. Whether the Bloodhound is British or Belgian in origin is ultimately not something one can prove historically, depending as it does on whether one chooses to regard two related animals differing in tradition, and history, and somewhat in type, as separate breeds, or variants of the same one. Descriptions of the desirable physical qualities of

6032-600: The Scottish borders to track cross-border raiders, known as Border Reivers . This links it to the sleuth hound, and from Caius also comes the information that the English Bloodhound and the sleuth hound were essentially the same, though the Bloodhound was slightly bigger, with more variation in coat color. The adjacent picture was published in Zurich in 1563, in Conrad Gesner 's Thierbuch (a compendium of animals) with

6136-460: The St. Hubert preserved unchanged. Many of the finest specimens were bought and exhibited and bred in France as Chiens de Saint-Hubert, especially by Le Couteulx de Canteleu, who himself bred over 300. Whatever few original St. Huberts remained either died out or were absorbed into the new population. As a result, the Bloodhound became known on parts of the Continent as the Chien de Saint-Hubert. In

6240-400: The basis of surviving evidence. In Medieval hunting , the typical use of the Bloodhound was as a ' limer ', or 'lyam hound', that is a dog handled on a leash or 'lyam', to find the hart or boar before it was hunted by the pack hounds ( raches ). It was prized for its ability to hunt the cold scent of an individual animal, and, though it did not usually take part in the kill, it was given

6344-463: The black area until the saddle tan pattern is achieved." 'Tan point' refers to the blanket type from the typical tan eyebrows, muzzle, and socks. It is likely that a third gene determines whether or not there is a melanistic mask . E, the allele for a mask, is dominant over E, the allele for no mask. Compared to other purebred dogs, Bloodhounds suffer an unusually high rate of gastrointestinal ailments, with gastric dilatation volvulus (bloat) being

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6448-404: The body, not well sprung in the ribs, and of no great strength. Writing in 1561, Jaques du Fouilloux describes them as strong of body, but with low, short legs. He says they have become mixed in breeding so that they are now of all colors and widely distributed. Charles described the 'true race' of St. Hubert as black, with red/tawny marks above the eyes and legs usually of the same color, suggesting

6552-535: The breed was well established by then. It is often claimed that its ancestors were brought over from Normandy by William the Conqueror , but there is no actual evidence for this. That the Normans brought hounds from Europe during the post-Conquest period is virtually certain, but whether they included the Bloodhound itself, rather than merely its ancestors, is a matter of dispute that probably cannot be resolved on

6656-419: The captions: 'Englischen Blüthund' and 'Canis Sagax Sanguinarius apud Anglos' (English scent hound with associations of blood). It was drawn by, or under the supervision of, John Caius, and sent to Gesner with other drawings to illustrate his descriptions of British dogs for European readers. It is thus the earliest known picture published specifically to demonstrate the appearance of the Bloodhound. We are told it

6760-472: The dog's nose is on the ground; the folds of wrinkled flesh under the lips and neck—called the shawl—serve to catch stray scent particles in the air or on a nearby branch as the Bloodhound is scenting, reinforcing the scent in the dog's memory and nose. However, not all agree that the long ears and loose skin are functional, some regarding them as a handicap. There are many accounts of Bloodhounds successfully following trails many hours, and even several days old,

6864-436: The dogs depicted by Landseer show less wrinkles and haws than modern dogs. Throughout most of its history the Bloodhound was seen as a dog of English or Anglo-Scottish origin, either of unknown ancestry , or, more recently, as developed in part from the St. Hubert. It was only in the 19th century that it was claimed, primarily by Le Couteulx, to be the St. Hubert itself. Medieval hunting pictures show raches and limers, of

6968-518: The extinct Hawaiian Poi Dog . In the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands , the common term is potcake dogs (referring to the table scraps they are fed). In South Africa, the tongue-in-cheek expression pavement special is sometimes used as a description for a mixed-breed dog. In Trinidad and Tobago , these mixed dogs are referred to as pot hounds ( pothong ). In Serbia , a similar expression

7072-407: The feet of the quarry. If the scent is lost, a good Bloodhound persistently casts about to recover it. The Bloodhound is handled on a tracking harness, which has a metal ring above the shoulders, to which a leash is attached, so that the hound's neck is not jerked up when the leash becomes taut, as it would with a collar. The leash is at least long enough to allow the hound to cross freely in front of

7176-514: The general sagax type, with hanging ears and lips, but not having the specific characteristics of the Bloodhound. 16th century descriptions of the St. Hubert as short-legged, and only medium-sized have led to speculation that the main European antecedent of the Bloodhound was rather the Norman hound, which was very large, than the St. Hubert. Others, such as the sleuth hound, the Talbot Hound ,

7280-458: The ground, many scent hound breeds have been developed such that the dog will hold their tail upright when on a scent. In addition, some breeds (e.g., beagle) have been bred to have white hair on the tips of their tails. These traits allow the dog's master to identify it at a distance or in longer grass. Scent hounds do not need to be as fast as sighthounds, because they do not need to keep prey in sight, but they need endurance so they can stick with

7384-518: The handler, some handlers preferring quite a short leash, giving better communication with the hound, others liking something longer, maybe 6 to 9 metres (20 to 30 ft). It is generally agreed that the basis of initial training is to make the experience enjoyable for the puppy or young hound to keep their enthusiasm high. Whitney preferred waiting until the hound is 18 months old, to start training, but others start as young as possible; say, three months. Training can be started by running short trails on

7488-445: The hound time to realise their mistake and put themselves right, if possible. As training progresses the handler learns to 'read' the hound's behaviour. The hound must trust their own nose and the handler must trust the hound. From early hot trails on a familiar person, the young hound progresses to colder trails on the scents of strangers. Later training can be designed to teach particular lessons: crossing trails with false scents, having

7592-458: The king". They appear to have been more highly thought of during the reign of Henry IV (1553–1610), who presented a pack to James I of England . By the end of the reign of Louis XIV (1715), they were already rare. In 1788, D'Yauville, who was master of the Royal hounds, says those sent by the St. Hubert monks, once much prized, had degenerated, and scarcely one of the annual gift of six or eight

7696-429: The lack of genetic diversity. If the dog breed is popular, and the line continues, over hundreds of years diversity increases due to mutations and occasional out-breeding. This is why some of the very old breeds are more stable. One issue is when certain traits found in the breed standard are associated with genetic disorders. The artificial selective force favors the duplication of the genetic disorder because it comes with

7800-450: The latter being a contraction of the words callejero criollo (literally, street creole, as street dogs are usually mongrels); and in Chile and Bolivia , they are called quiltros . In Costa Rica , it is common to hear the word zaguate , a term originating from a Nahuatl term, zahuatl , that refers to the disease called scabies . In the rural southern United States, a small hunting dog

7904-508: The low risk category". Data from Denmark also suggest that mixed breeds have greater longevity on average compared to purebreds. A British study showed similar results, but a few breeds (notably Jack Russell Terriers , Miniature Poodles and Whippets ) lived longer than mixed breeds. In one study, the effect of breed on longevity in the pet dog was analyzed using mortality data from 23,535 pet dogs. The data were obtained from North American veterinary teaching hospitals. The median age at death

8008-559: The mid-20th century, the Brussels-based FCI accepted the claim of Belgium to be the country of origin. There are now annual celebrations in the town of Saint-Hubert, in which handlers in period dress parade their hounds. In Britain, the Bloodhound has continued to be seen as a native breed, with European St. Huberts being accepted by the UK KC as Bloodhounds. In Le Couteulx' book of 1890, we read that 'Le Chien de St Hubert actuel'

8112-509: The monks of the Abbey of St. Hubert annually sent several pairs of black hounds as a gift to the King of France. They were not always highly thought of in the royal pack. Charles IX 1550–74, preferred his white hounds and the larger Chiens-gris , and wrote that the St. Huberts were suitable for people with gout to follow, but not for those who wished to shorten the life of the hunted animal. He described them as pack hounds of medium stature, long in

8216-432: The more haphazard nature of their parents' mating. The offspring of such matings might be less likely to express certain genetic disorders because there might be a decreased chance that both parents carry the same detrimental recessive alleles, but some deleterious recessives occur across many seemingly unrelated breeds, and therefore merely mixing breeds is no guarantee of genetic health. When two poor specimens are bred,

8320-445: The most common type of gastrointestinal problem. The breed also suffers an unusually high incidence of eye, skin, and ear ailments; thus these areas should be inspected frequently for signs of developing problems. Owners should be especially aware of the signs of bloat, which is both the most common illness and the leading cause of death of Bloodhounds. The thick coat gives the breed the tendency to overheat quickly. A 2024 UK study found

8424-498: The most famous hound being Nick Carter. Law enforcement agencies have been much involved in the use of Bloodhounds, and there is a National Police Bloodhound Association , originating in 1962. In Britain, there have been instances from time to time of the successful use of the Bloodhound to track criminals or missing people. However, man-trailing is enjoyed as a sport by British Bloodhound owners, through national working trials, and this enthusiasm has spread to Europe. In addition, while

8528-527: The offspring could inherit the worst traits of both parents. This is commonly seen in dogs that came from puppy mills . Several studies have shown that mixed-breed dogs have a health advantage over purebred dogs. A German study finds that "mongrels require less veterinary treatment". Studies in Sweden have found that "Mongrel dogs are less prone to many diseases than the average purebred dog" and, when referring to death rates, that "mongrels were consistently in

8632-412: The olfactory bulb in humans, relative to total brain size, with 125 to 220 million olfactory receptors . Consequently, dogs have an olfactory sense 40 times more sensitive than that of a human. Scent hounds like the Bloodhound have a more developed olfactory sense and can reach nearly 300 million receptors. The large, long pendent ears serve to prevent wind from scattering nearby skin cells while

8736-498: The origins of dog breeds. Purebred dogs have been, for the most part, artificially created from random-bred populations by human selective breeding with the purpose of enhancing desired physical, behavioral, or temperamental characteristics. Dogs that are not purebred are not necessarily a mix of such defined breeds. Therefore, among some experts and fans of such dogs, mongrel is still the preferred term. Dog crossbreeds , sometimes called designer dogs , also are not members of

8840-448: The pack of dogs to run freely while the hunters wait in a fixed spot until the dogs' baying announces that the game has been " treed ". The hunters then go to the spot on foot, following the sound of the dogs' baying. Most scent hounds have a range of vocalizations, which can vary depending upon the situation the dog finds itself in. Their baying voice—most often used when excited and useful in informing their master that they are following

8944-412: The person they have been trailing, and are difficult to train to identify. Leon Whitney recommended a method of initial training in which identification was the first thing learned, based on giving the young hound a scent article from someone who walks a very short distance out of sight into a barn, where they stand with a piece of liver, while another person, also smelling of liver, stands nearby. The hound

9048-530: The picture belonged to Jacob Bell . Scent hound Hounds are hunting dogs that hunt either by following the scent of a game animal ( scent hounds ) or by following the animal by sight ( sighthounds ). There are many breeds in the scent hound type , and scent hounds may do other work as well, so exactly which breeds should be called scent hound can be controversial. Kennel clubs assign breeds of dogs to groups , which are loosely based on breed types . Each kennel club determines which breeds it will place in

9152-422: The puppy is given lavish praise and perhaps a reward. Generally in training, the handler must know exactly where the runner went, so that the handler does not encourage the hound to go the wrong way, or 'correct' the hound when the hound is on the scent; however, the handler should not be too ready with corrections if the hound goes astray, or the hound may come to rely on the handler too much. The handler should give

9256-451: The pure Bloodhound is used to hunt singly, Bloodhound packs use Bloodhounds crossed with foxhounds to hunt the human scent. Meanwhile, the Bloodhound has become widely distributed internationally, though numbers are small in most countries, with more in the US than anywhere else. Following the spread of the Bloodhound from Britain in the 19th and 20th centuries, imports and exports and, increasingly, artificial insemination, are maintaining

9360-465: The record being of a family found dead in Oregon, in 1954, over 330 hours after they had gone missing. The Bloodhound is generally used to follow the individual scent of a fugitive or lost person, taking the scent from a 'scent article' – something the quarry is known to have touched, which could be an item of clothing, a car seat, an identified footprint, etc. Many Bloodhounds will follow the drift of scent

9464-450: The runner start out with a companion, who leaves the runner somewhere along the trail, laying a trail on ground frequented by wild animals. This will teach the hound not to change on to other humans, or riot on animal scents (known as 'staying clean' [US], or 'freedom from change' [UK]). The hound also needs to work over a variety of ground and learn to cope with distractions of many kinds, as well as being introduced to 'negative trails': given

9568-429: The same alleles , some of which are detrimental. If the founding population for the breed was small, then the genetic diversity of that particular breed may be small for quite some time. When humans select certain dogs for new breeds, they artificially isolate that group of genes and cause more copies of that gene to be made than might have otherwise occurred in nature. The population is initially more fragile because of

9672-474: The same breed in different geographical areas may have different genetic profiles. The tests do not test for breed purity, but for genetic sequences that are common to certain breeds. With a mixed-breed dog, the test is not proof of purebred ancestry, but rather an indication that those dogs share common ancestry with certain purebreds. The American Kennel Club does not recognize the use of DNA tests to determine breed. Many newer dog breeds can be traced back to

9776-470: The scientist Robert Boyle , who described how a Bloodhound tracked a man seven miles along a route frequented by people, and found him in an upstairs room of a house. With the rise of fox hunting, the decline of deer hunting, and the extinction of the wild boar in Great Britain, as well as a more settled state of society, the use of the Bloodhound diminished. It was kept by the aristocratic owners of

9880-420: The sleuth hound and the Bloodhound were the same animal. In the 16th century, John Caius , in the most important single source in the history of the Bloodhound, describes its hanging ears and lips, its use in game parks to follow the scent of blood, which gives it its name, its ability to track thieves and poachers by their foot scent, how it casts if it has lost the scent when thieves cross water, and its use on

9984-527: The theory of heterosis ), and have enthusiasts and defenders who prefer them to intentionally bred dogs. Estimates place the prevalence of mongrels at 150 million animals worldwide. In the United States, the term mixed-breed is a favored synonym over mongrel among people who wish to avoid negative connotations associated with the latter term. The implication that such dogs must be a mix of defined breeds may stem from an inverted understanding of

10088-434: The trail, while the judge, equipped with a copy of the map, follows behind assessing their performance. When each of the entered hounds has completed a trail, the judge picks a winner. There are a series of 'stakes' of increasing difficulty, the simplest being 1 mile long, ½ an hour cold, and the hardest 3 miles long, 2 hours cold. On winning a stake, a hound moves up to the next one. Hounds may work unleashed if they have passed

10192-456: The view that the requirements of some breed standards were potentially detrimental to the health or well-being of the animal, changes have been made affecting the required eye shape and the loose skin, the most recent revision being 2008–9. The word 'bloodhound' is recorded from c. 1330. Most recent accounts say that its etymological meaning is 'hound of pure or noble blood'. This derives from an original suggestion of Le Couteulx de Canteleu in

10296-403: The world population as a common breeding stock, without a great deal of divergence in type in different countries. During the late 19th century, Bloodhounds were frequent subjects for artists such as Edwin Landseer and Briton Riviere ; the dogs depicted are close in appearance to modern Bloodhounds, indicating that the essential character of the Bloodhound predates modern dog breeding. However,

10400-553: Was adopted by the newly formed Association of Bloodhound Breeders, and ultimately became, with very little change, the 'official' breed standard of the KC and the AKC. Meanwhile, the Belgian or Dutch Comte Henri de Bylandt, or H A Graaf van Bylandt, published Races des Chiens in 1897, a huge and very important illustrated compilation of breed descriptions, or standards. In this French edition,

10504-436: Was determined for purebred and mixed-breed dogs of different body weights. Within each body weight category, the median age at death was lower for purebred dogs compared with mixed-breed dogs. The median age at death was "8.5 years for all mixed breed dogs, and 6.7 years for all pure breed dogs" in the study. In 2013, a study found that mixed breeds live on average 1.2 years longer than purebreds, and that increasing body weight

10608-399: Was done from life, and detail such as the soft hang of the ear indicates it was carefully observed. Fully accurate or not, it suggests changes between the Bloodhound of then and today. The collar and long coiled rope reflect the Bloodhound's typical functions as a limer or leashed man-trailer in that period. The earliest known report of a trial of the Bloodhound's trailing abilities comes from

10712-547: Was kept. Upon the French Revolution of 1789, the gifts ceased, and hunting in France went into a decline until the end of the Napoleonic wars . When it recovered during the 19th century, huntsmen, with many breeds to choose from, seem to have had little interest in the St. Hubert. An exception was Baron Le Couteulx de Canteleu, who tried to find them. He reported that there were hardly any in France, and those in

10816-490: Was negatively correlated with longevity (i.e. the heavier the dog, the shorter its lifespan). Another study published in 2019 confirmed this 1.2 year difference in lifespan for mixed-breed dogs, and further demonstrated negative impacts of recent inbreeding and benefits of occasional outcrossing for lifespan in individual dogs. Studies that have been done in the area of health show that mixed-breeds on average are both healthier and longer-lived than their purebred relations. This

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