The English Foxhound has a good nose and lots of stamina. Known for chasing foxes, this hound has the appearance of a top ranked athlete and performs his "job" with enthusiasm.

History

The English Foxhound was created in the late 1500s, as a result of the perception of the depletion of deer in England. Nobles and Royalty had hunted deer for both food and sport, using the Deerhound or Staghound for this purpose. During the reign of Henry VIII, it was perceived that a new prey was needed, and the fox was selected. The English Foxhound was then created by a careful mixing of the Greyhound, for speed, the Fox Terrier, for hunting instinct, and the Bulldog, for tenacity in the hunt. Studbooks for this breed were kept as early as the 1800s. The dogs were meant to trail foxes and live around horses. They are still used for those purposes.

Appearance and Size

The English Foxhound is a medium sized dog with a long muzzle, long shoulders and long straight legs. The feet are small and cat-like and the ears are set low and hang. In some hunting hounds, the tips of the ears are removed (rounded) to avoid injuries during the hunt. The coat of the English Foxhound is short and glossy. The color is usually a combination of black, tan and white. The adult English Foxhound stands around 22 to 25 inches at the shoulder and weighs about 65 to 70 pounds.

Personality

The English Foxhound has a reputation of being an intelligent and brave dog with a pleasant personality. The breed thoroughly enjoys the hunt and can run for hours. When compared to the American Foxhound, the English breed is a little slower and stockier.

Wikipedia and GNU

The content of this entry is from the Wikipedia article "English Foxhound" licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.