Basset Hounds

The Basset has the keenest nose of any hound save the Bloodhound, is low to the ground like a large-boned Dachshund and has the colour of a Foxhound. The more nearly the head resembles that of a Bloodhound the better. The flew are heavy and the forehead wrinkled. The forelegs are short, heavily-boned and very powerful. 

The Basset Hound is believed to have originated in France from the old French Bloodhound and the St. Hubert Hound that took its name from the sportsman bishop who became the patron saint of hunters. The breed flourished all over the continent for centuries, with France and Belgium its particular strongholds. It was a slow tracking dog, useful on deer, hares and rabbits, whose short legs automatically kept his nose near the ground. The short legs were intensified through selective breeding.

You can read about "Basenji" here 

England first met the Basset through a pair that was presented to Lord Galway by the Comte de Tournow in 1866. The dogs' offspring spread and some of the descendent found their way to America, where a somewhat different, less bulky dog than the British was developed. In this country the dog makes a good rabbit and bare dog and is being used in some places on pheasant and grouse. He is a painstaking hunter, easily controlled and loyal to the owner.

In America, the most popular Basset is a type with crooked or half-crooked forelegs. There is a straight-legged type that is a little rangier and usually somewhat faster. 

A characteristic of the Basset is his deep, resonant, bell-like voice that is particularly impressive when the breed is used in a pack. He has a long, low, heavy-set build. 

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