Domestic Breeds & Types Codexery

Basset Hound

Short-legged scent hound bred for hunting on foot.

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A scent hound with short legs, the Basset Hound was created in Great Britain using French basset breeds that are no longer in existence.[1] This dog was developed for hunting rabbits and hares while people walked, at a pace slow enough to eliminate the need for horses.[1] Only the Bloodhound surpasses this breed's olfactory capabilities and talent for tracking scents along the ground.[1]

Biology and range

In terms of body proportions, Basset Hounds resemble a large dog but possess very short limbs.[2] A tail with a gentle curve is carried elevated above the dog's lengthy back.[2] Although size and mass differ among various lines, the typical weight falls between 20 and 35 kg.[2] When you compare bone mass to overall size, no other breed has heavier bones than this one.[2]

The droopy skin encircling the throat is called the dewlap, and the notably long ears aid in lifting scents from the ground.[3] Legs that are somewhat bent assist in supporting the wide chest and ribcage.[4] The Basset Hound's low height results from osteochondrodysplasia, a genetic condition.[5] A median lifespan of 10 to 12 years is recorded for this breed.[6]

What the specialist sources record

According to a 2015 French investigation, the average lifespan was 10.3 years; a 2024 UK study reported 12.5 years.[6] Veterinary records showed a glaucoma prevalence of 5.44% in this breed, which was the second-highest rate in that research.[7] This breed has a heightened risk for gastric dilatation volvulus; one study calculated an odds ratio of 5.9 for the condition.[8] Primary open angle glaucoma in this breed is caused by an autosomal recessive mutation in the ADAMTS17 gene.[9]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hart, Ernest H. This Is the Basset Hound, T.F.H. Books, 1974. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Basset Hound", American Kennel Club; "Basset Hound Breed Standard (PDF)", American Kennel Club (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "9 Floppy Facts About Basset Hounds", Mentalfloss.com, 2015-11-30 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Basset Hound Breed Standard (PDF)", American Kennel Club (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Martínez, "Histopathologic study of long-bone growth plates confirms the basset hound as an osteochondrodysplastic breed", Can J Vet Res, January 2007, p. 66–69 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Leroy, "Inbreeding impact on litter size and survival in selected canine breeds", The Veterinary Journal, 2015, p. 74–78; McMillan, "Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death", Scientific Reports, 2024-02-01, p. 531 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gelatt, "Prevalence of the breed-related glaucomas in pure-bred dogs in North America", Veterinary Ophthalmology, 2004-02-18, p. 97–111 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bell, "Inherited and Predisposing Factors in the Development of Gastric Dilatation Volvulus in Dogs", Topics in Companion Animal Medicine, 2014, p. 60–63; Glickman, "Analysis of risk factors for gastric dilatation and dilatation-volvulus in dogs", Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 1994-05-01, p. 1465–1471 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Basset Hound" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "BSAVA Textbook of Veterinary Nursing", British Small Animal Veterinary Association, 2020, p. 131 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Basset Hound (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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