STANDARD

 

Standard no. 163. Basset Hound - English breed
Recognized by F.C.I. (FCI).
Current rating: Group VI: hounds small - breed number. 256
Origin: Great Britain

GENERAL APPEARANCE:
Short legged hound of considerable substance, well balanced, distinguished. It 's desirable to a certain amount of loose skin.
BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT:
Tenacious hound, of great lineage which hunts by smell, possesses the instinct of the dumb, deep and melodious voice, with great resistance fighter.
Temperament:
Placid, never aggressive or fearful, affectionate
HEAD AND SKULL:
Skull convex; the stop is slightly marked and the occipital crest is well marked. Of medium width at brow and tapering slightly to muzzle. The muzzle is tapered but not dry. The muzzle is almost parallel to the topline of the skull and not much longer than head from stop to occiput. There may be folds, in moderation, on the forehead and around the eyes. In any case, the skin of the head must be sufficiently loose to form folds clearly marked when you pull forward, or when the head itself is lowered. The upper lip largely covering the lower ones. The nose is completely black except for lighter colored dogs, where it may be brown or liver. The nostrils are large and well opened, the nose may have a slight protrusion in front of the lips.
EYES:
Lozenge-shaped, neither protruding nor too deep set, dark in color, but can go up to mid-brown in lighter colored hounds. Expression calm and serious. The lower lid is visible but not excessively. Light eyes or yellow eye highly undesirable.
EARS:
Set on low, just below the eye line. They are long and far beyond the end of muzzle of correct length, but without excess. They are narrow throughout their length and curling well. Very flexible, fine and velvety texture.
TEETH: Strong, with a perfect scissor bite, regular and complete: ie upper incisors covering the lower ones in close contact with lead and are implanted in the jaws.
NECK:
Muscular, well arched and of good length, has a pronounced ridge, but without exaggeration.
LEGS:
Shoulder blades well laid back and shoulders not heavy. The forelegs are short, powerful and strong bone. The elbows are turned neither inwards nor outwards. They fit perfectly against the ribs of the chest. The forearm, in its upper part, is inclined slightly inwards, but not to the point of disturbing the freedom of movement, nor as to result in the fact that the limbs are touching in the upright position or in action. Viewed from the face, chest fits neatly into crook. The arrembatura is a serious defect. The skin forms folds on the forearm.

BODY:
Long and deep throughout its length. The sternum is prominent, chest neither narrow nor too down. The ribs are well rounded without forming a ledge and extending well towards the rear. The back is quite wide and level. The withers and kidney are approximately the same height, although the kidney may show a slight curvature. The back, from the withers to the starting point of the hips, is not of excessive length.
Hindquarters:
Very well built and muscular, hindlegs giving almost the impression of a sphere when viewed from the rear. Hip joint well bent, hocks are well let down and slightly brought below the trunk, not the hocks turning neither inward nor outward, but are upright with respect to the trunk when the dog is in position naturally standing. The skin folds can form between the hock and the foot and behind the hock joint, may seem a slight bag because of the laxity of the skin.
FEET:
Solid, fitted with well knuckled up and padded. The front feet may be directed straight forward, or turned slightly towards the outside, but in any case, the upright position must be perfectly smooth, being the weight equally distributed on the feet and on the bearings, so that the feet themselves leave the footprints of a large dog, not being in contact with the ground region is not provided with any bearings.
TAIL:
Well set on, rather long, strong at its base. Thins gradually with moderate amounts of rough hair at its bottom. In action the tail is carried upwards to form a gentle curve, a saber, without ever being either gay or curled.
GAIT:
A very important feature. Gait melted and smooth, with the forelegs extending well forward and rear that give a powerful impetus, because, in fact, loose gait both anteriorly and posteriorly. Never, during the action, there must be any rigidity in the hocks and stifles. No finger should never crawl on the ground.
HAIR:
Smooth, short and close without being too fine. All terms must be clean in its lines and free from fraying. The long hair, the hair soft with feathering highly undesirable.


COLOR:
Generally tricolor (black, white, and fire), two-color (lemon and white), but it is permitted any color of the hound.
SIZE:
33 to 38 inches at the withers.

DEFECTS:
Any deviation from the above factors must be considered as a defect, which will be penalized according to its severity.
NB: Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.