Spring 2017 Saber Tails 49
Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen Club of America
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Petits Bassets Griffons Vendéens...
How’s Your History?
Written By Kitty Steidel
Reprinted with Permission from AKC Gazette
W
e discuss what is correct and what is faulty in our
hounds – how much angulation, length to bone,
height at shoulder, length to body.
D
o we really know what we are talking about, however?
Is “correct” a matter of opinion, an ideal, or a figment
of the imagination?
R
etaining original traits is a great challenge today, when
the game has changed because dogs no longer do
what the breed was developed to do. Traits are evolv-
ing and changing according to evolutionary principle:
use it or lose it. The next generation of breeders is going
to have to try even harder to retain what are considered
desirable features, those based on purpose. Fortunately,
the AKC and parent clubs realize this and provide perfor-
mance events to keep the breed’s history alive.
V
enery, or hunting of wild animals, originated because
man needed food. Man developed various types of
hounds depending on size of game and climatic and en-
vironmental conditions.
F
rom early Roman campaigns, we observe man becom-
ing a skillful hunter. For some time, only the elite could
own hounds: nobleman, royalty and religious figures.
Gradually, hunting became a popular pastime, a compe-
tition; venery became a show of power. The clergy and
noblemen became famous, not for their religious or royal
duties but rather for their hunting successes and their
packs.
U
niformity in a pack and adherence to any standard
came later. As early as A.D. 656-727, Hubert, son
of the Duc de Gueinne, hunted with a breed of hounds
known today as the Hubert Hound. Eventually, he retired
from hunting and was canonized and ordained the pa-
tron saint of the sport. St. Hubert hounds were famous. It
is a simplification to say that all breeds descend from the
St. Hubert, however; if one delves back far enough, some
distant relation likely can be traced. According to George
Johnson in his book Hounds of France, the St. Huberts
were not uniform in structure or type. However, because
the Hubert hounds had a nationwide reputation for hunt-
ing, they were highly desired by others.
T
hrough the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, venery
continued. The nobility and religious orders gradually
wanted an evenness and uniformity in their packs, even
if only in terms of color. Eventually, they combined those
traits essential to hunting with desirable aesthetic fea-
tures.
I
n the 17th and 18th centuries, the heyday for the sport,
noblemen and royalty vied for recognition and hounds
were given as gifts. Spacious hunting grounds were es-
tablished and stocked with wild game.
B
y the time venery reached its peak, several breeds
had been developed to hunt the various sizes and
types of game. According to Johnson, some 40 French
hound breeds were developed. Large, powerful breeds
were used on roe deer, red deer, boar and wolf, and more
diminutive basset breeds were employed on rabbit and
hare.
A
ll along, a fusion of the St. Hubert hound with local
dogs was common. The breeds resulting were named
after the area in which they developed or the individual
who instigated their development.
W
ith the French Revolution in 1789, there was seri-
ous curtailment of hunting activities and breeding.
Many breeds, especially the larger breeds, were decimat-
ed to the point of extinction. Smaller dogs requiring less
food survived.
I
t was not until after World War II that the French tried to
revive or resurrect ancient breeds from whatever stock
remained or by infusion of a closely related breed. Thus
breeds were gradually restructured and new breeds de-
veloped.
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