The Bloodhound is a large size dog that belong to the scent hound breed of dogs.
They were originally bred for hunting purposes. They excelled at deer and wild board hunting.
Bloodhounds are not only great for hunting, but they’re are also used in missing persons searches.
Bloodhound History & Background
When Bloodhounds were first created is not completely known.
However the first references of Bloodhound came in English writings during the mid-1300’s.
The breed was well established in these writings so it is safe to assume the breed has been around long before then.
Their original purpose was for hunting, since they have tremendous tracking abilities. Their tracking abilities can be compared to that of a Labrador Retriever.
When wild boars went extinct, and interest in deer hunting dropped, the need for bloodhounds disappeared.
The interest in deer hunting saw a drop due to the rising popularity in fox hunting.
In fox hunting, Jack Russell Terriers were superior to bloodhounds.
After their use as hunting dogs diminished, the only owners that kept them were owners of deer parks.
The popularity of bloodhounds began to rise again in the mid 1800’s with the introduction of dog shows.
However, the popularity of bloodhounds in Great Britain never returned to the heights it once saw.
The number of bloodhounds once again diminished after World War II since not many survived.
However they did retain a steady number due to their arrival in America.
When Bloodhounds were brought to the United States, but they at the latest were in the states during the Civil War.
Their main purpose at this time was to track down and find runaway slaves.
In today’s age Bloodhounds are commercially used by police forces and as family and hunting dogs by civilians.
Their use as police dogs is usually to track missing persons or criminals on the run.
Bloodhound Physical Characteristics
Bloodhounds are among the largest dogs out there, in height and weight.
They feature a wide range in their weight.
Male Bloodhounds have a weight range of 119 pounds to 143 pounds.
Female Bloodhounds have a weight range of 108 pounds to 126 pounds.
Male Bloodhounds feature a height of 25 inches to 28 inches tall.
Female Bloodhounds on average have a height of 23 inches to 26 inches.
They feature a short and dense coat. With these short coats Bloodhounds do not do well in extremely cold climates.
Their coats come in 4 different colors. These colors are black, liver, red, and tan.
Bloodhounds, and all hound dogs as well, have a hard coat that contains only fur.
Bloodhounds don’t shed very often, only once or twice a year.
A good brushing during shedding season will take care of any dead hair that may fall on the floor.
They often become overweight so it important to manage it’s food and calorie intake.
Personality
Bloodhounds are a gentle breed, but they do show high energy when they are tracking a scent.
They can be quite difficult to train in obedience because of their tracking instinct that makes them very headstrong.
However, when they are not on the hunt, they are very affectionate and mild temperament with humans.
They need a great name to match their mild and calm personality.
This makes them very great indoor or outdoor pets when not in hunting environments.
If they are outdoors it is important to have fences dug fairly deep into the ground.
Fences need to be deep in the ground because Bloodhounds are very persistent diggers.
Health
There are quite a few health conditions that Bloodhounds can suffer from.
With the low hanging ears that bloodhounds possess, they need checking every so often.
Their teeth need checking for infection quite often too.
Bloodhounds often suffer from bloat if their owner overfeeds them.
Bloat is the leading cause of death in Bloodhounds, claiming 37% of Bloodhound deaths.
The second leading cause of death in Bloodhounds is cancer, with it taking responsibility of 27% of Bloodhound deaths.
Bloodhounds have one of the shortest lifespans in dogs.
Their lifespan ranges 6 years to 12 years, with an average age of 8 and a half years.
