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THE SIX BREEDS OF COONHOUNDS

by Ruth Hoffman

All six coonhound breeds share the same common scent hound characteristics: (1)noisy, affectionate, (2) noisy, high in energy, (3)noisy, high tolerance for pain, (4) noisy, intelligent, and (5) noisy. For details on good and bad points, See Is a Coonhound the Dog for You? Generally, they run in size from small (about 22 inches at the shoulder, like a Springer Spaniel) to large (like a Lab).

Black and Tan Blue Tick English
Redbone Plott Treeing Walker

  • REDBONES are always red in color. They may have white on their chests or toes, and they may have a black mask. Other locations of these colors possibly indicates mixed blood. Their voices are usually on the hoarse side. Their eyes are usually the same color as their coat, and are very expressive. I like to say that they could make the Archangel Gabriel feel guilty.

    They are *apparently* very slow to learn things, and are more stubborn than any mule. All the same, they are very intelligent, and patience really pays off.

  • ENGLISH hounds are just about any color. They come in redtick or bluetick most commonly, but also come in lemon-and-white, and just about any color an English Pointer comes in. There will always be a fair amount of white, and never any brindle.

  • BLUETICK hounds are also a separate breed, descended from the bluetick-colored English hounds and the French hound, the Grand Bleu de Gascoigne. There is one strain that throws back to the French hounds (of which General Lafayette gave George Washington eight pairs). These, known as the American Blue Gascon Hound, or affectionately as the Big Blues, can become as big as a small Great Dane.

    The Blueticks are more likely to show some protective instincts, but still much less than a Shepherd. They usually have what is called a bawl mouth, that is, a long, deep and hoarse bark.

  • TREEING WALKERS are colored like beagles, and range from having white feet only, to being almost all white. The better-quality ones will appear somewhat leggy. They are called Treeing Walkers to differentiate them from Running Walkers, which are foxhounds, and don't tree game.

    The Walkers and English are probably the easiest of the hounds to train, being somewhat less stubborn than the other ones, and easier to keep from getting bored.

  • BLACK AND TAN hounds range in size from small to very large. They are the only breed recognized by the AKC, and the chances are, if you have a large one, it is from AKC show stock. They may occasionally have a small amount of white on their chests, but any white is cause for suspicion as to their ancestry.

    Like the Big Blues and the Redbones, the Black and Tan is usually very stubborn and slow to learn. They will gaze at you affectionately, standing and waving their tails, while you repeat a command they have done a million times before. They would like you to believe they are so stupid they have forgotten what that command means. NOT TRUE.

    This is a link to the AKC Black and Tan Coonhound Standard on another server. Remember to come back to NetPet or add this article as a bookmark before you browse onwards!.

  • PLOTT HOUNDS are brindle. (Brindle looks something like wood-grain, or even like tiger-stripes.) Usually, they are tan or mahogany brindle, but can come in any brindle color. They also sometimes have a solid, dark color saddle, and sometimes are nearly solid dark brown all over, with just a faint brindling showing on the inside of their legs. These are called Black Plotts, although they are not truly black, but very dark brown. There is another color that is very rare, called maltese, which looks like a brindle Weimeraner, that is, the colors are diluted and silvery. As with other breeds, white is allowed on feet and chest, but not too much. Their eyes are usually either yellow-hazel or brown-hazel.

    Any dog that is obviously a hound, that has brindle spots, is a Plott mix.

    Plotts are slightly different than the other five breeds, largely because they do not descend from the English Foxhound. While they share in the common hound characteristics, they are the highest in energy - they are still only when they are asleep. They are also fiercer and grittier than the rest (and are renowned as big game hounds). They are people lovers, but can be belligerent with other dogs. They are not really fighters, but are great threateners. Under the "right" circumstances, they will learn to be fighters. They must not be with other dogs that are free-fed, or there *will* be fights. (Free-feeding means leaving food out all the time.)

    They are superb at doing anything they want to do - getting them to want to is the trick. Mostly they want to HUNT. They are the most easily bored of the breeds. They need copious exercise, and are the greatest of the breeds at digging or climbing out of the yard.

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