Do your homework and know the breed before taking the plunge. They need a big foundation to help them balance all that weight. However, I would argue great examples of the breed fall in the Large-dog category. We couldnt imagine our lives without him. You should be afraid to lose your TV remote control in a Basset Hounds dewlap. Ill go one step further and say we are drawn to the appearance of the best examples of the breed. The Basset Hounds of old wouldve had a slightly difference appearance then present-day standards. Whats in a Basset Hound that makes them such a desirable pal? Dolly took on the size of her mother and the looks and attitude of her father. If you do this you will have a much more fulfilling life with your new best friend. Along with the life-long health problems Old Man Bojangles developed, he did not have the appearance of a champion. The first few hounds Ive owned were of low quality. I know a lot of you may be thinking Im a superficial low-life for judging his appearance. Dollys mother was a very small sweet Basset hound and her father was a giant brute that had a bad attitude problem. This posed a concern when my wife and I started having children. He lived about 11 years with various afflictions that didnt bode well for a high-quality life. In a nutshell, you should be able to get their face to resemble an old beat up catchers mitt. What do I look for when searching for a Basset? The reason being, he developed luxating patella (which means his knees chronically popped out of place) and he quickly became old in his gait followed by his mannerisms/disposition. I loved that Old Man. However, they did have various health issues and though the cost of them as puppies was quite low upfront they quickly evolved into a financial liability. You should be able to accumulate an abundance of loose skin in your hands and ball it up over their eyes without any discomfort to the hound. Another Basset I owned was a female named Dolly. I say this is probably folklore more than anything, However, I wont purchase a Basset without a well-pronounced dewlap. This is not to be confused with wrinkles. They have a wonderful preoccupation with following smells; once they catch the scent they rarely abandon the hunt until the case is solved. His name started out as Bojangles, but within 3 months Old Man was added. The reason is we are drawn by the appearance of the breed. Needless to say it was very rough having her around though we loved her tremendously. So, they created a breed that would be short, sturdy, long-eared, and have a snot-locker like no other when it came to sniffing out game. Their disposition wasnt quite typical of quality basset hounds and their joints quickly became debilitating to not only the basset hounds, but too my family as well. He cost us a pretty penny upfront, but has blessed us with companionship like no other dog before him. Lets be honest, we humans desired their traits to be more pronounced which is now what we have in the standard of a modern-day Basset Hound. The term Basset in a nutshell is from the French word Bas (low) and English word Set (Low Set). Hes amazing with kids to a fault and he only demands love, food, and water (not necessarily in that order). It is said the dewlap helps trap scent so that hound can store scents as they search for game. In short, he became a rickety, and grumpy old man. Part of the evolution of the Basset Hound was to domesticate them to be more suitable as a companion and less so as a field dog. It is very important to do your pedigree research and seek out these traits when searching for a puppy. Perhaps its their ever-shedding soft coat, their meat-soaked long velvety ears, or their lion-sized paws. The coat underneath the chin is called the dewlap. Ive been around Bassets for most of my life and even though Ive had some short spells without them, I cant imagine not having one. Most experts would identify a Basset Hound as a medium-sized breed. He was my pal, but looking back, he cost me a lot financially and emotionally. I have no problems paying three to five thousand dollars on a puppy if it means health, disposition, and appearance are going to compliment the breed. The head of a Basset Hound should be rather large with a thick muscular neck. And I would agree most poorly-bred Bassets fit this category. I named him after Burl Ives, however he also resembles a burl as in a tree burl. My test of skin looseness again relies on the Bassets head. My current dog is a giant Basset named Burl. Imagine a thinner and slightly taller hound. One of my Bassets that stick out in my mind was a male (Ive always been partial to male bassets) named Old Man Bojangles. I digress. They are kind natured, obedient, lovingly peaceful and very handsome to boot. Remember, forking out the money for a high-quality Basset will pay huge dividends. It is not uncommon for a healthy (non-fat) male to weigh 85+ pounds and females 65+ pounds. The rumor is peasant hunters couldnt afford horses and long-legged dogs were hard to keep up with. He is my best friend and has all the characteristics and traits of a desirable Basset Hound. Thats not to say they werent loving and devoted friends. Old Man Bojangles skin around his face was tight and though he was AKC certified, he was mistaken for a Beagle with extra-long ears many times. One veterinarian offered to attempt to reconstruct his knees at the cost of seven thousand dollars and he couldnt guarantee the operation would fix the defect. She had all the superficial qualities of a Basset except she was miniaturized and her disposition was suspect when it came to children. As a side-note, Old Man Bojangles hated her. Basset Hounds simply make the best household pets. This skin should be multi-folded and in such excess that you can pull and massage rather firmly. This resulted in their appearance morphing into something more clownish, or as most Basset enthusiasts would say more adorable. Since Basset Hounds are our poison, we have become responsible and highly educated when it comes to the breed. There is a distinct difference. We no longer look for bargains or discounts when it comes to buying our puppies. First lets talk about the history and evolution of the mighty Basset Hound. I was quite the mess when I had to put him down. He was undersized and his bone structure was not as dense as great examples of the breed. The Basset Hound is said to be of French descent, but dont hold that against them. The skin of a Basset Hound should be very, very, very loose. This is a very important trait in a Basset Hound. I would be very careful not to underemphasize the size of its head, as this is what gives a Basset Hound their distinctive and noble appearance. We learned our lesson the hard way when it came to purchasing puppies. Basset paws should be very large as their bodies are very long and large and their legs are very dense and short. But if you actually think about it, why do we seek out AKC pure bred dogs? Basset Hounds can be tricky to house train, however a calm and consistent approach to training will overcome this. As I previously mentioned, Basset Hounds are rather large albeit short dogs.