JUDGING THE BLACK AND TAN COONHOUND by ROBERT URBAN T hus spoken by the founders of our breed nearly 70 years ago, when our standard was first written and the breed
entered into the AKC. “The Black and Tan Coonhound is first and fundamen- tally a working dog; a trail and tree hound, capable of withstanding the rigors of winter, the heat of summer and the difficult terrain over which he is called upon to work.” As a mem- ber of our Judges Education Commit- tee, I stress the first paragraph of our standard from which this sentence is taken—unchanged since 1945 as the foundation upon which the evaluation of the breed should be based on. The old adage of “No foot, no horse” has a ring of truth to it here as well, although it is important to recognize that all things are connected and interdepen- dent, from the foot to the hip as well as shoulder blade. The Black and Tan standard refers to gait and soundness on three differ- ent occasions and has its own separate section dedicated to gait. Our breed founders recognized the importance this played in both the formation and preservation of the breed and placed the appropriate value and emphasis on it. Again quoting from paragraph one of our standard: “He immediately impresses one with his ability to cover the ground with powerful rhythmic strides.” Once we have established the importance gait, structure and stamina play in the formation of the ideal Black and Tan, how do we go about select- ing those qualities that tend to support those all important characteristics with- in the somewhat limiting parameters of the showring? Firstly, we must look at overall condition and balance. The hound should appear fit and in prop- er condition to do the job for which it was created. Substance is directly connected to this, as a hound not car- rying the proper degree and qual- ity of bone will not have the substance
Correct low reach and drive.
316 • S how S ight M agazine , S eptember 2017
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