Distinctive features of the dog's appearance, ancestors of the American English Coonhound, reasons for breeding, development, recognition and popularization of the breed. The American English Coonhound or American English Coonhound is a well-proportioned, strong, graceful and hardy dog. She has an elongated head with a domed skull that seamlessly connects to her muzzle. The nose is large. The ears of the breed are long, drooping. Large dark eyes look with a gentle and kind look. All members of the species appear to have excess skin on the muzzle and neck. The coat of dogs is short, with three different colors and patterns: red or blue speck, tricolor with speck.
The origin of the ancestors of the American English Coonhound
Although this is an exaggeration, the history of the breed is very similar to that of most other coonhounds. Since the variety was bred before the first written pedigrees and in predominantly "working zones", little can be known about its origins with certainty. Nevertheless, many common features and specifics of American English Coonhounds are known.
It is possible to trace their ancestry directly by studying the history of European hounds. Since the fall of the Roman Empire, hunting with packs of such dogs has been one of the main pastimes of the European nobility. Eventually, catching animals became a ritual event and became much more important than a simple sport. During the event, many personal, political and dynastic biases were created and decisions were made that affected the lives of millions of people.
Because hunting was so popular, quality hunting dogs were valued as financially valuable and culturally prestigious. In Europe, dozens of varieties of hounds were bred, many of which were localized in the region of their origin. Although catching animals has become very important in Europe, it was probably the most popular and prestigious in France and England, which for a long time were considered the epicenters of breeding hounds, the ancestors of the American English Coonhounds.
Across Europe, the nobility's preferred game was large, potentially dangerous species of animals such as wild boar, deer, and wolf. This was the case in England until the 1600s, when major cultural, political and environmental changes began. The rapidly growing population of Foggy Albion meant there was little room left and hunting pressure began to rise. Large animal species have either become very rare or have completely disappeared. Increasingly, the British nobility turned to the fox pen, considered exclusively the domain of the peasantry, to replace the loss of privileged prey.
A completely new breed has been developed for fox hunting - the English Foxhound. Its development began in the late 1500s and continued until the 1700s. While it is not known for certain, it is widely accepted that these canines are mainly descended from the now extinct Southern Hounds, with strong influence from the Beagle, Mestizo Hounds, Greyhounds, Scottish Deerhounds, Lurchers, Old English Bulldogs, Fox Terriers and possibly other breeds. Fox hunting quickly became extremely popular and was probably the most important sport of the British upper class until the end of the 20th century.
Reasons for the withdrawal of the American English Coonhound
During the popularization of such hunting in England, the first British colonies were established along the east coast of North America. A high percentage of the early colonists came from noble and wealthy families and were looking for opportunities to earn large capital, which would be denied to them according to English rules of inheritance. Many of these people loved to hunt foxes and really wanted to continue their favorite pastime in the New World. To do this, they brought with them their favorite Foxhounds, the predecessors of the American English Coonhounds.
The first records of selection come from what is now the United States, dating back to 1650, when Robert Brooke imported a pack of these dogs into Maryland. Later, he became the first beagle breeder in the American colonies. Virginia and Maryland had a disproportionate number of upper-class settlers, and the states of Chesapeake Bay became the center of American fox hunting. The British brought with them not only Foxhounds, but also a number of other breeds, including Bloodhounds and Greyhounds. Immigrants from other countries also imported their own pets such as the Spanish Alano, the Greyhound, the German wild boar hunting dog, the French Grand Blue de Gascony and various Irish and Scottish game hounds.
The settlers of the New World found that their European dogs were ill-suited to the new environment. Even the northernmost regions of the American South are much hotter than Britain. Canines, accustomed to working in cool England, were quickly depleted and even died. Warmer temperatures in America have contributed to significantly more infectious diseases and animal parasites, many of which have proven fatal to maladaptive breeds. Compared to highly developed England, America's terrain is much more varied and complex. It still contains vast tracts of swamps, mountains and undeveloped forests.
Large populations of wolves, bears, pumas, alligators, bobcat, wild pigs, as well as poisonous snakes, porcupines and other creatures lived in the New World. Even those animals that were less dangerous often had completely different habits. In England, most of the animals run from their burrows to evade pursuit, but in America they climb trees. American hunting dogs worked long hours in extremely hot temperatures, were resistant to all diseases and parasites, tough enough to work in difficult and varied terrain, tough to fight dangerous animals, and possessed a strong natural sense.
Initially, natural selection strongly influenced the British canines, and many died in America. This resulted in the remaining dogs, the ancestors of the American English Coonhounds, becoming more suitable for the local climate, but also slightly different from the original versions. These differences were aided by the small number of canines brought to America. It was very expensive to import dogs from Europe, and the journey was often fatal for them. Imported small individuals, often crossed with each other.
History of the development of the American English Coonhound
By the 1700s, American South Pointers were considered a distinct breed from their British counterparts and were known as Virginia Hounds. One of the most prominent breeders of these dogs was none other than George Washington, an avid fox hunter. After the American Revolution, Washington received several pairs of different French hounds from his friend and ally the Marquis de Lafayette, which had a profound impact on his breeding programs.
American settlers continually moved west and south from Virginia, bringing their pets with them. The dogs of Virginia and Maryland, where fox hunting remained the most popular, eventually became American Foxhounds, Virginia Blacks, and Black and Tan Foxhounds. Those dogs that spread in other areas specialized in catching raccoons, as well as foxes, these were coonhounds or fox coonhounds.
In Europe, hunting with dogs was carried out exclusively by the nobility and the upper classes of the population, it was often legalized. This was not the case in America, where these rules have long been despised. All American social classes, as well as a large percentage of villagers, were active hunters. The activity grew into a major sport in the American South and Midwest, and raccoon fishing was one of the most popular activities. Due to the demand for competition, quality hunting dogs, the ancestors of the American English Coonhounds, have become very valuable and useful.
To test their pets, raccoon hunting competitions, known as the kundog test, were held in the 1800s. These were originally local gatherings, but they quickly evolved into regional, state, and even national events. While traditional show dogs are judged based on external standards, in kundog competitions, dogs scored points for their speed and manner of hunting, as well as the number of animals captured.
In the end, the winners received substantial monetary awards and medals. Since high quality dogs were valuable, many breeders kept their lines perfectly clean, but certainly not in the modern sense. The American English Coondog has always held the main competitive position in the coondog trials, and it was he who became the first winner.
At one point, there were only two lines of coonhound, one descended from German wild boar hunting dogs known as Plot Hounds and the other from Foxhounds. It didn't take long for the foxhound line to split into several different species. Some coonhounds began to overlap strongly with bloodhounds from England, as a result of which the Black and tan coonhound was first recognized as a separate breed.
Several breeders began to actively support the monochromatic Red Coonhounds believed to be descendants of Red Foxhounds from Scotland. They eventually became known as the "Redbone coonhounds" and were also considered the second breed. The remaining coonhounds for their branch were named English Coonhounds, after their English ancestry. These dogs had a wide variety of colors and patterns, although three predominated. The origins of the tricolor English foxhound, Bluetick, French grand bleu de gascogne and Redtick are obscure.
Recognition and popularization of the American English Coonhound
Initially, Coonhound breeders showed very little interest in participating in show shows. They cared almost exclusively about the performance of their four-legged friends, and not about their appearance. This began to change in 1898 when Chauncey Z. Bennett founded the UKC. The organization pays special attention to working dogs and field testing. Although Bennett himself was a lover of the American Pit Bull Terrier, and the first individual registered with the UKC was of this particular breed, he quickly found many allies among the owners of hunting and working dogs, especially Coonhound lovers.
The UKC began to conduct its own Kundog Trials, which has evolved into one of the most prestigious and important sports in the world. At the same time, the organization became the main and very famous coonhound registry in the world. In 1905, the UKC granted full recognition to the English Fox and Coonhounds, joining the Red, Black and Black & Tan Fox and Coonhounds that were already registered.
The name was eventually shortened to the English Coonhound as the breed was increasingly used for fox hunting. By the 1940s, attitudes and breeding practices began to change. Most breeders have developed dogs with a keen sense, or those that move very quickly, but do not necessarily take on the old trail of the beast. Many speckled pet breeders preferred to breed dogs with excellent scent, which worked great on the long-standing scent, but often it was done slowly and deliberately.
At the same time, breeders of the line of tricolor English Coonhounds known as "Walker hounds" wanted their favorites to be recognized as a separate breed. In 1945, these dogs were eventually named Walker's Woody Coonhound, and formally separated from the English Coonhound and Speckled Coonhound. This meant that the large majority of English Coonhounds were red-speckled dogs, but most of the population was blue-specked or tricolor.
In the middle of the 20th century, several English Coonhounds were imported into Brazil to participate in a breeding program to develop hounds adapted to the specifics of that country. The resulting dog was known by the name "Rastreador Brasileiro", although it later became extinct. All coonhounds are regularly used for hunting all types of mammals, but the American English Coonhound is probably used for catching raccoons most often. In particular, this dog is known to be highly skilled in hunting foxes, possums and cougars. The breed is also likely to be kept in very large packs. The American English Coonhound remains almost exclusively a working dog, and the vast majority of breed dogs are active or retired hunters.
Because of this, the species is rarely found in urban or suburban areas, but is considered one of the most common purebred dogs in terms of population in the United States. For almost the entire 20th century, the breed was ranked among the top ten breeds by registration with the UKC. Greater concentration of livestock in rural areas of the South, Midwest and Mountain West.
The American English Coonhound is popular with hunters in the United States, but is virtually unknown outside its homeland and in neighboring Canada. At the moment, very few representatives of the species are exported to foreign countries, although individual hobbyists around the world are their breeders. Many of these dogs turned out to be very capable hunters with a keen instinct, labor force, excellent temperament, toughness and the ability to catch many different types of animals in a wide variety of terrains and environments. Due to their success, it is possible that the demand for the breed will grow abroad as well.
Coonhound breeders have long distrusted the AKC, suggesting that registering their dogs with this organization could harm the species. This is the opinion of the majority of amateurs. The recognition of the AKC will lead to the fact that their pets will be divorced solely because of their appearance, and the health, temperament and performance of their four-legged friends will become worse as a result. Lately, skepticism has somewhat faded, and in 2010 the American English Coonhound received full recognition from the AKC as a member of the hound group. The AKC added the word American to the name to avoid confusion with breeds that were actually bred in England.
The organization founded the American English Coonhound Association (AECA) to represent the breed. However, many American English Coonhound breeders refused or did not bother to register their pets. Subsequently, a significant number of fans of the variety still enrolled their charges in the AKC, and in 2011 the breed was ranked 33rd in the number of registrations, although this includes representatives of all ages.
It is unclear what further recognition these canines will receive, but it is clear that in the near future they will be almost exclusively hunting dogs. An increasing number of members of the species are kept mainly as companion animals in rural areas. With proper exercise and care, these canines make great pets.
