Judging the American English Coonhound

This article was originally published in Showsight Magazine, February 2014 issue.

Judging the American English Coonhound

Having been a fancier of these ticked up hounds for a number of years, I became passionate about the breed after I heard my first English Coonhound track and tree a raccoon during training season in fall of 1990. Our party went on quite a bit of a walking hike after the hounds trailed out of hearing across the hills and hollows of eastern Kentucky. To witness hounds doing what they were bred to do and doing it out of instinct was so thrilling! There is nothing sweeter than hearing a hound on chase giving voice and then hearing that voice change over to a tree bark announcing “I’ve got the quarry treed…come to me.” And as this was just training season, we found the coon with our lights, then rewarded the hounds with pats and praise and “ok..leave it…let’s go.” Wow…it was an experience I enjoyed, and from that time forward, I found myself hooked on these ticked up hounds! That was in 1990, and by 1992 I was dabbling with raising, showing, and hunting them. Hello, my name is Penny Jessup, and today I have a small hobby kennel in the rolling hills of north central North Carolina, along with my husband and 2 children.

My husband participates in competition coon hunts, and I like to show. We are very active with our hounds, both in the woods and in the shows, and we strive to raise quality hounds that can be dual-purpose show and hunt as well as loyal companions. While I am not presently an AKC licensed conformation judge, I am, however, an AKC and UKC licensed Coonhound bench show judge and have been for at least 15 years. I have participated in the Coonhound program for over 20 years, and during that time, I have had an English female win the 2012 AKC World Championship Bench Show and additionally a second English Coonhound female win the 2013 UKC World Championship Bench Show. My endeavors with this breed have brought me heartache and also incredible joy, and while I have a deep appreciation for all the Coonhound breeds, the English hounds do hold a special place in my heart. One thing lots of folks ask is, “Why is this breed called the AMERICAN ENGLISH Coonhound?” That’s a fair question. For all the years until AKC formally recognized this breed, it was only known as the “English Coonhound,” so my interest was piqued as well.

As it was explained to me, it was to avoid any confusion with anyone thinking this was a Coonhound breed developed in England and brought there. This is a purely American breed, developed primarily in the southeastern United States to run and tree game. So while the name “AMERICAN English Coonhound” seems a misnomer in name, it actually recognizes the breed accurately, and I can accept that and appreciate that. I feel there would not be much I can tell any current AKC conformation judge reading this article about movement and how these hounds should place their feet for efficient and effortless movement. My goal, therefore, is to discuss finer points of the breed in hopes you will better understand the breed when you next judge them in your rings.

One thing to note: of the 6 Coonhound breeds presently recognized by AKC, all of them are unique both in their ancestry and their nature and characteristics. While all but the Plott have a shared heritage leading all the way back to the foxhound, the English Coonhound is probably the most diverse of all the Coonhound breeds. You will find less consistency from dog to dog. One hound may be redtick in color and have a square blocky head and be heavy boned, and the next may be lighter boned, short-eared, and bluetick in color. Learning to appreciate these ticked-up hounds for their unique attributes is what we strive for… Let’s just start at the head and work our way through the dog… As with most hounds, we want a nice broad head with a kind hound expression and a square muzzle. The planes of the skull and the muzzle should be parallel. Preference to the darker eye, black nose, and preference to a nice low ear set. Looking at the hound straight on, ideally, the ears should set approximately at a level with the corner of the eye. Historically, I will tell you that there are several lines of English Coonhounds who display shorter ears and higher ear sets. That is not preferred, but it is present in the breed.

In addition, while we do not ever expect an English Coonhound to display the long ear present in a bloodhound or even the Black and Tan Coonhound, I do not believe any English Coonhound should be disqualified nor heavily faulted for an ear length that extends slightly past the end of the nose. This ear is desirable in the breed. The neck and topline are significant in this breed. There should be a graceful neck rising from a powerful body tapering upward to the skull. To form a nice smooth topline, we always want our English Coonhounds to be slightly higher at the withers than at the hips. And by saying slightly higher…that’s exactly correct; this should not be exaggerated. Imagine a fine bead of water running down from the back of the skull, down the neck, across the withers, then slowing down as that bead reaches the back and across the loin. The neck should blend smoothly into the back. The ribs of a mature English Coonhound are well sprung, and when seen from above, show a definite width tapering to a muscular loin, almost like the waist on a person.

The tail set lies immediately at the end of the croup and not too low. The tail should be carried gaily and not hooked. No excessive brush on the tail is present. From a side profile, a nice topline is complemented well by a smooth underline that tucks up gradually behind floating ribs. This tuck-up should never be exaggerated as with a whippet. The rib cage extends down to the elbow, showing adequate lung space. It is essential that this breed display a good deal of lung space and a racy, powerful body, as it is important for a hound to be able to give chase and hunt all night if that is the desire of the owner. Although many hounds are not asked to do this…they should be built to do so. This type of body will allow the English Coonhound to achieve the effortless trot characteristic of the breed.

Both front and rear angulation is very important to this breed to help them achieve the best drive and reach when in motion. A well-laid-back front shoulder and a nice, well-bent stifle are highly desirable. But, overall balance front and rear will usually result in a well-moving English hound. Historically, legs and feet are crucial features of a sound English Coonhound. When viewed from the front and from the rear, we want to see straight legs leading to a well-rounded, catlike foot showing a strong arch over the toes. Splay feet are not desirable and would result in a Coonhound that will break down after a few short years of hunting in the field. As judges evaluate these hounds and lay hands on them, they will be able to appreciate the athlete the English Coonhound is. But, as you step back and take a final look at your ring of American English Coonhounds, you will likely see hounds of many different color patterns. From my experience, the “redtick” or the red and white ticked is the most common English Coonhound color. But, as mentioned earlier… these hounds represent the most diverse of all the Coonhound breeds, and that is easily seen with the color. You will also see blue and white ticked (almost like the Bluetick Coonhound), tri-color with ticking, along with red and white and blue and white.

All of these must include at least 10% ticking across the body, or it is a disqualification. This variety of colors can easily be understood if you will recall that until the 1940s, the Bluetick and the Treeing Walker Coonhound were once registered altogether as English Coonhounds, that is…until their fanciers petitioned to have them recognized as their own individual breeds. And so the genetic makeup is very diverse, and even a mating of two red and white ticked parents today can result in any of the above-mentioned colors. But, let me make this very clear…there is not any one preference for any particular color. An American English Coonhound of any color should be judged equally based on their physical attributes without regard to color. In summary, please know that the American English Coonhound is a canine athlete with a powerful, racy body that needs to be able to go to the woods at night and perform for its owner, and then potentially sleep at the owners’ feet at night! This hound is confident and happy…a family dog! Take time to appreciate its diversity and its unique characteristics!