PHCA expands its Illustrated Standard with updated visuals and detailed explanations to clarify the Pharaoh Hound Breed Standard.
Sheila Hoffman
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The Pharaoh Hound Club America (PHCA) has recently expanded our Illustrated Standard to include both additional illustrations and in-depth descriptions. The Pharaoh Hound Breed Standard has not changed since it was approved in 1983, and the breed gained full AKC recognition in 1984. The club does not plan to make any revisions to the existing Breed Standard. Our original Illustrated Standard was approved in 1993. We felt it was time to fully explain sections of the Illustrated Standard and add some modern illustrations. Included here are some highlights and excerpts from these updates. Please remember, these are only highlights, and the reader will need to refer to a full version of the new Illustrated Standard to view all the updates.
The section concerning proportions and balance has been expanded. The correctly proportioned Pharaoh Hound should appear slightly off-square in profile. The breed is slightly longer in body than in height when measured vertically from the ground to the highest point of the withers, as opposed to the length of the body when measured horizontally from the point of forechest to the rear projection of the upper thigh or buttocks. An overly rectangular profile indicates a dog that, when measured, would measure significantly longer than tall from the given points of measurement.
The body of a Pharaoh Hound is muscular and powerful, possessing great endurance and capability of speed. “Sturdy Elegance” has been a term aptly used to describe the ideal general appearance and build of a Pharaoh.
The topline is at its highest point at the withers. It should be firm. A slight rise over the loin due to natural vertebral anatomy is permissible and is common, though this rise should be slight in profile. A Pharaoh Hound in correct weight should show no more than the suggestion of three vertebrae. Fortunately, the breed has many people active in both Conformation and Lure Coursing. Therefore, there is not a divergence of type between a show dog and a successful coursing dog. A dog should be in proper weight and conditioning to be competitive in both events.
Discussion of the forequarters has been expanded to, in part, include the following: A properly angulated shoulder is reflected in the dog’s gait in that the dog’s front extension is directly dependent on the layback of the shoulder. A well-laid-back shoulder should have the blades falling noticeably behind the base of the neck, with a smooth neck-into-shoulders transition. A properly balanced front assembly can be visualized by an imaginary plumb line dropped from the top of the shoulder blade perpendicular to the ground. If properly balanced, this line should hit the point of the elbow. The length of the shoulder blade and of the upper arm should be equal. Correct withers are those with a distinct space between the tops of the shoulder blades.
The height from the elbows to the withers should be approximately equal to the height from the ground to the elbows. When the dog is in a normal stance and when he is gaiting, the elbows should lie close to the brisket, well-tucked in, without being pinched. Loose elbows that point outwards, or have a tendency to bend and twist underneath the dog’s weight, are a fault of construction and an impediment to the breed’s agility. Elbows that fall significantly in front of the bottommost point of the rib cage, falling more underneath the forechest, indicate a cathedral front assembly that is set on too far forward. This, again, impedes agility, and ultimately, endurance.
The hindquarters section has also been expanded to more clearly define angulation and balance. The moderate sweep of stifle is called for in the Breed Standard, and an imaginary plumb line dropped from the point of the buttock should be utilized to gauge the correct amount of rear angle. This line should hit the ground directly in front of the rear foot when the dog is stacked with hocks perpendicular to the ground. A plumb line that falls significantly in front of the rear foot is indicative of excessive rear angulation. Correct balance between the front assembly and the rear is illustrated.
The Pharaoh Hound is not a breed that should be raced around the ring. The gait should be free, smooth, and powerful, with the reach in front equal to the drive behind, without overstepping or overreaching in the rear. This necessitates correct and balanced front and rear angulation. “Head held fairly high” does not mean a head held in a bolt upright position, or strung up high over the shoulders, but merely a head that is carried easily and naturally above the highest point of the backline when in motion, typical of an endurance hunting hound.
Single tracking, although a mark of excellence in many other breeds, should be severely penalized. When moving away from the viewer, the rear feet and legs of the dog should move directly forward, with hocks parallel to each other and in line with the body. This bit of width will give the dog stability while hunting on hard, uneven, rocky terrain as is seen in Malta.
Our intent is for these updates to expand the explanation of the Pharaoh Hound Standard.
The Pharaoh Hound Club of America website is currently under reconstruction. Once it is completed, the updated Illustrated Standard will be available there.
Feel free to contact me for more information.
Sheila Hoffman
PHCA Judge’s Education Coordinator
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