I have a couple passions! One is Bloodhounds. Other things are Education, and Juniors, and overall, the Sport of Dogs! Please indulge me here as I share my Thoughts on Bloodhounds!
For the Bloodhound, a low entry and often misunderstood breed, to survive and thrive, EDUCATION IS CRITICAL! But we cannot educate those with closed minds or those who come to the breed or sport thinking they already know it all. And, in a breed where 95 percent of the puppies registered are produced outside the national breed club membership (most likely not to the Breed Standard), this can have a scary impact on the breed going forward!
Marlene’s Bloodhound Breed Goal #1: Find ways to get more people who have Bloodhounds to join the fold and share good breed education!
Bloodhounds are NOT the breed for everyone! Let’s face it, they are big, with big energy (more than people think), need big-time training, have some big health challenges, and can make big messes! These are some of the reasons why the breed struggles with a huge population in rescue. But honestly, this is also (mainly) due to irresponsible breeders producing puppies and placing them in homes with owners who are not up for this challenge, so many Bloodhounds grow up to become not the best Bloodhound citizen.
Marlene’s Bloodhound Goal #2: See Goal #1 and do absolutely everything to reach people who have Bloodhounds; and not just be the Bloodhound clean-up team but also the Bloodhound education team!
Another area I focus on, and wish more people would, is that Bloodhounds are a working dog. So, a Bloodhound truly needs to be able to do its job, not just trot around the ring for two minutes but trail for two miles or maybe many more (honestly, in a variety of weather and terrain).
Marlene’s Bloodhound Goal #3: Help Bloodhound people learn more about Bloodhound trailing and the real purpose of their dog. Secondarily, get more law enforcement and search and rescue teams back to considering and using Bloodhounds.
Bloodhound dog show participants need to really learn the Bloodhound Breed Standard, and of course, all Bloodhound breeders should as well. To anyone who is enamored with the look and silly character of a Bloodhound and wants to learn more, I highly recommend:
