My dog for today is a grand dog.
The Basset Hound
What a totally adorable pup. Its body is too big for its little legs, and it falls over itself as it scampers across the floor with its big feet. If you have stairs, get the gates in place!
The Basset is known as an intelligent breed. Say what? It doesn’t listen, obey commands, and is more interested in thinking its own thoughts than listening to you. Okay, training will be slow with this one, but if the owner doesn’t understand the Basset breed traits, and pushes the pup too soon, he or she will have a very stubborn dog.
Kindness and patience, with an upbeat approach to training, will help. Give the pup small treats for every success, or even the pup’s attempts to please. I say small as keeping an eye on this dog’s weight is very important. I saw an overweight Basset at the doggie park recently. He ambled along, unaware that his tum was grazing the grass, leaves and twigs. We chatted with his owner, who absolutely adored his dog, but was worried about grazes on his belly. No kidding!
I have to admit that until the pup has grown an attachment to you, and listens through his love for you, treats are your best bet. Most owners find this out quickly and tend to give the growing pup too many.
You can see this dog mulling over its options when told to do something. There will be times when devotion nor treats work. The dog decides it needs to sleep some more, and it will take effort to make this dog move. The good news is that most of the time the dog will decide to obey, but definitely not instantly and not all of the time.
Obedience is just not a Basset’s strong suit, but this can be amusing. In fact, when you issue a command, several times, the dog does not appear to hear you. A Basset can develop a deafness so convincing, you consider a visit to the vet for an ear check. Before you do this, though, consider rustling a bag of treats, or opening the fridge door. The dog’s apparent deafness is magically gone in a flash.
The Basset Hound has the distinction of being the breed heavier in bone for its height than any other breed. Yay, that’s a distinction, but the dog is not very tall. In fact, the dog has very short legs and moves its solid frame with a deliberate gait.
The French bred the Basset to be a badger hound and the Basset’s long ears have a purpose. They stir up the scent of small game. Thinking you definitely need to know that there is a badger about, your dog will let you know with its distinctive hound sound
Grooming your Basset is fun. As you brush your dog, a closer bond is formed. It’s a together time over treats and walks.
Your Basset will shed, so the above tool will dramatically reduce this. It’s a grooming tool and brush – pretty good one, too.
Usually a Basset is easy going and not aggressive. The dog has such an interesting personality. If you haven’t forced the obedience issue too much, and have a good sense of humor, you will really appreciate the armchair clown. It’s also impossible to resist that “sorry” look in this dog’s expressive eyes.
Why would I say the Basset is a grand dog? Because the Basset is definitely a grand dog, but its also because Madison is my daughter’s dog. Madison is my lovable granddog.
We suggested Bassets for the Zodiac sign of Pisces in AstroPups.
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Acknowledgements of authors who contributed to AstroPups, which I use to write my blog, can also be found in About Us.
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