THE RARE BREED DOG ASSOCIATION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BASSET BLEU DE GASCOGNE BREED STANDARD

 

 

 

FCI-Standard N° 35  /  25. 11. 1996  / GB

 

BLUE GASCONY BASSET

(Basset Bleu de Gascogne)

 

TRANSLATION : Mrs. Peggy Davis.

 

ORIGIN : France.

 

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 24.01.1996.

 

UTILIZATION : Hound used to hunt with the gun, sometimes for coursing, as much on his own as in a pack.  His preferred quarries are the rabbit and the hare.

 

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. :   Group   6   Scenthounds.

                                               Section 1.3  Small sized scenthounds.

                                               With working trial.                                           

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : The breed was reborn at the end of the 19th century, under the instigation of some huntsmen from the West.  Since then its evolution has been constant as much in the plan of necessary morphological improvement as in the preservation of the qualities of the dog from “the South (Midi)”.

 

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Really typical Basset, denoting the great breed he comes from; quite substancial but yet not too heavy.

 

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS :

  • Size/Body length          about 5/8.
  • Depth of chest/size      about 2/3.

 

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT :

Very fine nose.  Active, agile and lively.  Intent in his way of hunting; endowed with a beautiful howling voice.  Works perfectly in a pack.  Affectionate and  happy dog; need to frisk about.

 

HEAD

 

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Seen from the front, slightly domed and not too broad; the occipital protuberance is marked; seen from above, the back of the skull is ogival in shape.  The forehead is full.

Stop : Hardly accentuated.

 

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : Black, large; nostrils well open.

Muzzle : Same length as the skull; strong; nasal bridge slightly arched.

Lips : Quite drooping, covering well the lower jaw; giving the front part of the muzzle a square profile.  The corner of the lips is well marked without being loose.

Jaws/Teeth : Scissor bite.  Incisors set square to the jaws.

Cheeks : Lean; the skin may show one or two folds.

Eyes : Oval shaped, seem deep set; brown.  Gentle expression, a little sad.

Leathers : Characteristic of the “Blue” : they are fine, curled in, ending in a point and must at least go beyond the extremity of the nose.  The leather is narrow at its set-on, which is well below the eyeline.

 

NECK : Quite long, a little arched; dewlaps developed without excess.

 

BODY :

Back : Long, well supported.

Loin : Short, well coupled, sometimes arched.

Rump : Slightly oblique.

Chest : Roomy, well developed in length; comes down below elbow level.  Sternum quite prominent in front and well extended to the back.  Ribs quite well sprung.

Flank : Quite deep.

 

TAIL : Strong set-on; carried sabre fashion; sometimes there should be some longer and coarser, slightly offstanding hairs (like ears of grain) towards the tip.  At rest, its tip must just touch the ground.

 

LIMBS

 

FOREQUARTERS :

View of the ensemble : Forelegs strong, slight torsion may be tolerated up to semi-torsion (semi-crooked).

Shoulder : Muscled, without heaviness, and oblique.

Elbow : Very close to the body.

 

HINDQUARTERS :

View of the ensemble : From behind, a vertical line going from the point of the buttocks passing through the middle of the leg, the hock, the metatarsal and the foot.

Thigh : Long and muscled.

Hock joint : Large, slightly bent; quite let down.

Metatarsal : Short and strong.

 

FEET : Of a slightly elongated oval, toes lean and tight.  Pads and nails black.

 

GAIT / MOVEMENT  : Balanced and quite easy.

 

SKIN : Not too fine; supple.  Black or strongly mottled with black patches, never entirely white.  Mucous membranes (hairless zones) black.

 

COAT

 

HAIR : Short; semi-thick; dense.

 

COLOUR : Entirely mottled (black and white) giving a slate blue effect; marked or not with more or less exended black patches.  Two black patches are generally placed on either side of the head, covering the leathers, surrounding the eyes and stopping at the cheeks.  They do not meet on top of the skull, they leave a white interval in the middle of which is frequently found a small oval shaped black spot, typical of the breed.  Two more or less bright tan markings are placed above the superciliary arches, giving a “quatreoeuillé” effect to the eyes.  Also tan traces are found on the cheeks, the lips, the inner face of the leathers, on the legs and under the tail.

 

SIZE :

Height at the withers : Male and females :  34-38 cm.

 

FAULTS : Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.

 

HEAD :

  • Skull too broad and flat.
  • Round eye, globular.
  • Leathers set high, broad, thick, round.

 

NECK :

  • Short neck.

 

BODY :

  • Long, soft topline; lack of substance.
  • Xiphoid appendage drawn in.
  • Flat ribs.

 

TAIL :

  • Deviated tail.

 

FOREQUARTERS :

  • Straight shoulder.
  • Out at the elbows.
  • Crooked pasterns, knuckling over.
  • Splay feet.

 

HINDQUARTERS :

  • Cow hocks or barrel hocks seen from behind.

 

HAIR :

  • Short (smooth) and fine.

 

COLOUR :

  • Tan too pale.

 

BEHAVIOUR  :

  • Timid subject.

 

ELIMINATING FAULTS :

  • Frightened or aggressive subject.
  • Serious anatomical malformations.
  • Visible disabling effect.
  • Lack of type.
  • Over- or undershot mouth.
  • Light eye.
  • Body too long.
  • Deformation of ribs, absence of xiphoid appendage.
  • Frontlegs with more than semi-torsion.
  • Any other coat than that indicated in the standard.

 

 

N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.