Hellenic Hound

American Rare Breed Association

FCI-Standard N° 214  / 19. 03. 1996 / GB

HELLENIC HOUND

(Hellinikos Ichnilatis)

TRANSLATION : Mrs Peggy Davis.

ORIGIN : Greece.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 16.10.1959.

UTILIZATION : Hound with a fine sense of smell and of great resistance; he is an active hunter either alone or in a pack and responds completely in all terrains of lowland or mountains and even in the more rocky and unworkable terrains; his voice is resonant and harmonious.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 6 Scenthounds and related  breeds.  Section 1.2 Medium sized Hounds.  With working trial.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Medium-sized dog, short-haired, black and tan, strong, vigorous, lively, keen.

HEAD : Long, its total length corresponds to the height at the withers as 4.35 : 10.  The width of the skull must not be more than the half of the total length of the head, i.e. the total cephalic index must be less than 50.  The upper lines of the skull and of the muzzle are divergent.

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Its length is equal or little less than the length of the muzzle; of fairly flat shape.  The occipital protuberance is only slightly protruding.  Forehead quite broad.  Medial furrow not very marked.  Superciliary arches high.

Stop : Not very pronounced.

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : On the muzzle line, overhanging the forward vertical lip line, humid, mobile, black.  Nostrils open.

Muzzle : Its length is equal or a little more than that of the skull.  Nasal bridge straight or, in males, slightly arched.

Lips : Rather developed.

Jaws/Teeth : Strong jaws meeting perfectly either in scissor or pincer bite.  Strong, white teeth.

Eyes : Normal size, neither deep set nor prominent, brown colour with lively and intelligent expression.

Ears : Of medium length (almost half the length of the head), set on high, i.e. above the zygomatic arches, flat, rounded at the lower extremity and hanging vertically.

NECK : Powerful, muscled, without dewlap, descending harmoniously towards the shoulders.  Its length corresponds to the total length of the head nearly as 6.5 : 10.

BODY : The length of the body is 10% more than the height at the withers.

Topline : Straight, slightly convex at the loins.

Withers : Slightly raised above the backline.

Back : Long, straight.

Loins : Slightly arched, short, strong, well muscled.

Croup : Long, broad, well muscled, slightly sloping.

Chest : Well developed, deep, let down at elbow level. Ribs slightly sprung.

Belly :  Lean, slightly tucked up.

TAIL : Not long, reaching at maximum the point of the hock; set rather high, thick at the root and tapering slightly towards its tip; in movement carried sabre-fashion.

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS : Good straight legs seen from the front and in profile, well muscled and robust.

Shoulders : Sloping, well muscled and close to the thorax.

Arm : Oblique, muscular, robust.

Forearm : Straight, long, well boned.

Pastern joint : Lean, not prominent.

Metacarpus (Pastern) : Of sufficient length, strong, rather straight, never hollow.

Forefeet : Rounded, compact; strong toes, close, arched; strong nails, curvec, black; pads large, hard, tough.

HINDQUARTERS : Well straight and vertical seen from behind and in profile; well muscled and robust.

Thigh : Long, strong, well muscled.

Leg : Slanted, long, strong.

Hock joint : Lean, strong, medium height, bent.

Hock : Strong, lean, quite long, almost straight, without dewclaws.

Hind feet : Same as the forefeet.

GAIT/MOVEMENT : Swift and light.

COAT

HAIR : Short, dense, a little hard, close fitting.

COLOUR : Black and tan.  A small white patch on the chest is tolerated.  The visible mucous membranes, the nose and the nails black.

SIZE AND WEIGHT :

Height at the withers : For males :  47-55 cm.  For females : 45-53 cm.  Tolerance of more or less 2 cm.

Weight :        17-20 kg.

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.

Muzzle short and broad.

Ears too long or too short, pointed, twisted.

Neck too short.

Upper line convex or concave.

Loins flat, narrow.

Croup short, narrow, not sloping.

Lower line very let down or too drawn up.

Tail long, heavy, curly.

Pastern and hocks too short or too long, thin, hollow.

Cow-or barrel hocks.

Harefeet.

ELIMINATING FAULTS :

Aggressive or overly shy.

Convergence of the upper longitudinal axes of the skull and the nasal bridge.

Nasal bridge concave, muzzle very pointed.

Over-or undershot mouth.

Ears semi-erect.

Tail curved up.

Legs out of vertical.

Dewclaws.

Other colour that the specified for the coat, the nose, the eyes and the nails.

Total depigmentation of the visible mucous membranes.

Height at the withers over or under the indications of the standard.

SCALE OF POINTS

          General appearance                     20

          Head (skull and muzzle)                15

          Eyes                                            5

          Ears                                            5

          Neck                                           5

          Body                                         15

          Legs                                          20

          Tail                                             5

          Coat                                          10

                                                           100 points

QUALIFICATION

          Excellent :      points not less than  90 points

          Very good :   points not less than  80 points

          Good :          points not less than  70 points

          Fair:             points not less than  60 points

Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.

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