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People who know basset hounds only through television or advertising
may think they were produced in Hollywood, but bassets are,
in reality, finely crafted hunters from the land of the rising
baguette. Indeed, there are few creations wherein form shadows
function more doggedly than it does in the basset. Abbreviated
legs discourage flights of fancy while compelling the basset
to keep its nose to the groundstone, thus making the basset
a most efficient tracker, second only to the bloodhound in
that pursuit. A low-slung chassis, no more than 15 inches
at the shoulder, enables the basset to tunnel through bramble
and brush like a four-legged rototiller. A singular and soulful
voice, loud enough to raise the living, helps the basset to
worry the most elusive game out of any cover. Grand, sweeping
ears ladle a quarry's scent toward the basset's amply appointed
nose. A white-tipped tail is a beacon in deep scrub, and a
long, ponderous body dictates a slow, steady pace that thoughtfully
accommodates the hunter who doesn't have time to waste keeping
fit.
Vive
la Difference
Basset
is derived from the French word bas, which means "weird-looking
dogs with truncated legs that first appeared in litters of
French stag hounds in the 16th century." In time that
definition was shortened to "lowest comedic denominator"
or simply "low." The sawed-off limbs of these downstarts
gave them a leg up with some French dog fanciers, who used
them to develop several types of bas-relief hounds. Two of
them - the Basset Artois and the Basset Normand - were the
forewalkers of the modern-day breed. Although the first mention
of a "basset" dog appeared in a text on badger hunting
published in 1585, the breed was used to hunt all manner of
game before eventually majoring in rabbit.
If we
slowforward three centuries, we find that in 1866, a pair
of basset hounds arrived in England from France. They produced
a litter of five for their owner, Lord Galway, the following
year, but they failed to catch fire with British dog fanciers.
That spark was not struck until 1880 when a large entry of
basset hounds nearly raised the floor at the Wolverhampton
show. Their presence was mainly attributable to Sir Everett
Millais, a dachshund breeder who had imported a male basset
named Model from France in 1874 after seeing him at a dog
show in Paris. The basset's popularity was also given a boost
by Queen Alexandra, who kept bassets in the royal kennels,
and by the formation of a basset hound club in 1884. Three
years later the breed was recognized by the Kennel Club of
England.
The
People's Choice
Basset
hounds were known in the United States since Revolutionary
times. George Washington is reported to have owned bassets,
a gift from his comrade in arms the Marquis de Lafayette.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) began registering the breed
in 1885, yet as of 1950, bassets ranked a low-profile 43rd
out of 107 AKC breeds. There were 459 new bassets enrolled
that year. Ten years later that number was 19 times greater
(8,782), and the basset ranked 12th among 106 AKC breeds.
Only Elvis soared up the charts faster during that decade.
The basset peaked at number 10 on the AKC hit parade, a position
it attained in 1964 and again in 1966. Last year its 15,726
new enrollments placed it 21st among 146 AKC breeds.
The fear
of nuclear war inspired a brisk trade in bomb shelters during
the 1950s, but the basset hound's popularity was not the result
of an obsession with rabbit hunting as a means of surviving
in a post-nuclear world. Two television programs and a shoe,
actually, sent the basset over the top. The first program
was "Lassie," which debuted in 1954. Its star, the
wondercollie, had a basset hound friend named Pokey, who belonged
to the hapless Timmy's hefty pal, Porky Brockway.
A greater
impact on the applause meter was registered by Cleo, the basset
who co-starred with Jackie Cooper in "The People's Choice,"
which ran from 1955 to 1958. Although Cleo didn't have a speaking
part in the series, her thoughts, usually droll and acerbic,
were audible to television viewers.
The third
charm on the basset's collar was the Hush Puppy, a casual
shoe introduced in 1958 and currently enjoying a vogue. Basset
hounds have been used in Hush Puppy ads every step of that
long, whimsical campaign.
They
Love a Parade
Basset
hounds are still used to hunt rabbit, but they are more visible
in parades than in pursuit of Thumper. The Doo Dah parade
in Ocean City, New Jersey, attracted 200 bassets in April.
Last year more than 220 basset hounds from 11 states and Canada
ascended on Dwight, Illinois, for The Illinois Waddle, an
annual fund-raiser for Guardian Angel Basset Rescue, which
places 10 to 15 bassets a month in new homes. The Great American
Basset Waddle, held in Birmingham, Michigan, was profiled
in Life magazine for May 1997. Six hundred bassets
had attended the waddle the year before. The list of other
cities that have basset parades is almost as long as the basset
itself. A giant, flowery basset, representing Glendale, California,
"marches" in the Tournament of Roses parade each
year.
Anyone
eavesdropping at a basset waddle is bound to hear quotes like
the following: "They're the clowns of the dog world."
"They're speedbumps. They take up a lot of floor space."
"If you have to be somewhere in a hurry, you shouldn't
have a basset anyway."
Bassets
are, in many regards, the ideal family dog - devoted in the
extreme, affable to a fault, marvelous with children and other
animals, and content with moderate exercise. For all their
geniality, however, bassets are possessed of abundant will
power. They generally respond to commands at the same speed
with which they do everything else. Moreover they live to
follow a trail. Once they pick up an interesting scent, they're
inclined to stay the course, even to the point of winding
up lost. Unless their own tracking skills are highly developed,
basset people should always exercise their dogs on a lead.
Bassets'
keenly developed sense of smell notwithstanding, they are
something of an Inspector Clouseau in the field. "Bassets
will never out-chase a hare," said the master of one
British basset pack. "It is fascinating to get up on
a rise in the countryside and watch how well the hare escapes
and how well the hounds stick to the scent. We just enjoy
watching the chase because the fun would be over if the pack
actually caught anything."
The
Real Lowdown
Like the
basset hound, genes have a mind of their own. While breeders
have been busy refining the basset to a low art, a few of
its genes have been up to mischief. Their antics have resulted
in several diseases to which a basset could fall heir.
Osteochondritis
dissecans (OCD), a corruption of bone underlying the cartilage
in joint areas, usually strikes puppies, five to 12 months
of age. If R&R (rest and restricted activity) aren't a
sufficient "cure," surgery is required to remove
bony lesions or pieces of detached cartilage.
Entropion,
which may not be apparent until a dog is mature, is a condition
in which the eyelids turn inward, causing irritation to the
eye and, if left untreated, blindness.
Ectropion,
the outward rolling of the lower eyelid, can result in scarring
of the cornea and/or chronic conjunctivitis.
Otitis
externa, an infection of the outer ear and ear canal, is the
bane of dogs with long ears that don't get much air.
Intervertebral
disk disease (IDD) is an abnormality of the cartilaginous
disks that normally provide cushioning between the vertebrae.
Basset owners should manage their dogs' exercise and diet
carefully in order to minimize the expression of IDD in case
their dogs have inherited this tendency. If IDD leads to vertebral
disk herniation, the sooner that medical and surgical intervention
are begun, the better.
Glaucoma,
which often leads to partial or total blindness, is caused
by an increase of fluid pressure within the eyeball. Primary
glaucoma is inherited. Secondary glaucoma is caused by an
injury or other physical mishap. The early signs of glaucoma
include a dilated pupil, cloudiness within the cornea and/or
an increase in the size of the blood vessels in the white
portion of the eye. Once the onset of glaucoma occurs, treatment
should begin promptly - in a matter of days or, in some extreme
cases, even hours.
Von Willebrand's
disease (VWD), caused by a deficiency or abnormality of the
factor that assists in normal blood clotting, can result in
excessive bleeding. In a 10-year, 1,060-case study conducted
in New York state, 17 percent of the basset hounds had VWD
and 34 percent were in the borderline range. Prospective basset
owners should ask to see the results of VWD tests on the parents
of the puppies in which they are interested.
Give
Us This Day Our Daily Fred
Basset
hounds will follow a scent until its owner dies, showing up
just in time for the viewing. This legendary stamina is reflected
in the comic strip "Fred Basset." A perpetual pleaser,
Fred has been "running" nonstop since he first appeared
in London's Daily Mail on July 8, 1963, even though
his creator, Glasgow native Alex Graham, has been dead now
for almost eight years. Graham, who owned a basset hound named
Freida, published 8,757 Freds before he died. In addition,
he left behind an 18-month supply of his comic strip. When
that expired, the Daily Mail and other newspapers around
the world began rerunning the 9,000-plus Fred Bassets, which
will last without interruption until 2023.
To be
sure, some hare, after running through streams and foul-smelling
fields to cover their trail, have been seen doubling back
through the middle of the basset pack, whose members are too
busy following the scent to notice.
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