Hounds
A hound is a type of dog that assists hunters by tracking or chasing the animal being hunted. It can be contrasted with the gun dog, which assists hunters by identifying the location of prey and/or recovers shot quarry.
There are three types of hound, with several breeds belonging to each type:
| Type | Example | |
|---|---|---|
| Sighthounds (also called gazehounds), which follow prey predominantly by speed, keeping it in sight. These dogs are very fast and will catch and kill game (e.g., hares, gazelles, deer) by themselves. | Whippet | |
| Scent hounds, which follow prey or others (like missing people) by tracking its scent. These dogs have endurance, but are not fast runners. | Basset Hound | |
| The 'other' hounds follow prey by both sight and scent. These breeds are difficult to classify other than to say they are neither sighthounds nor scent hounds. | Rhodesian Ridgeback. | |
Read more about Hounds: List of Hound Breeds
Famous quotes containing the word hounds:
“I was with Hercules and Cadmus once,
When in a wood of Crete they bayed the bear
With hounds of Sparta: never did I hear
Such gallant chiding; for besides the groves,
The skies, the fountains, every region near
Seemed all one mutual cry. I never heard
So musical a discord, such sweet thunder.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“When the hounds of spring are on winter’s traces,
The mother of months in meadow or plain
Fills the shadows and windy places
With lisp of leaves and ripple of rain;”
—A.C. (Algernon Charles)
“I will have no Parsons around me but such as drink deep, ride to Hounds and caress the Wives and Daughters of their Parishioners. A Virtuous Parson does nothing to test or exercise the Faith of his Flock.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)