artois hound

This breed, formerly named Picard, was much appreciated in ancient hunting at the time of Henri IV and Louis XIII and much sought after. Selincourt already made much of it, wondering and amazed to see these dogs pulling a hare which had passed by one hour ago in dry weather. Le Couteulx de Canteleu, in Manuel de Vénerie Française (1890), (Manual of French Hunting - 1890), praises also the Artois hound. He reports that the artesian breed of his time was crossbred and difficult to find pure but, in spite of that, it still remained one of the best breeds for hare hunting. Northern France, bordering the English Channel, consists of the historical regions of Artois Hound. Hounds from this region stem from some of the earliest types. By the middle of the 20th century the breed had nearly disappeared, however in the 1970s a few aficionados , in particular Mr. Audrechy, (of Buigny les Gamaches in the Somme), decided to reconstitute the breed from a few remaining specimens which they located after along search. Thanks to their efforts the modern day Artois hound closely resembles the original. There are now about 500 dogs registered in their stud books, making a strong comeback since 1975.

The Artois Hound is a rare breed of dog, and a descendant of the Bloodhound. A scent hound 22-23 inches high at the withers, weighting anything between 55 and 65 pounds, it is a well constructed dog with a slow graceful gait. It has a large, strong head, a medium-length back and a pointed tail that tends to be long and sickle-shaped. Their ears are set at eye level; they have large prominent eyes and quite thick lips.