Austrian Black and Tan Hound
🧠 Temperament & character
The Austrian Black and Tan Hound is enduring, keen-nosed and remarkably passionate – a working dog that works on the trail with a loud voice and great persistence. Her nature is friendly, affectionate and balanced, which makes her a pleasant companion in the house. She needs plenty of exercise and a meaningful occupation, ideally hunting-related. Her strong hunting drive and her independence on the trail call for consistent, hunting-oriented guidance.
📜 Origin & history
The Austrian Black and Tan Hound, officially the Austrian Smooth-haired Hound, is an old scent hound breed from the Austrian Alps and goes back to the Celtic hounds. Her nickname 'Vieräugl' comes from the two light tan markings above the eyes, which look like a second pair of eyes. She was deliberately bred for trailing and tracking in difficult mountain terrain. To this day she is kept almost exclusively by hunters and is rare outside Austria.
✂️ Grooming, care & training
The short, smooth coat of the Austrian Black and Tan Hound is weatherproof and very easy to care for; occasional brushing is enough. Her need for exercise, on the other hand, is high: she needs a great deal of daily running room, endurance running and intensive scent work, ideally in a hunting context. Without a real task this specialised working dog is under-challenged. In training she is cooperative thanks to her affectionate nature, but needs a consistent, knowledgeable hand and a securely fenced environment; the ears and joints should be checked regularly.
🩺 Health
The Austrian Black and Tan Hound is considered a robust, healthy mountain breed with a life expectancy of about twelve to fourteen years. Breed-typical hereditary diseases are rare, which is thanks to the functional breeding for hunting performance. As with all active drop-eared scent hounds, one should pay particular attention to the ears (inflammations), the joints and the paws. Responsible breeders place value on health, temperamental steadiness and a pronounced aptitude for work.
🏡 Who is this breed right for?
The Austrian Black and Tan Hound is a specialised hunting dog and fits best in a hunter's hands or in an environment with intensive scent and tracking work. For pure apartment or family keeping without a hunting task she is little suited, as she is otherwise under-challenged. She is affectionate and needs a close bond and plenty of shared work. In Switzerland she is rare and found above all among hunters; outdoors, leash rules and wildlife protection must be observed because of her hunting drive.