Billy (dog)

The "white dogs of the king" or "white dogs of the clerks" were created by Louis XII and used in royal packs for more than two centuries, for example under the reigns of Francis I, Henry IV and Louis XIV. At the end of the 19th century, Hublot du Rivault, a Poitou hunt master, wishes to recreate the old breed. The Billy owes its name to its property, located on the municipality of Billy, and now included in Maisons-Laffitte. The selection is carried out with different extinct dog races such as the Céris, the Montembœuf and the Larye. The Billy is a very rare breed outside Poitou, and is subject to hereditary problems that threaten its survival.

The FCI standard does not give a typical temperament for the breed. The Billy is described as a working dog, intelligent, easy to train and attached to its master. It is friendly with men and children, but tolerates the presence of other dogs poorly. Life in groups and obedience to humans must be taught from an early age. In the kennel, the basic discipline rules of the group dog are instilled through daily exercises, especially before meals are distributed.

The Billy is a large scent hound, athletic with solid bone structure and powerful musculature. The long and strong tail is sometimes slightly hairy. The head is fairly fine and dry. The drooping ears are attached high for a French scent hound. Medium in size, they are fairly flat and slightly turned at their lower part. The eye is wide open and dark in color, it is bordered in black or brown. The main characteristic compared to other scent hound breeds is the color of its coat: uniformly white, uniformly cafe-au-lait, white with a mantle or patches of light orange or lemon. The coat is short and hard to the touch.