Polish Hound

As early as the 13th century, hunting with hounds is mentioned in Polish literature. Chronicles of the 14th century testify to the very keen interest of Polish nobility in this type of hunting. By the 17th century, two different types of Polish hounds were already well-established: the Polish Pointer, quite heavy, and the lighter Polish Hound. In the 19th century, cynegetic literature offers detailed descriptions of these two types such as Jan Szytler (sometimes spelled Jan Szytier) in his Guide for Hunters (Poradnik dla myśliwych) in 1819, W. Kozlowski in the journal Sylwan in 1821 with the first illustrations and finally the descriptions of Ignacy Bobiatynski in his work Nauka łowiectwa (1823-1825) which could serve as the first breed standard. After World War I, hunting with Polish hounds in Poland is still very present, notably in the East and in mountainous regions. In the Lower Carpathians region, Józef Pawłusiewicz (1903-1979), a famous Polish cynologist, used Polish hounds and was involved in the development of breeding. He wrote the first standard and officially registered these dogs with the Polish Cynological Association. The breed has been recognized provisionally by the International Cynological Federation since November 10, 2006.

The character of the Polish Hound is described in the International Cynological Federation standard as balanced, sweet, courageous, intelligent and easy to train. It is naturally wary of strangers.

The Polish Hound is a medium-sized dog demonstrating flexibility although of compact build. The bone structure is strong without being heavy. Carried like a sabre, the tail of medium thickness reaches the hock joint. Medium in size, the eye is brown in color in keeping with the coat colour. The ears are attached low, medium in size are pendulous and triangular in shape. The hair on the ears is smooth and silky. The rough coat is well-laid on the skin, with abundant undercoat, especially in winter. Three coat colours are admitted: black and tan, brown (chocolate) and tan and fawn-red which can be slightly charred. The tan markings are located above the eyes, on the muzzle, on the front of the neck, on the chest, on the lower part of the limbs, on the back and inside of the thighs. Small white marks on the fingers and on the chest are permitted.