General Appearance: The Otterhound is a large dog. Males range between 25-27 inches, weighing 90-115 lbs. Females are slightly smaller, between 23-26 inches and weighing 70-90 lbs.
Substance: The Otterhound should have strong boned legs and should be well muscled. It has a soft, wooly undercoat and a harsh outer coat.
Head: The head should be large and well covered with hair. The expression is amiable. The eyes are deeply set and the color of them will depend on the color of the hound. The ears are an essential feature of the Otterhound. They are long, pendulous, and folded. They are set at or below eye level, also well covered with hair. The jaws are powerful, capable of a crushing grip. The nose is large with wide, open nostrils and should be completely pigmented.
Neck, Topline, Body: The neck is powerful and should be long enough to allow the dog to follow a trail. It should be well covered with hair. The topline is level. The Otterhound should have a deep chest reaching to the elbows on a mature hound. The tail is long, reaching at least to the hock. It is carried saber fashion when the dog is moving or alert.
Fore and Hind Quarters: Moderate angulation both front and rear. Strongly boned. The feet are large, broad and capable of spreading. They have thick pads and are web-footed.
Coat: An essential feature of the breed. The outer coat is coarse and crisp and of broken appearance. Softer hair on the head and extremities is natural. The undercoat is short and wooly.
Color: Any color or combination of colors is acceptable.
Gait: The Otterhound may shuffle when it walks, but when moved at a trot, it should move freely with reach and drive. The gait is smooth, effortless and capable of being maintained for many miles.
Temperament: The Otterhound is amiable, boisterous and even-tempered.
*for the complete Official Standard of the Otterhound go to: www.akc.org
GENERAL APPEARANCE: Otterhounds are most often seen at dog shows. Under these circumstances, the OH has been recently bathed & groomed. What a pretty picture! But, the reality is, most OH's don't spend their time in a tub or on a grooming table. What one sees at a dog show is not what one gets at home.
SIZE: The OH is a large dog and gets that way quickly. At 6 months of age, on OH has reached ¾ of its adult size & weight. From the time an OH pup is first brought home, the new owner must remember to be the "alpha" dog - the leader of the pack!
TRAINING: "Firm but Fair" is a common phrase used in training an OH. Behaviors not desired as an adult should not be tolerated at a pup. Training a pup of 20 lbs. is a lot easier than training one 70+ lbs!
BODY: This section of the standard can be summed up in 2 words: Strong & Powerful. An OH would probably make a terrific football player. Being greeted by a friendly OH can feel like being tackled by a linebacker.
HEAD: As the standard states, the OH head is large & well covered with hair. The size of the dog's head does not imply, however, that the dogs IQ is the same. Although extremely intelligent for doing what they were bred to do --- HUNT --- simple commands such as sit, stay and come are not performed with the exhuberance of an OH that is on a scent.
The hair on the head, or rather under it (the beard), has a tendency to be continually wet and can collect an enormous amount of dirt & debris for such a small area. This could be a problem if your favorite color is white!
EARS: As our standard states, the ears are long, pendulous & folded. What the standard is really saying is that they are long so they can collect additional debris missed by the beards. They are pendulous so that when an OH shakes its head, they can distribute debris even further and higher!! Walls and ceilings are no exception. The folded part is so the OH has an excuse for not listening to your simple command.
NOSE: The nose on the OH is probably the one feature that can create the most problems to someone new to the breed. Being a true scent hound, the most important thing to an OH, aside from food, is its nose. That, coupled with its curiosity & inquisitiveness, can lead to trouble if the OH is left to its own devices. When the OH's nose hits the ground, the dogs hearing is turned off!! The OH will be off & running. Confining an OH to ones own property is a must. The most preferable way is a fence.
FOREQUARTERS & HINDQUARTERS: These parts of the OH require an enormous amount of exercise. If you think about what an OH was bred to do, (hunt otter), and the terrain it had to cover to perform its job,
you would realize that a leisurely walk around the block would not be sufficient to keep an OH happy. There are few people, if any, who have the stamina to keep up with an OH.
COAT: Most likely, it is the Walt Disney "shaggy dog" appearance that draws people's attention to the OH. And forturnately, the OH coat is easy to maintain. But it does require maintenance. A good weekly brush-out is generally sufficient. The rest of the time the OH coat is used to collect dust & dirt, which is deposited like tumbleweeds throughout the house.
TEMPERAMENT: Only 3 words are used to describe the OH's temperament: Amiable, Boisterous, & Even-tempered. Perhaps vocal should be added!! The OH has a tendency to use its vocal cords frequently, whether at work or play, and sometimes for no apparent reason. This could present a problem if neighbors are close by.
As keepers of this breed we must remember that not everyone is suited to own an Otterhound. As a breeder, it is our responsibility to inform prospective buyers of the drawbacks of owning an Otterhound,
......as well as the rewards.
GENERAL APPEARANCE: Otterhounds are most often seen at dog shows. Under these circumstances, the OH has been recently bathed & groomed. What a pretty picture! But, the reality is, most OH's don't spend their time in a tub or on a grooming table. What one sees at a dog show is not what one gets at home.
TRAINING: "Firm but Fair" is a common phrase used in training an OH. Behaviors not desired as an adult should not be tolerated at a pup. Training a pup of 20 lbs. is a lot easier than training one 70+ lbs!
HEAD: As the standard states, the OH head is large & well covered with hair. The size of the dog's head does not imply, however, that the dogs IQ is the same. Although extremely intelligent for doing what they were bred to do --- HUNT --- simple commands such as sit, stay and come are not performed with the exhuberance of an OH that is on a scent.
The hair on the head, or rather under it (the beard), has a tendency to be continually wet and can collect an enormous amount of dirt & debris for such a small area. This could be a problem if your favorite color is white!
EARS: As our standard states, the ears are long, pendulous & folded. What the standard is really saying is that they are long so they can collect additional debris missed by the beards. They are pendulous so that when an OH shakes its head, they can distribute debris even further and higher!! Walls and ceilings are no exception. The folded part is so the OH has an excuse for not listening to your simple command.
FOREQUARTERS & HINDQUARTERS: These parts of the OH require an enormous amount of exercise. If you think about what an OH was bred to do, (hunt otter), and the terrain it had to cover to perform its job,
you would realize that a leisurely walk around the block would not be sufficient to keep an OH happy. There are few people, if any, who have the stamina to keep up with an OH.
TEMPERAMENT: Only 3 words are used to describe the OH's temperament: Amiable, Boisterous, & Even-tempered. Perhaps vocal should be added!! The OH has a tendency to use its vocal cords frequently, whether at work or play, and sometimes for no apparent reason. This could present a problem if neighbors are close by.
