Overview
The Griffon Fauve de Bretagne is a medium-sized scenthound with a rough, pale golden to red coat, long drop ears and a tail carried up in a slight curve. It still hunts boar in France and also makes a pleasant companion.
Its standard describes a dog that is wily and tenacious in the field but sociable and affectionate with people.
History
Its ancestor, the larger Grand Fauve de Bretagne, hunted wolves and wild boar in packs, and King Francois I is said to have kept a pack. When wolves vanished from France in the nineteenth century, the old type nearly died out. Survivors were crossed with Briquet Griffon Vendeen dogs to produce the smaller Griffon Fauve.
In 1949 Marcel Pambrun founded a club to save the remnants kept by a few farmers and hunters. Since the 1980s both this breed and the derived Basset Fauve de Bretagne have recovered in numbers.
Appearance
A medium-sized, bony and muscular hound standing 48 to 56 cm at the withers, with the same height for males and females. The back is short, the ears long and dropped, and the rough, shaggy coat comes in any shade of fawn from golden to red.
Temperament
On the hunt this is a tenacious, resourceful dog that works on all kinds of terrain. At home it is sociable and affectionate and fits well into family life, though individuals vary.
Care and exercise
As a pack hunting hound it needs a good deal of daily exercise and enjoys scent work and long walks. It does best with an active family and a secure garden.
The rough coat needs regular brushing and occasional tidying, and the ears should be checked.
Health
No unusual health problems have been documented for this breed.
