First hand Basset info.

3083 Views 22 Replies 15 Participants Last post by Barbie, Mar 4, 2007

Barbie

Discussion Starter · Feb 27, 2007

We were hoping to get first hand info on the Bassets. We have researched the breed for hours online, plus called and spoke to vets, groomers, and the humane society, plus one person whose mom and dad own one. What we would really like to do, is hear from the actual owners first hand. We have already made up our minds that we are getting one and have one picked out from a breeder that we will be getting within the month. So we are not changing our minds at all. We are suuuuuper excited about him.

Now i just was hoping for some honest answers, so if anyone has any to these questions please reply.
Thanks.

Do they shed a whole bunch? I heard that when they do shed the fur is very hard and prickly and is alot everytime you pet them.

What is this hound smell truthfully like? Is it extremely stinky? Like when you walk into your house is it going to stink? Hahahahhah!!

Thanks guys.

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mgbrown66

· #2 · Feb 27, 2007

Some good reading here:

http://www.oldefashion.com/Ownership.html

http://www.woebgonbassets.com/Purchasing_a_Puppy.html

Check out those sites and start to surf... Bassets definitely shed, and they definitely smell. People cannot tell in my house, because I vacuum all the time and always have a candle going. Small price to pay for the two coolest dogs on the face of the earth, in my opinion.

Barbie

Discussion Starter · #3 · Feb 27, 2007

Thanks. I have been through the first link a few times before. The second one is new to me though so thanks. I will check it out.

Mikey T

· #4 · Feb 27, 2007

Do they shed a whole bunch? I heard that when they do shed the fur is very hard and prickly and is alot everytime you pet them.

What is this hound smell truthfully like? Is it extremely stinky? Like when you walk into your house is it going to stink? Hahahahhah!!

Thanks guys.[/b]

Basset hardly shed

in a typical non- molting time it takes a week for them to drop every hair on their body and replace it with a new one. In heavy molting seasonal 2 time a year for up to two week that increases to a turn over rate of about once every four hours. The hair is short. stiff and difficult to remove.

As for the hound spell in a couple of year ya won't even notice it. Everyone that comes over might gag but you will be able to go on blissfully ignorant to the odor.

heck ya even skipped over housetraining

Some aditional reading on the importance of early socialization for dogs

Countdown to a Crackerjack Canine Companion

Puppy Socialisation and Habituation (Part 1) - Why is it Necessary?

Puppy Socialisation and Habituation - How to go about it.

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BubbaLeroy

· #5 · Feb 27, 2007

Yes, they do shed. We had, Bubba, a very heavy shedder, and now Bogie , who sheds less. Grooming several times a week with a shedding blade (like a doubled over saw blade with leather handle) zoom groom (rubber like brush with tiny rubber like bristles), and a rub down with a simple yard/garden rubber glove which puts a beautiful shine on their coat, keeps the coat in great shape. We bathe Bogie about every two months. We were able to run the vacuum cleaner on Bubba, which was wonderful, but not on Bogie.
As to smell, we have never had a problem with either Basset. We do feed "Nutro Natural Choice Lamb Meal and Rice" dry kibble , and maybe that helps. I have heard that poor quality dry foods can help cause doggie order. Bassets do have oilier coats than some breeds, but they are hunting dogs (bred for rabbit hunting) and this helps protect them.
You do have to care for their ears. Bassets do have the long heavy ear flaps, which trap in moisture and no air flow, and are prone to ear infections. We use an ear cleaning soultion from the vet, just drop in 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of solution, massage ear, wipe out the inside with a facial cotton wipe, and you are done. We do this twice a week, and have not had any ear infections. Bad ears can also cause odors, as well as their teeth. We also brush Bogie's teeth twice a week using the rubber finger brush and canine toothpaste we also get from the vet. No doggie bad breath.

Bassets are a wonderful breed, but not for everyone. Keep reading here and you will learn a lot. Ask all the questions you want and someone will chime in and help you out.

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Barbie

Discussion Starter · #6 · Feb 27, 2007

Thanks guys. I will check out those links and hopefully learn even more. We had a St. Bernard for 11 years. He shed as well, and for the last year or so had a yukky odor. That may have been the start of his sickness though. Not sure. Not sure how different the amount of shedding will be compared to eachother. I do rememeber sweeping and vacuuming and half way through the day i had dust bunnies in places. Oh well, shedding will come with a lot of dogs. When i talked to some groomers, they said the bassets, shed similarily to labs, rotties, and even pugs. Dalmations are super bad for shedding, and retrievers are bad as well. This is what 2 groomers said. I wonder if there is alot of truth to it........must be i suppose since they work on their coats for a living.
p.s. i must remention, that the boy we are getting is 1.5 years old.

Thanks again.

Aruuuu

· #7 · Feb 27, 2007

I have three bassets. They are constant shedders, which means they lose a little fur all the time. Edith Ann just went through a major shedding, though, and every time we ran our hands down her back, we came up with tons of hair. Couldn't keep the area rug in the family room clean either. But it only lasts about a week, which isn't bad.

As far as odor, I clean ears and arm pits once a week. I use a damp wash cloth on the ears, and I have a little bottle of Peroxide I use on armpits. Spritz it on, rub it in, wipe down. The odor isn't bad at all. In fact, we had company this weekend, people who don't have dogs, and they were amazed that my dogs had no odor. I took it as a compliment.

Good for you, taking in an 'older' dog. My Eloise came to me at ten months, and while we've had some young dog issues, it hasn't been anything like the eight-week-old puppy stuff we would have had.......

mikiesgirl

· #8 · Feb 27, 2007

We have two bassets, Chuck, an adoptee (no one knows how old he is), and George (6 months young). Chuck sheds a ton!!! I brush him weekly and also runs the vacuum on him on a regular basis. He also drools, which I'm surprised that you did not mention in your post. We have to constantly wipe his mouth, and the floor after him. The wrost is when he is around food, he automatically turns on his droop machine when he sees or smells any food particles. As for George, he does not drool at all. I think he got that from his parents, they are both non-droolers. As for the hound smell, George does not smell at all. Chuck has hound smell during certain times of the day, wrost in the morning when he's fresh out of bed. We wash his bed weekly, and bath him every other week in the warm weather, and every three weeks in the winter (we live in Alabama). However, both boys have smelly feet. They smell like dirty tennis shoes. Someone told me that the houndy smell can be largely attributed by the food they eat, especially anything that contains corn. We have them on Wellness, Lamb Super5 mix. But they still have the stinkiest feet on the block.

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Missjoy

· #9 · Feb 27, 2007

I don't find my Maggie to be a big shedder. Actually, I can have alergies to some dogs and I don't think Maggie sets me off at all. She sometimes has an odor, but it is mostly after she has been for a long walk. I"m not sure if this should be attributed to her being wet (there is snow on the ground here) or that she is heated up.

Oh, and don't even bother trying to keep them off the furniture. We tried with Maggie for the first couple months and then gave up - now we are all happier and she is quite the snuggler.

Oh, I have also found our bassett (our first dog) to be very gentle. We had her around a 11 week puppy on the weekend and a 1.5 year jack russell - they were wrestling the whole time but Maggie was the only one who didn't use her teeth (although she did like to try to body slam the other dogs).

Barbie

Discussion Starter · #10 · Feb 27, 2007

Thanks for the advice and show of circumstances involving your hounds. I have checked out all the links that ppl sent and they were helpful....a few i had read before, but did again. Enjoyed. Im not sure how much of the puppy stuff i will be able to apply to my boy. He will be 2 in May. Does anyone think i will be able to socialize him if he needs it? Or even retrain to acertain degree? Also, i hope my guy has a long/big dewlap. I notice a lot of the dogs i have seen on here have beautiful droopy skin,eyes,ears and dewlaps. Will this happen more as they age? Also, i have noticed there are a ton of pics with their hounds loose, i thought this was a big 'no no'. I thought they would automatically run after what ever scent they picked up. Or do some of them stay in the vacinity?

Thanks

Missjoy

· #11 · Feb 27, 2007

As far as being loose, it is a chance and they can follow their noses. Maggie is somewhere between 7 and 8 months and I'm working on her recall for the word "come". Every time she comes she gets a treat. She's pretty good with it. I've had her off leash a few times in parks where there is a lot of space before any roads because she isn't that fast a runner but as soon as she doesn't come when called she gets back on the leash. I found a great dog park near me that is very open and I can let her off leash for a while there because she will just play with the other dogs -but I watch her like a hawk. I do a number of recalls while she's playing and it might take two or three calls, but she comes (along with about 6 other dogs who want her treats). I would be very careful with being off leash - I wouldn't take Maggie for a walk off leash anywhere that wasn't very open and not near any roads.

faysie

· #12 · Feb 28, 2007

They can be very different, as I found out last year. I had a male that I rescued four years ago. NO slobber at all ...very little shedding. Naughty ...crafty ...but the sweetest thing ever. Very patient. He will roll in anything stinky outside that he found, which makes him smelly sometimes. He spends lots of time outdoors, exploring and playing with anything that moves. Dragonflies, lizards, etc.

THEN ...we got Dixie

. Dixie is also a rescue ...8 years old+- THICK coat that sheds but much softer and definitely a cuddler. Slobbers all over the place. "Diva-like" behavior ...and prefers the indoors. ALWAYS bright white and clean, never smells. Can't be bothered with going outside unless absolutely necessary. Has to be first ....must be in front during the walk. Demanding. She's the "alfa" between the two. And the most distinct feature of her character ...she BURPS! ...like a man!!! She belches as she walks away from her foodbowl. Funniest thing you've ever seen.

Their common trait is that they are both such good dogs. Bassets are naughty but they are so good and NON-aggressive. If they are well trained as puppys, they are the best pets ever

You will absolutely have a ball ...enjoy your new puppy!!

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sadeyes2

· #13 · Feb 28, 2007

Welcome to the board Barbie,good that you're asking questions. Mu guy doesn't smell. I've heard people say it depends on the food they eat. Better quality no cheap fillers etc. Yes he moults once a year in the early spring really heavily and it lasts about 2 weeks. The rest of the year isn't bad. I let Toby off in the park and at the beach, but they are both well away from roads, he has been taught re-call and I Always carry treats. He doesn't always come straight away though, if he gets a good bit of grass to smell. I used to attach a bell to his collar for the first few months he was off-lead and it was really helpful.

I thnk the best thing you can do is get him into training classes. (one that uses positive reinforcement as a means of traing)

Best of luck.

Faysie, I think that is hysterical Dixie belching after her dinner . I can just picture it. :lol: :lol:

Marcia

· #14 · Feb 28, 2007

I'm surprised nobody brought up the dreaded anal glands. These can be a source of really GROSS odor. Do a search and you'll come up with lots of threads.

Barbie

Discussion Starter · #15 · Feb 28, 2007

Thanks guys. So all the dogs are different naturally i suppose. ANAL GLANDS.....WHAT..... Just kidding. Yes i have heard of these wonderful things. How often do they need to be drained usually on bassets? Gross!! Our St. Bernard only had them done twice in his 11 years. Yikes!!

Thanks again.

Betsy Iole

· #16 · Feb 28, 2007

Anal glands vary...while some dogs never need them expressed (yay!)

, some need them expressed regularly to prevent infection.

biscuit

· #17 · Feb 28, 2007

I have a German Shepherd girl and, let me tell you, she sheds her weight in fur every day. :blink: I can sweep and mop and move everything around and think I have it under control ... and within an hour or so, there will be obese schnauzer sized furballs under the living room table. :blink:

Even though I thought Biscuit shed a lot, I can promise you, he was nothing next to this.

So if you've had dogs who are infamous shedders before :blink: , you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Drool on the other hand --- I'm still finding drool stains from Biscuit - on books, paintings, delicately colored fabrics, you name it. Make sure you have washable walls. :lol: But they're such amusing fellows that they more than make up for it. Biscuit could moo and do birdcalls! That's common for them, too! :lol:

Barbie

Discussion Starter · #18 · Feb 28, 2007

Thanks.............yes i know all about those drool stains as well. OH yes i know that shepherd shed a whole bunch too.
I have a few more questions..... Our Saint Bernard was famous for that especially after drinking. And i know all too well about vacuuming and sweeping and then later that day, it looks like you did neither. Ha!

As i have said we will be getting a 1.5 year old within the month. I contacted the breeder last night with some questions regarding his dewlap and how droopy he is. When they wrote back it was in different dog lingo so im not sure exactly what was meant.
I asked if he had longer legs and if he had a saggy/droopy dewlap...........this was the reply:

He does not have a very deep muzzle. He has lovely lines in a side view and is not leggy looking. Neither is he "overdone", meaning that he is very bassety but has enough leg and loose skin to do what he was bred to do... hunt in deep brush.

So u see i am very ignorant in this lingo department....what i think they meant was that he doesnt have a big saggy extra amount of dew lap, Is that right? and obviously he has shorter legs.

I hope he is saggy though, that to me is what is so cute about them.

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Betsy Iole

· #19 · Feb 28, 2007

Dewlap is the skin under the chin that hangs in folds from the neck and is best viewed from the front. From the use of "muzzle", the breeder is likely referring to the lips or flews, which are different from the dewlap. I would take the reference to "loose skin" as a good sign he'll be saggy enough.

2hounds

· #20 · Mar 2, 2007

My dogs are both shedders, droolers, and stinkers, but I wouldn't change a thing about either of them. My dogs are allowed off the leash going to and from the car for car rides (car rides to my parents house where when they get there they walk straight to the front door, such good doggies). They are also allowed off their leash in the front yard (we live in a dead end VERY QUIET street) if my fiance or myself are out there with them. This has truely been a test lately. Last night there were all kinds of critters running around out front. There was a rabbit in the yard next to ours and Lily had her eye on it. Lily crept towards the fence and stuck her head under the fence and about took off. My fiance yelled to her "Lily no!" and my hard headed diva girl...came back and resisted the rabbit!!! Yay, I'm so proud of her. This does demonstrate though that you have to be careful if your dog is going to be off the leash there has to be a lot of training involved. We have worked with our dogs a lot...basically walking around the safe boundaries and when one of them crossed that boundary they were told no...and when they returned when asked a lot of praise.

Good Luck with your dog.

~Heather

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