KENAI
Basset Fauve de Bretagne

The breeds · scenthound · scenthound

AKC Hound · UKC Scenthound · FCI standard 36

Basset Fauve de Bretagne.

FCI 36: scent hound used for hunting rabbit, hare, fox, roe deer and wild boar; Group 6, Section 1.3 small-sized hounds, with working trial. FCI behaviour: impassioned hunter, courageous, wily and obstinate in the hunt, sociable and equable at home. UKC: a serious hunter easily adapting to different game and terrain. AKC: small rough-coated French scent hound, adapts to all terrains and quarry. RKC: a scent hound hunted in 'couples' and small packs..

Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.

0INHeightall null. An ideal from the standard, not a range.
23–39LBWeight, all linesbreed 23 to 39 lb.
2.5+ HRSExercise, every dayRKC: more than 2 hours per day.. The constraint most homes get wrong.

The body

What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.

Height at the shoulder

12.5 to 15.5 in

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 2021

Registries agree to the half inch. Both sexes.

Weight

23 to 39 lb

Breed clubAKC

AKC page header only.

Coat

FCI: very rough, harsh, rather short, never woolly or curly; face not too bushy. UKC: very rough, harsh, not too long; moderate facial furnishings; sparse, soft, smooth or fine coat is a serious fault. AKC: wiry, rough, harsh and rather short preferred, smooth harsh tolerated; long woolly coat is a serious fault. Color: fawn from golden wheaten to red brick; a few black hairs and a small white chest star tolerated.

Breed clubFCI-Standard N° 36

Shedding

Shedding 3 of 5 (AKC breed page trait score)

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.

Heat tolerance

4 of 5 · FCI 36: coat very rough, harsh, rather short, never woolly or curly. UKC: very rough, harsh, not too long. AKC: wiry, rough, harsh, rather short (smooth harsh tolerated).

DerivedFCI-Standard N° 36

Derived from the standard's coat description; no measured data. Short harsh single hound coat = 4.

The dog at home

What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.

Exercise need

RKC: more than 2 hours per day.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC is a UK registry band, not a study; mapped by the library rule.

Energy

4 of 5

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.

Grooming load

2 of 5 · RKC: grooming once a week; medium coat length; sheds. AKC standard: wiry, rough, harsh, rather short coat; shown in natural coat, not overly groomed.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC is a UK registry band, not a study; mapped by the library rule.

The work

What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.

Role

FCI 36: scent hound used for hunting rabbit, hare, fox, roe deer and wild boar; Group 6, Section 1.3 small-sized hounds, with working trial. FCI behaviour: impassioned hunter, courageous, wily and obstinate in the hunt, sociable and equable at home. UKC: a serious hunter easily adapting to different game and terrain. AKC: small rough-coated French scent hound, adapts to all terrains and quarry. RKC: a scent hound hunted in 'couples' and small packs.

Breed clubFCI-Standard N° 36

Primary game

Rabbit, hare, fox, roe deer and wild boar (FCI 36 and UKC history list the same five; AKC standard history adds that by the 19th century hound packs were made up exclusively of Bassets for them). UKC and FCI: a national reputation as an outstanding rabbit hound; FCI says the breed has won the French Cup hunting trophy on rabbit a number of times.

Breed clubFCI-Standard N° 36

Range

AKC standard history: developed as a shorter-legged, closer-ranging hunting companion for hunters on foot. Club of America president (AKC article): circles back and stays with you in the field.

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 2021

Close-ranging per AKC; no registry prints a distance. Editorial for the field behavior.

Search pattern

RKC: hunted in couples and small packs. AKC history article: by the 19th century hound packs of four Bassets ran together; the breed's sound is a hound bay rendered 'aahrooo' before the chase. AKC standard: a closer-ranging companion for the hunter on foot, energetic and hardy, a full day's hunting. Club of America president Cindy Hartman (AKC article): they circle back and stay with you while out hunting, and a dog called on pursuit returned. FCI: lively and rapid for its size, enormous energy.

EditorialAKC, 2026

Pack and voice statements are from the RKC page and an AKC editorial article quoting a US club president, not from a French club text.

Field trial standard

FCI 36: classified 'with working trial' (Group 6, Section 1.3). The motto of the French fauve club is 'chasse d'abord' (hunting first) per the FCI griffon standard and the AKC article. No trial rule text was read.

Breed clubFCI-Standard N° 36

Only the FCI classification line and the club motto are stated; the French working-trial rules were not found.

More

akc bands

AKC breed page trait scores (1-5): Energy Level 4; Mental Stimulation Needs 5; Trainability Level 1; Barking Level 3; Watchdog/Protective Nature 1; Good With Young Children 5; Openness To Strangers 5; Good With Other Dogs 5; Shedding Level 3; Coat Grooming Frequency 1; Drooling Level 1; Affectionate With Family 3; Playfulness Level 3; Adaptability Level 5.

Breed clubAKC

Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.

No KENAI kennel lists the Basset Fauve de Bretagne yet. If you breed them, list your kennel free: it shows on this page and in the hunting dog breed finder, under every handler whose answers land on the breed.

How to read this page

Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.

Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 5 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.

Also called
Fauve Basset, Fawn Brittany Basset

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