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Hamiltonstovare

The breeds · scenthound · scenthound

AKC Foundation Stock Service · UKC Scenthound · FCI standard 132

Hamiltonstovare.

FCI 132 utilization: scent hound that gives tongue, used for hunting hare and fox; it is not a pack hound and is never used for hunting deer. RKC: a Swedish solo hunter developed by Count Hamilton; hunts singly rather than in packs and was developed primarily to hunt small prey; valued for its excellent nose, perseverance in tracking and its loud, clear voice on the trail. SKK: used for hunting hare and fox; strong hunting desire, so not suited as only a companion; Sweden's largest native hound breed and regarded as a national breed. Wikipedia: bred for hunting hare and fox, especially tracking scents alone..

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.

22 / 21INHeightdogs 22.4, bitches 20.9. An ideal from the standard, not a range.
40–75LBWeight, all linesbreed 40 to 75 lb.
2.5+ HRSExercise, every dayRKC: exercise more than 2 hours per day; size of home large house; town or country: country; large garden.. 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

dogs 22.4 in (20.9 to 24) · bitches 20.9 in (19.3 to 22.4)

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale

Center is the FCI ideal. FCI disqualifies size outside the limits.

Weight

40 to 75 lb

Breed clubAKC

Low and high span the AKC page header and Wikipedia. No standard prints a weight; the AKC range is wide and unexplained.

Coat

FCI: harsh, not too short, lying very close to the body; very short and smooth on head, ears and front of legs, slightly longer under the tail and on back of thighs; tricolour, black mantle with tan on head, ears, legs and underside, white blaze, throat, collar, brisket, tail tip and lower legs tolerated. RKC: short coat, sheds. Wikipedia: short dense coat with a close soft undercoat, especially thick in winter. SKK: coarse and close-lying; normal care, bathed when needed.

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale

Wikipedia's undercoat claim is not in the FCI text.

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 · Harsh, close-lying short coat (FCI); Wikipedia describes a thicker winter undercoat

DerivedFederation Cynologique Internationale

Derived from the coat description (short dense coat with a winter undercoat per Wikipedia = 4). No measured data.

The dog at home

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

Exercise need

RKC: exercise more than 2 hours per day; size of home large house; town or country: country; large garden.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC band 'more than 2 hours' = 150 by library mapping.

Exercise need

RKC: more than 2 hours per day; country home with a large garden. AKC breed page: Energy Level 4 of 5, Mental Stimulation Needs 4. SKK: strong hunting desire, not suited as only a companion.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

Energy

AKC breed page: Energy Level 4 of 5, Mental Stimulation Needs 4, Trainability 4, Playfulness 4, Barking Level 3, Watchdog/Protective 4, Openness To Strangers 5, Good With Young Children 5, Good With Other Dogs 3. AKC page header lists Life Expectancy 14 to 17 years (the AKC's own figure, not a study). RKC: lifespan over 10 years.

Breed clubAKC

AKC bands, not measured. Life-expectancy header kept as text only; no Dogs Trust or Teng row.

Grooming load

2 of 5 · RKC: grooming once a week; coat length short; sheds. AKC breed page: Coat Grooming Frequency 2 of 5, Shedding Level 3.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC 'once a week' = 2 by library mapping.

The work

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

Role

FCI 132 utilization: scent hound that gives tongue, used for hunting hare and fox; it is not a pack hound and is never used for hunting deer. RKC: a Swedish solo hunter developed by Count Hamilton; hunts singly rather than in packs and was developed primarily to hunt small prey; valued for its excellent nose, perseverance in tracking and its loud, clear voice on the trail. SKK: used for hunting hare and fox; strong hunting desire, so not suited as only a companion; Sweden's largest native hound breed and regarded as a national breed. Wikipedia: bred for hunting hare and fox, especially tracking scents alone.

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale

FCI, RKC, SKK and Wikipedia agree. Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).

Primary game

FCI: hare and fox; never deer. RKC: small prey. SKK: hare and fox. Wikipedia: hare and fox; bred to refuse to track deer.

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale

All four agree.

Also used on

No other quarry is named in the sources read. FCI states the breed is never used for deer.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

Row records the negative so the filter does not infer deer work; FCI 132 states it outright. Nothing else is stated.

Search pattern

FCI: scent hound that gives tongue; not a pack hound. RKC: hunts singly rather than in packs; excellent nose, perseverance in tracking, loud clear voice on the trail. Wikipedia: tracks scents alone over varied Swedish terrain. SKK: follows well and is easily trained, strong hunting desire.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

Giving tongue on the line is stated by FCI and RKC (a loud, clear voice). No source read describes the type of voice (bawl, chop, bark). Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).

How common the problems are

Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.

Most common disorders

SKK: a very healthy breed with good mentality; hip dysplasia (HD) occurs.

Breed clubSvenska Kennelklubben (Swedish Kennel Club)

Single source, the Swedish breed guide text. No screening figure read.

More

akc bands

AKC breed page trait scores (1-5): Energy Level 4; Mental Stimulation Needs 4; Trainability Level 4; Barking Level 3; Watchdog/Protective Nature 4; Good With Young Children 5; Openness To Strangers 5; Good With Other Dogs 3; Shedding Level 3; Coat Grooming Frequency 2; Drooling Level 2; Affectionate With Family 5; Playfulness Level 4; Adaptability Level 3.

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 Hamiltonstovare 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. 4 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.

Also called
Hamilton Hound, Swedish Foxhound, Hamiltonstövare

Every breed, read the same way.

The breed index grows as entries clear the standard. Gun dogs first.

All published breeds

Your hamiltonstovare, on the record.

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