The breeds · scenthound · scenthound
UKC Scenthound · FCI standard 266
Hygen Hound.
FCI 266: scenthound (Group 6, Section 1.2 medium-sized hounds, with working trial); medium-sized, solid and compact, rectangular with strong topline. UKC: a medium-sized scenthound from Norway, short-coated, solid and compact, slightly longer than tall; recognized by UKC in 2006. Wikipedia (English): created in the 19th century by the Norwegian breeder Hygen from various hound breeds; an endurance hunter; energetic and free-spirited. Wikipedia (Norwegian): named for Hans Fredrik Hygen (born 1808), regarded as the first in Norway to start regular breed-based breeding of hare hounds; independent, hardy and robust with restrained temperament and great hunting desire; not a choice for beginners and not recommended as a family dog for passive people, though it does well socially if it can use its energy. Norwegian Wikipedia also records that Dunker and Hygenhund were merged by the NKK as 'Norsk harehund' from 1925 to 1934 and were separated again with their own standards in 1934; Hygenhund blood has been used to broaden the Swedish Gotland Hound..
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.
The body
What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.
Height at the shoulder
Low and high span FCI and UKC (Norwegian Wikipedia agrees). FCI and UKC print different ideals (20.1 and 20 in), so no center. Ruled text-only (Chad, Oct 9): the English Wikipedia figure conflicts sharply with the standards and is kept in the text, labelled, but not in the filter range.
Weight
Editorial only. Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).
Coat
Heat tolerance
Derived from the coat description (short dense = 4). No measured data.
The dog at home
What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.
Exercise need
Text only; no minutes stated. Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).
Grooming
Single editorial source; no RKC or AKC band.
The work
What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.
Role
Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).
Primary game
Quarry is stated by Norwegian Wikipedia only. Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).
Search pattern
Voice on the line is a rich Norwegian Wikipedia passage; pack or single work is not stated by any source read. Editorial views are shown beside the standard, labelled; where they disagree both stand (Chad, Oct 8 2026).
Field trial standard
Registry classification only; no trial rule text read.
How common the problems are
Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.
Most common disorders
Population context only; no health survey exists in the sources read.
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
- Hygenhund, Hygenstover, Hygenstøver
Every breed, read the same way.
The breed index grows as entries clear the standard. Gun dogs first.
All published breedsYour hygen hound, on the record.
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