Billy

The Billy is a large French scenthound from Poitou, in the west of France. It is a rare pack hound, pale in color, and the packs that remain hunt roe deer and wild boar.

History

The Billy was bred in the 19th century by Gaston Hublot de Rivault, and takes its name from his home, the Château de Billy in Poitou. He made it by bringing together the three original strains of the Poitevin hound: the Montemboeuf, the Ceris and the Larrye. The Poitevin of today is closer to the tricolored Larrye line. De Rivault preferred the paler coats of the Montemboeuf and Ceris, and color was one of the main things he selected for. A standard for the breed was set in 1885.

In the late 19th century the Billy was one of the founding breeds of the Grand Anglo-Français Blanc et Orange.

De Rivault’s pack was dispersed in 1927 and the breed came close to dying out. Only two hounds survived the Second World War. His son Anthony then rebuilt the breed with careful use of the Poitevin, the Porcelaine and the Harrier.

Appearance

Males stand 60 to 70 cm (24 to 28 in) at the shoulder and females 58 to 62 cm (23 to 24 in). Weight runs from about 33 to 47 kg (72 to 104 lb). The coat is short and smooth, and rather harsh to the touch. It may be pure white, off-white or gray, and some hounds have orange or lemon-yellow patches on the head and body.

The standard of the Fédération Cynologique Internationale asks for a hound that gallops easily.

Facts on this page were checked against Wikipedia and may have changed since.