Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen
Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen is a rough-coated French scent hound with straight forelegs, long ears, and a shaggy coat that looks as if it has never seen a brush. The FCI places the breed in Group 6 among the scenthounds, Section 1.3 for small-sized hounds, and classifies it with a working trial.
Males stand 40 to 44 cm at the withers and females 39 to 43 cm, with a tolerance of one centimetre either way.
The name translates roughly as large, low, shaggy dog of the Vendée, and it describes both the shape and the job. This is the tallest of the basset breeds and the fastest of the scenthound bassets, built to push through bramble after hare and rabbit for a full day. It is independent, a little stubborn, and far more active than its short legs suggest.
These are the headline figures, with the source noted because the registries publish different numbers.
| Official name | Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen, often shortened to GBGV |
| FCI standard | No. 33, Group 6, Section 1.3 Small-sized hounds |
| FCI utility | Assistant for the hunter with a gun on moderate ground |
| Working trial | With a working trial |
| Origin | France, Vendée region |
| Kennel Club (UK) group | Hound |
| AKC recognition | 2018, Hound Group |
| Height | Males 40 to 44 cm, females 39 to 43 cm, with a tolerance of one centimetre |
| Weight | No weight figure in the FCI, AKC, Kennel Club, or CKC standards |
| Coat | Hard, straight, not too long, with undercoat |
| Colours | White with black, orange, grizzle, or sable, plus tricolour and black and tan |
| Lifespan | Over 10 years |
| Exercise | More than two hours a day |
| Grooming | Weekly brushing and combing, with daily attention in season |
| Suits | Active households with a securely fenced garden and time for scent work |
What Is a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen?
The FCI standard describes a dog that is slightly elongated overall, with straight forelegs, the structure of a basset, and an outline that must not resemble a small Briquet. It should look balanced and elegant rather than heavy. The bone is developed but lean, and the standard makes the point that bone quality is a question of density rather than volume.
Four features identify the breed at a glance. The ears are supple, narrow, fine, covered in long hair, set below the eye, and long enough to reach beyond the end of the nose. The muzzle is noticeably longer than the skull and square at its tip, with pendulous lips and a moustache. The eyebrows are pronounced without covering the eye. The tail is thick at the base, set high, and carried sabre fashion or slightly curved, never over the back.
The coat is the part that separates a show dog from a pet that has been clipped. The hair is hard, flat, and not too long, never silky or woolly, and the belly and inside of the thighs must not be bare. A dog trimmed short loses the rustic appearance the standard asks for.
Where Does the Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen Come From?
All bassets descend from larger hounds, and this one descends from the Grand Griffon. The FCI records that the first selections were made at the end of the 19th century by the Comte d’Elva, who wanted dogs with straight legs, and that Paul Dezamy fixed the type by settling on a size of about 43 cm so the pack could catch a hare.
The Canadian Kennel Club traces the line back further, to a cross between a Griffon de Bresse and the white hunting hounds of King Louis, made by the royal archivist who lived in the Vendée. The Club du Griffon Vendéen was founded in 1907 and recognised two varieties of the Basset Griffon Vendéen, the Grand and the Petit, and the two became separate breeds in the 1950s.
Recognition in North America came late. The American Kennel Club kept the breed in its Foundation Stock Service from 2004 to 2017, allowed it into Companion Events from 1 January 2008, and granted full recognition in the Hound Group in 2018. The parent club has represented the breed since February 2013.
What Does a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen Look Like?
The body is longer than it is tall, though the standard warns against an exaggerated length. The back is long, broad, and straight, the loin is solid and slightly arched, and the chest is well let down to elbow level. The dog stands on straight forelegs with thick forearms, and the wrists should never touch.
Height is the one measurement every registry agrees on, and the figures line up almost exactly.
| Source | Height and weight |
|---|---|
| FCI standard (No. 33) | Males 40 to 44 cm, females 39 to 43 cm, tolerance of one centimetre; no weight given |
| Canadian Kennel Club | Males 15.5 to 18 inches (40 to 44 cm), females 15 to 17 inches (39 to 43 cm); no weight given |
| American Kennel Club | Hound Group; describes the breed as medium sized, with no weight range in the standard |
| Kennel Club (UK) | Lists the breed as medium, with a long coat and daily grooming |
Colour is where the breed gets its old hunting names. The FCI accepts black with white spotting, black with tan markings, fawn with white spotting, fawn with a black mantle and white spotting, and pale fawn with a black overlay.
Breeders still call these hare colour, wolf colour, badger colour, and wild boar colour, and the traditional names survive because hunters used them to describe what the pack was chasing.
Three faults are disqualifying and worth knowing before you buy: a self-coloured black or white coat, a woolly coat, and eyes of different colours. A kinky tail and crooked forelegs also disqualify in the show ring.
What Is the Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen’s Temperament Like?
The FCI standard is unusually direct about character. It calls the breed fast, well voiced, and a passionate hunter that loves bramble and scrub, then adds that it is a little stubborn and that it is up to the owner to take command. The American Kennel Club softens the same picture: somewhat active and never high-strung, yet a busy dog that does not tire easily.
The Canadian Kennel Club describes a courageous hunter that is willing to push into dense cover, independent in nature, friendly and outgoing, and not easily agitated. It makes one practical point that shapes family life: the dog must know its place within the household. A hound that is allowed to decide when the walk ends will decide other things too.
That package produces a dog that is affectionate on its own terms. It enjoys company and joins family life happily, yet it follows its nose with a focus that overrides most training. Owners who expect a velcro dog tend to be disappointed. Owners who enjoy watching a hound work tend to be delighted.
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How Much Exercise Does a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen Need?
Plan for more than two hours a day. The Kennel Club lists the breed at more than two hours of daily exercise, which is a lot for a dog that stands under half a metre tall. The Canadian Kennel Club explains why: this is a sturdy breed with the stamina for a full day’s hunt, and it wants that exercise well past adolescence.
A secure fence is not optional. Every source says the same thing in different words: the Grand cannot resist a chase, so a fenced garden or a long line is the only safe way to let it move. A dog that follows a scent does not hear a recall, no matter how well it was trained at home.
A daily routine that satisfies the breed looks like this.
- A long morning walk of 45 to 60 minutes, with part of it on a long line so the dog can put its nose down and work.
- A second walk in the afternoon or evening, because one outing does not cover the breed’s daily requirement.
- Free running inside a fenced area several times a week, which builds the stamina the breed was selected for.
- A short scent game or training session each day, because a hound that uses its nose at home is calmer everywhere else.
Does the Breed Need Scent Work?
Yes, and this is where the breed gives the most back. The American Kennel Club notes that Grand Basset Griffon Vendéens have been trained for mantrailing in Europe and the United States, and that they hunt in packs like Foxhounds and Beagles. Tracking, mantrailing, and scent detection all use the instinct that otherwise sends the dog across a road after a rabbit.
Four activities suit the breed and can start at home.
- Trailing a person or a dog over a short track, which teaches the dog to follow one scent and ignore the rest.
- Finding hidden food or a toy in the garden, which is scent work with no equipment and no entry fee.
- Nose work classes, which give the dog a job in a controlled space and tire it faster than a walk.
- Barn or field trials where they exist locally, because the breed was built to work in company with other hounds.
How Do You Groom a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen?
The American Kennel Club asks for a weekly brushing with a slicker brush and a comb, plus an occasional bath. The Kennel Club goes further and lists grooming as a daily job, which reflects the reality of a harsh coat that collects twigs, burrs, and mud on every walk. Neither source recommends clipping the coat short.
A routine that keeps the coat and the dog healthy looks like this.
- Brush and comb once a week at minimum, working down to the skin so the undercoat does not mat behind the ears and under the legs.
- Check the long ears weekly, because a hound’s ears hang low, trap warmth, and collect debris from every hedge.
- Trim the nails regularly, since the breed’s fast-growing nails split and crack when they get too long.
- Bathe occasionally rather than often, and dry the coat properly afterward so the undercoat does not stay damp.
- Look at the eyes and the beard after every walk in cover, because seeds and grass awns lodge in both.
What Health Problems Do Grand Basset Griffon Vendéens Have?
This is a hardy breed with a short list of documented concerns. The AKC national breed club recommends two screening tests, a hip evaluation and an ophthalmologist evaluation, and the AKC describes the majority of the breed as healthy dogs.
The Kennel Club asks for one thing before breeding, and it is not a disease test: it asks breeders to prioritise genetic diversity.
That difference is worth understanding. A breed with a small population and a long history of closed stud books loses genetic variety faster than a popular breed, and the Kennel Club’s guidance reflects that risk rather than a specific illness.
The breed also sits in Breed Watch Category 1 in the United Kingdom, which means no points of concern have been identified beyond the routine requirements of the standard.
| Registry | What it asks for before breeding |
|---|---|
| American Kennel Club | Hip evaluation and ophthalmologist evaluation |
| Kennel Club (UK) | Prioritising genetic diversity; no breed-specific DNA package |
| FCI standard (No. 33) | Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs with breed-typical conformation |
Lifespan is given by the Kennel Club as over 10 years, which is generous for a dog of this build. The breed’s working history helps here, since hounds that could not keep going for a day in the field were not bred from. A Grand that is kept lean and exercised daily tends to stay mobile well into old age.
Any dog that stops eating, loses weight, develops a limp, or shows a change in behaviour needs a vet rather than a wait-and-see approach. This guide is educational and does not replace veterinary advice for the dog in front of you.
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How Do You Train a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen?
Train for cooperation rather than obedience, and start early. The FCI standard says the breed must be accustomed to obeying from an early age, and it calls the dog a little stubborn, which is a polite way of saying that a hound weighs every request before answering it.
Short sessions, good food, and a fence around the practice area do more than repetition.
Three skills matter more than the rest for this breed. A reliable recall on a long line is the first, because a scent hound that slips a lead is at risk from traffic within seconds.
A settle on a mat is the second, since a dog with two hours of exercise still needs an off switch indoors. Walking without pulling is the third, and it is easier to teach at five months than at two years.
Puppy classes and calm exposure to livestock, traffic, and other dogs in the first months do most of the groundwork. A Grand that has met a hundred people and a dozen dogs before its first birthday is a far easier adult than one that met three.
Is the Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen Right for You?
This breed fits a household that enjoys walking, has a fenced garden, and finds a hound’s independence amusing rather than frustrating. It does not fit an apartment with no garden, a home that is empty all day, or an owner who wants a dog that comes back on the first call every time.
The breed works when these points are true.
- You can give the dog more than two hours of exercise a day, split into at least two outings.
- Your garden is securely fenced, with no gap a determined hound can widen.
- You are happy to spend ten minutes a day on coat and ear care, and more in muddy weather.
- You want a dog with a job, and scent work sounds like fun rather than a chore.
Look at other breeds if any of these apply.
- You need a dog that can be trusted off lead in open country.
- You want a small dog that is content with a single short walk.
- You dislike grooming, mud, and the smell of a wet hound.
Buying well means asking about hips, eyes, and inbreeding. Ask for hip and eye results on both parents, ask how closely the parents are related, and ask to see the kennel or the garden where the litter was raised. A breeder working to the FCI standard will welcome all three questions.
If you are comparing scent hounds, the Beagle guide covers a smaller pack hound with the same nose, and the Bloodhound guide covers the heaviest trailer of them all. New owners should read the puppy care guide before the dog comes home, price breed-specific dog insurance early, and browse the Dog Breeds hub for the rest.
