According to Elvis, hound dogs cry all the time. He’s not… totally wrong. A lot of hound dog breeds, like Basset Hounds, were bred to announce themselves and communicate with their fellow hunters. The result is vocal dogs who can regularly be heard howling. I’ve got a soft spot for hound dogs, since my parents brought home an Afghan Hound puppy when I was 8. I named him Wookie, after the species of the towering and hairy Star Wars character, Chewbacca. Wookie lived up to his name, growing to be taller than me when he stood on his hind legs, with a coat that grew in long and silky for me to brush and braid and fuss, the way other girls groomed their Barbies. And of course, my pet really favored his cinematic namesake when someone unannounced happened into our yard—he’d part his long and pointy snout and emit a distinctive and alarming moaning/barking/howling, just like Chewbacca in the movie. (Ovrall, though, Wookie was pretty chill—preferring to use dog body language rather than noise to get me off the couch so he could really stretch out.)
Today hound dog breeds comprise real hunting dogs, like beagles and coonhounds, while others have been bred to be show dogs or doting family pets (think of Dachshunds). As the American Kennel Club says, this is quite a diverse group of dogs, with one real signature—”hounds share the distinct ability to produce a unique sound known as baying. You’d best sample this sound before you decide to get a hound of your own to be sure it’s your cup of tea.” Of course, thanks to Wookie’s baying, the noise is music to my ears, as is the hound group’s stubborn, albeit highly playful behavior.
