Brittany standing still (which doesn't happen too often).

Her most recent previous owners named her Brittany and I felt like she needed a middle name too, so added the Rose part.  At some point in her life, her name was Betsey.  When her rabies license was transferred to us, that name was on the certificate.

Cement-Head.  She does NOT listen.

Around October 1, 2001.

Purebred American Foxhound.

American Foxhounds are more often black and tan, but apart from that, Brittany is a nice, classic Foxhound.  When I first saw her, I wasn't sure what breed she was.  I'd never seen an American Foxhound in person before, and the ones I'd seen in pictures were black and tan.

She's fairly tall and long-legged and despite her slender appearance, she's surprisingly heavy.  She weighs about 75 pounds (34 kg).  It's tough to see in the picture on this page, but she has the prettiest face and absolutely gorgeous eyes.

Brittany is one of the fastest dogs I've ever had and she can effortlessly outrun most of our other dogs.  She can keep up a very fast pace for a looooong time, too.

If you weren't sure what kind of dog she was by looking at her, you'd know she was some type of hound when you heard her bark, as she has the classic baying bark.  She doesn't howl often.

She's usually quiet, but if she feels something is wrong, she tends to bark incessantly.  During the summer of 2004, she spent an entire day under our tenant's trailer, barking nonstop, until I was forced, for everyone's sanity, to crawl under there and see what was bothering her.  Here is what it was.

Brittany's history is rather involved...  
On January 26, 2004, a co-worker on her way home found Brittany running around on a very busy street near our building.  She picked her up and I took her to be boarded until we could find her owners.  She didn't have a collar.  The kennel scanned her for a microchip and we were delighted to learn she had one - until we found out it wasn't registered.  Finally, the Humane Society found the owner's number.  We were delighted - until the owner reported that he'd sent her back to the Humane Society and didn't want anything to do with her.  Finally, the Humane Society found the current owner's number.  We were delighted - until we found out his phone was broken.

This sort of thing went on for almost a week until I finally made contact with her owners.  As it turned out, Brittany had been dumped at the Humane Society for the first time when she was about six months old.  I don't know whether her owners left her there or whether she was a stray.  She was adopted by her second owners, but they returned her to the Humane Society after a while because she kept escaping.  She was then adopted by the most recent owners, who told me they were about to send her back also, because she kept escaping.

By that time she was home with us and I'd read up on American Foxhounds.  Everything I'd read said that they need acreage, a lot of exercise, and other dogs.  At least twice, she'd been an only dog in a backyard in the city, and it just wasn't working.  Her most recent owners drove out to my place and we all talked and agreed that she'd be better off with us.  We are at least her fourth - and definitely her last - owners.

At first, we thought Brittany had some personality issues related to her having had so many owners.  She's more aloof than the average dog and completely ignores verbal commands.  In fact, at first we thought she was hearing impaired.  As it turns out, she's just a typical American Foxhound.  She's a sweet dog, but if she gets half a chance, she'll bolt out the gate and run for miles, oblivious to us calling her.  Foxhounds are trained to pick up a scent and follow it for miles.

She greets us when we come home and all that, but I have to wonder if she'd care much if we both vanished tomorrow.  She's more dog-oriented than people-oriented, which is apparently typical of the breed.  We love her anyway, of course.  She's not in the least bit aggressive and sometimes got pushed around by Lily.

Walking Brittany off-leash is an impossibility:  she merrily heads for the horizon and never looks back.  She's bolted through the gate and vanished on several occasions, causing us enormous stress - and once, when she was picked up by Animal Control, costing us $140.

If you are thinking about acquiring an American Foxhound, the bolt-and-run tendencies and the somewhat aloof personality are things you should consider.  You should also take into account the breed's need for dog companions and plenty of space and exercise (my husband goes out on his bicycle and runs her in addition to her walks).

Like MacKenzie and Creedence, she was diagnosed with Ehrlichiosis (Tick Fever) in the summer of 2004 and is on antibiotics for it.

Running, digging very deep holes, and chasing Creedence around trees.

Brittany gets along with everyone, but Creedence is her best friend.