- Usually white as base colour, with all shades of black to orange, in France generally tricolour with black mantle covering the upper part of the back
About the Harrier
Origin: Great Britain
- Typical life span
- 12-15 years
- Size
- Medium — from its typical weight
- Weight
- 20-27 kg
- Height
- 48-53 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Scent hounds and related breeds
- Origin
- Great Britain
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What is a Harrier?
Medium-sized athletic scent hound bred for pack hunting hare, resembling a smaller English Foxhound with sturdy build, short dense coat, and excellent stamina
Harrier history and origins
Developed in medieval England for hare hunting in packs, documented since at least the 13th century. Likely descended from English Foxhound, Talbot Hounds, and other French hounds
Harrier appearance and size
Typically 20-27 kg and 48-53 cm at the shoulder — published as one range rather than separately for males and females.
Harrier temperament and personality
Generally described as friendly, outgoing, energetic, intelligent and gentle.
That is the breed in general, not a promise about one animal. Ask the breeder what their own line is like, and meet the parents before you decide.
What the breed standard says
- Bred for
- Scent hound
Quoted from FCI standard n°295. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Medium
- Exercise needsRead from what the breed was bred to do, in the registry’s own words: “Scent hound” That is a working purpose, not a measured exercise requirement — an individual dog’s needs depend on its age, health and household.
- 4 of 5
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- —
- Grooming needs
- 2 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Harrier
What you get with the Harrier
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Scent hound”
- Low grooming needs, fitting for a busy owner — the coat is “Smooth, of English style, i.e. flat and not too short”
- Commonly described as: “Friendly, outgoing, energetic, intelligent”
What you are taking on
Nobody has written this side yet. It is a judgement rather than data, so it waits for a person — not for a missing source.
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard; The Dog API. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · Harrier
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording.
Coat
Smooth, of English style, i.e. flat and not too short
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°295 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
What the breed standard says
- Size
- “From 48 to 55 cm maximum - but rather from 48 to 50 cm preferred”
- FCI gives a bound on one side only, so there is no range to state.
Quoted from FCI standard n°295. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Temperament
Friendlyoutgoingenergeticintelligentgentle
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Harrier in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Harrier
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Harrier on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Harrier owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No Harrier breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.