Dog Bone to Pick: Many of Albemarle County's hounds are of noble ancestry, but still victims of a modern plight

There are conflicting stories about the origins of the Virginia hounds eventually known as the Treeing Walker Coonhound, but according to the United Kennel Club's breed description, credit for the foundation strains of this scenthound goes to two Virginia residents, two Kentuckians, and a purloined pooch of unknown ancestry with hunting characteristics considered outstanding.
The contributing Virginians were Albemarle County resident Thomas Walker and none other than the George Washington, an avid fox hunter himself.  Both imported English Foxhounds in the mid 18th century.  It is these hounds that became the foundation strain of the "Virginia hound", which was later developed into the Walker hound.
Later, the two Kentuckians pictured below, John W. Walker and George Washington Maupin, developed the original Virginia hounds that we now call the Treeing Walker Coonhound, from certain strains of English Walker foxhounds and the stolen dog Tennessee Lead, pictured here with Walker and Maupin.

By C. J. Prouty, 1907. (From July 1923 TheChase Magazine)
The UKC considers the outcross with this stolen dog a major and defining influence on the breed we know and love today.  Click here to read more about the history of this breed.
Noble Spirits deserve better
The SPCA relates that a higher than usual influx of lost hunting dogs occurs at the end of hunting season, but no influx of hound enthusiasts ready to adopt.  SPCA Director Susanne Kogut was once quoted saying "At the SPCA, the most ill-mannered Golden Retriever or Labrador will be adopted within days or hours, but a calm, well-behaved hound may wait months to find a new home. For evidence, just walk around the SPCA and you will see a disproportionate number of hounds and black cats. Kogut pointed out that “the great thing about animals is they love us unconditionally, no matter what we look like, and maybe it is time for us to offer back that same unconditional love.”
So if you're considering adopting a new dog, go have a nice long look at the CASPCA's hounds. They deserve more than a second glance.  And if you take one out for a test drive around the property you'll be as smitten as the author is with these amazingly loving, smart, and genuinly funny animals.
 Adopt a Senior Hound for Christmas: $50
Dogfood for a year: $1.50 a day
A living piece of Albemarle history that gives slobbery kisses and unconditional love:  priceless
There is another story about George Washington, the Marquis de LaFayette,  a young and irresponsible John Quincy Adams, French Foxhounds and a legend that may explain the origin of the first basset hound in America.  It's worth a read.
 [originally posted at examiner.com]