The Grand Bleu is an aristocrat among hounds, being tall and possessed of a long head with very characteristic markings. He owns a powerful baying voice, which will certainly persuade the neighbours that there is a new presence among them.

The basic colour is white with black patches, and black-mottled all over, producing a blue tinge, from which the Bleu name is derived.

He gives the impression that he is sad, a quality to which a French canine historian alluded in describing his ‘majestic allure and aristocratic melancholy’. Like all hounds, Bleus are hunters, once of wolves, and in modern times of hares. They do not gallop aimlessly after their quarry so much as pursue it unremittingly. They live in a world of scent and need understanding owners, sensitive to the fact that they are not as easily trained as are gundogs or the herding breeds.

The breed failed to find favour as a hunting dog in Great Britain once the wolf was extinct. His introduction as a show dog is very recent. The attraction is his size combined with elegance. It is to be hoped that his excellence at following a cold scent is not lost in the show-breeding programmes of British breeders.

They are best maintained in outside kennels with their own runs. Definitely a breed for the connoisseur, not for the masses!