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Do Plott Hounds have Webbed Feet?

Do Plott Hounds have Webbed Feet?

Beautiful, agile, eager to please, the Plott Hound is a great pet to have. If you are a hunter, you will absolutely fall in love with this breed. Bred to hunt boars and mountain lions, the Plott Hound is fearless and brave. He combines endurance, agility, aggression, and courage to hunt down game including coyotes, wildcats, bears, and raccoons. Although this dog is built for hunting, he’s happy settling into laid-back family life as well. He’s affectionate, loyal, and accommodating to all. What about his feet? Are they webbed or not? Are they good swimmers? Well, we’ll find out shortly…

What Is Webbing?

When it comes to swimming, the animal that comes to mind is the duck. He’s equipped with a special membrane between the toes that help him navigate the water easily. This is what is called webbing. All dogs are born with webbed feet.  A majority of them just lose it as they grow older. Only a handful retains the webbing into adulthood. The most common example is the Labrador retriever. If you’ve ever owned a lab, you can attest to his amazing ability to swim. He can paddle for hours without getting tired, thanks to his webbed feet.

Does The Plott Hound Have Webbed Feet?

With a black nose, brown or hazel eyes, muscular build, high-set ears, and round, solid feet, the Plott Hound is a remarkable beautiful dog. Some dogs from the breed have webbed feet while some don’t. It can go either way. Since the breed was developed to hunt game, webbing comes in handy in more ways than one. Selective breeding is partly to blame for webbing (or lack thereof) among Plott hounds. In most cases, breeders developed certain canines with webbing to retain the trait. Webbing helped the dogs with water agility. Sometimes, genetics play a hand in how the feet will end up. Some dogs just end up with the trait while others don’t, even those of the same litter.

Do Plott Hounds like to Swim?

There are a number of recreational activities a Plott Hound likes to participate in, one of which is swimming. From lakes to swimming pools and rivers, this breed likes being in the water. Both varieties—webbed and non-webbed—enjoy swimming a lot. Those with webbed feet obviously move through the water faster than those that don’t. The membrane widens the foot and makes it flat against the water increasing its surface area. This causes the dog to swim quickly. A Plott hound without webbing must tear through the water.Still, he enjoys his time playing with water.

Benefits Of Webbed Feet For Plott Hounds

Webbing is mostly central to swimming but it also has other benefits for the Plott Hound. These include the following:

  • Locomotion On Hard Terrains:  As mentioned before, Plott hounds are ardent hunters. Back in the day, humans relied on them to navigate all kinds of terrain to hunt, put down, and retrieve game. The dogs had to walk and run through the worst of terrains. Webbing helps with that in so many ways. The membrane between the toes helps a Plott Hound to create a kind of a net that increases the grip between the canine’s foot and the ground. This means the dog will remain stable. He will have an easy time walking and running on swampy and boggy areas during the hunt. 
  • Digging: Although digging is mainly a Dachshund thing, Plott hounds need the skill from time to time. Prey sometimes hides in the unlikely of places. Knowing how to retrieve animals that burrow the ground to take cover can come in handy out there. With webbed feet, the dog can dig efficiently and faster. The skin acts as a shovel, helping the dog to both dig the dirt and get it out the way with relative ease. Under normal circumstances, the dog would rely on his claws to do the job. This takes a long time and effort to achieve.
  • Great Snow Boots: Ever asked yourself why arctic dogs such as the Huskies have webbed feet? The feet don’t just make the dog look cute. They serve a great purpose for the survival of the dog in the tropics. The webbing gives a good grip so the dog doesn’t slide on the ice. It acts like winter shoes of sorts, making it easy for the dogs to walk in the ice and snow. The same is true with Plott hounds. Granted, these dogs don’t live in the tropics but when the situation demands, they can adapt very well.

Final Thoughts

The Plott Hound is an outstanding canine. Like his counterparts in the Hound family, he is a great hunter. Some of the dogs from the breed are equipped with webbed feet to make them efficient and fast. The webbing makes them great swimmers, diggers, and efficient walkers on all terrains.

Last Updated on May 13, 2021 by

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