Until 1789, hunting with dogs in Sweden was a privilege of royalty and the upper classes. Once the prohibition ended, farmers could hunt their own land too, and the nobility’s hounds spread throughout the country.
| FCI | Group 6 (Scent hounds and related breeds), Section 1.2 Medium-sized hounds, Standard No. 132, with working trial |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | Sweden |
| Size (height at the withers) | males ideally 57 cm (permitted 53 to 61 cm), females ideally 53 cm (permitted 49 to 57 cm) |
| Weight | not specified in the FCI standard |
| Life expectancy | no reliable study figure found (N/A) |
| Coat | harsh, not too short, very close-fitting; very short on head, ears and fronts of legs |
| Colours in the standard | tricolour: black mantle, golden to rich reddish-brown tan on head, legs, shoulders, underside and thighs; white blaze and white on throat, neck, chest, tail tip and feet |
Pang, Stella and a count
Origins are thought to combine southern German and Swiss hounds with Foxhounds and Harriers. At Sweden’s first dog show in 1886, Count Adolf Patrik Hamilton exhibited the male Pang and female Stella, now considered founding parents. Initially simply called the Swedish Hound, the breed received its creator’s name in 1921; he also founded the Swedish Kennel Club. One English ancestor is the English Foxhound.
Three colours in clear order
Rectangular, well-proportioned, strong and enduring but never heavy: the standard’s description. Colour distribution is precise. Bicolour dogs, whether yellow-white, black-white or black-and-tan, are disqualified. A black-and-tan dog with a clear mantle may nevertheless be a Schillerstövare.
Friendly with people, serious on scent
Friendly and balanced, never shy or reserved. As a vocal tracking hound, the breed hunts hare and fox, not in packs and not red deer. Without hunting, provide one to two hours of daily exercise with sniffing: hikes, tracking, mantrailing and pulling sports once mature. Weekly brushing maintains the short, harsh coat.
Hip, weight and blood sugar figures
No lifespan figure exists; McMillan and colleagues did not analyse the breed. In Sweden, 57 of 286 Hamiltonstövare born from 2007 to 2016 and X-rayed young had grade C to E hip dysplasia, or 19.9 percent (Engdahl et al. 2026). The same X-ray data provide weights absent from the standard: mean 25.5 kg for males and 21.3 kg for females (Andersson et al. 2023). Norwegian laboratory data identified 16 Hamiltonstövare with diabetes, with an odds ratio of 2.6 compared with all examined blood samples (Ringstad et al. 2022). Ask for both parents’ hip results and keep your dog lean.
Who the breed suits
Hunters seeking an enduring solo hare and fox hunter, and rural homeowners spending long hours outdoors daily who love scent work. Friendliness towards people is required by the standard.
Who it does not suit
Small city flats, long office days and anyone expecting off-lead heelwork near wildlife. Life with this dog means planning days together out in the woods.
The breed quiz shows whether a large, passionate scent hound suits you; our book “Which Dog REALLY Suits You?” (book in German) goes deeper. For the start of puppyhood, there is the free Puppy Starter Pack. Those three colours look good on a magazine-cover canvas, as a digital artwork or among our dog portraits from your own photo.
Further reading
- Beagle: a nose with a dog attached, and what that means day to day
- Is my dog overweight? Assessing body condition and ideal weight
- Older dog, new rules: how to give your senior their best years
Sources, accessed on 20.10.2026: FCI Standard No. 132 Hamiltonstövare (fci.be, German version dated 25.09.2018, valid standard published on 22.08.2017, original language English) and FCI breed page No. 132; McMillan KM et al., Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death, Scientific Reports 2024; Engdahl K et al., Veterinary Record 2026; Andersson L et al., Scientific Reports 2023; Ringstad NK et al., Canine Medicine and Genetics 2022.
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