Briquet Griffon Vendeen Dog Names

The Briquet Griffon Vendeen is the least known of the Griffon Vendeen breeds and is not recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC) but has finally been recognized by the Federation Cynologique Internationale (FCI) and the United Kennel Club (UKC). The Briquet Griffon Vendeen’s closest cousin, the Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen, or PBGV, is considered the most popular of the four Griffon Vendeen breeds within the United States. They earned their popularity through the hard work of breeders and exhibitors such as Charlen PBGV. Charlen is currently exhibiting several PBGVs including Alfie or American Champion Afterglow Bon Apetite De Charlen. With the PBGV gaining popularity along with the Grand Basset Griffon Vendeen or GBGV being fully accepted by the AKC in 2018, many fanciers of the Briquet Griffon Vendeen are hopeful their turn is soon coming and the AKC will accept them into its Foundation Stock Service (FSS) which is the first step to becoming fully recognized as a breed by the AKC. The Briquet Griffon Vendeen is gaining popularity throughout Europe and there has been a recent surge in the number of Briquet Griffon Vendeens being imported into North America.

The Briquet Griffon Vendeen, also known as the Medium Griffon Vendeen, is a medium-sized hunting dog that originated in France and shares common ancestors with the other Griffon Vendeen breeds. Bred down from the Grand Griffon Vendeen, they were originally bred to hunt smaller game such as hare and used as pack animals for wild boar and roe deer. The downsizing of the larger Griffon Vendeen began in the 1600s and the new, smaller variety was preferred by the Comte d’Elva. Unfortunately, after World War II the Briquet Griffon Vendeen almost become extinct. However, through intense efforts by Hubert Dezamy, a French dog show judge, the breed did rebound. The breed is still considered rare but there has been more interest garnered throughout Europe since being recognized by the FCI. While some researchers claim the Briquet Griffon Vendeen was bred down using only smaller sized Grand Griffon Vendeens, others claim that smaller French hunting dogs were also used to solidify the smaller sized breed. The shaggy, wizened look of the Briquet Griffon Vendeen is very similar to the Grand Griffon Vendeen. The Briquet Griffon Vendeen was then used to breed even smaller hunting dogs and the creation of the Petit Griffon Vendeen came about. Many people who see the Briquet Griffon Vendeen think it is either a very small Grand Griffon Vendeen or a very large Petit Griffon Vendeen instead of its own unique breed.