Serbian Mountain Hound

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Serbian Mountain Hound
Alternative names
Srpski Planinski Gonič Yugoslavian Mountain Hound Jugoslavenski Planinski Gonič
Country of origin
Serbia
Classification and breed standards
FCI:	Group 6 Section 1 #279	Stds

The Serbian Mountain Hound is a rare dog breed from the Planina region of Serbia. Black and tan, smooth-coated, he is distinguished from the very similar Serbian Tricolour Hound by his lack of that breed's white front. He stands 18 to 22 inches (46-56 cm) high and weighs 44 to 55 pounds (20 to 25 kg). Like the Tricolour he is used to hunt fox, hare, and small game, occasionally hunting larger animals such as deer or even wild boar.

Perhaps the most memorable popular depiction of a Serbian Mountain Hound (then called Yugoslavian Mountain Hound) has been as the hand puppet "Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog," regularly appearing on the NBC television show Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Although the puppet displays physical characteristics of the breed, and was identified as such during many appearances, the caption identifying Triumph as a Yugoslavian Mountain Hound was promptly removed after NATO military action ensued against Yugoslavia, perhaps to avoid awkwardness during sequences in which Triumph ridiculed former Yugoslavian strongman Slobodan Milošević.

The breed was formerly known as the Yugoslavian Mountain Hound; the FCI changed the name in 1996.