Otterhound Breeders UK: Advertise Your Kennel Free

Advertise your Otterhound puppies, litters and stud dogs

Do you breed Otterhounds? List your kennel on caninebreeder.co.uk so the small number of people looking for this vulnerable native hound can find you. A free basic profile shows your kennel name, website, social media, location and categories. When a litter is planned, you can advertise Otterhound puppies for sale, promote your Otterhound stud dog, and share the hip, elbow and Glanzmann's thrombasthenia results that careful buyers ask for. Add your listing today.

No breeders are listed here yet, so the first profiles get the page to themselves.

Free basic profile: your breeder or company name, website, social media, location, breeds and industries.
Litters and stud dogs advertised in their own sections, never mixed with puppies for sale.
Premium showcase for your services and prices, previous customers, awards, video, gallery and health certificates, with your phone and email shown to buyers.
Sponsored articles about your breed or industry, written and published by our team.
Featured placement at the top of this page, labelled as sponsored.

Create your free breeder profile Advertise a litter Advertise a stud dog

Is it free to advertise here?

Yes. A breeder profile and your litter and stud dog adverts are free. Premium profiles, featured placement and sponsored articles are optional paid extras; see pricing.

Do I need a licence to advertise puppies?

In England you need a dog breeding licence from your council if you breed three or more litters in 12 months or breed and sell dogs as a business, and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own schemes. Licensed breeders show their licence number and issuing council on every advert. Puppies must be at least eight weeks old before they go to new homes.

Is my listing already here?

We add licensed breeders from councils' public registers. Search for your kennel name; if it is listed you can claim it and edit everything.

About the Otterhound

The Otterhound is a large, rough-coated scent hound in the Royal Kennel Club (RKC) Hound group. It is an RKC vulnerable native breed: 10 were registered in 2025, against 42 in 2024. The Otterhound Club puts the world population at under 800.

Origin and purpose

The Otterhound Club dates the first record of otter hunting in Britain to the 1100s. Today's hound emerged in the 1700s, and by about 1800 the rough-coated type was the classic form. The RKC suggests French hounds are in its ancestry. Otter numbers fell sharply in the early 1970s, hunting ended with the 1977 season, and otter hunting was banned in England in 1978, when some packs were broken up. The masters of the last two purebred packs, with breeders and the Kennel Club, then registered and rehomed the surviving breeding hounds, and the Otterhound Club was formed that year.

Size and build

The standard gives approximate heights of 69 cm (27 in) for dogs and 61 cm (24 in) for bitches. It is a big, strong hound built for long days in water. The large, round feet are webbed, and the long ears fold inwards along the front edge to give a draped look that the standard treats as essential.

Coat and grooming

The double coat is 4 to 8 cm long, dense, harsh and waterproof, and may feel slightly oily; the RKC notes it is often odorous. It is shown untrimmed, and many hound colours are allowed, including grizzle, wheaten and black and tan. The RKC suggests grooming more than once a week, and the club advises a weekly groom with care over the ears and beard.

Exercise

The RKC suggests more than two hours a day, a large house and garden, and a country home. The Otterhound Club says the breed needs less exercise than many assume: it enjoys long walks but also likes to relax indoors. It advises a lead unless the area is secure or recall is very reliable, and gentle exercise for puppies under 9 to 12 months.

Temperament and suitability

The standard asks for an amiable, even-tempered hound; aggression or nervousness is unacceptable. The breed club calls Otterhounds large and boisterous and urges would-be owners to meet adult hounds first. The RKC gives a lifespan of over 10 years. See our Hound group breeds for related scent hounds.

Otterhound health tests

At Good Practice level, the RKC Health Standard for the Otterhound lists three points: prioritising genetic diversity, hip screening under the BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme and elbow screening under the BVA/KC Elbow Dysplasia Scheme. Both X-rays can be taken once a dog is at least one year old.

At Best Practice level, it lists a DNA test for Glanzmann's thrombasthenia. This inherited recessive disorder stops the blood clotting properly. Signs usually appear before a year old and include bleeding gums as the adult teeth come through, easy bruising, nosebleeds, and blood in urine or faeces. Since 6 January 2025, the RKC has only registered imported Otterhounds proven clear or carrier, or with hereditary clear status. Identified carriers may only be mated to a hound that is clear by DNA test or by descent.

The RKC breed page also points to a breed club health scheme. The Otterhound Club keeps a list of declared fitters (hounds that have had seizures) with breeding advice, publishes hip and elbow score tables, and has a Breed Health Co-ordinator and a health sub-committee that produces an annual health report. The breed is in Breed Watch Category 1, so no conformation concerns are singled out for judges. Testing reduces risk but cannot guarantee a healthy puppy.

Health tests and schemes for the Otterhound:

BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme (RKC Good Practice)
BVA/KC Elbow Dysplasia Scheme (RKC Good Practice)
Prioritising genetic diversity (RKC Good Practice)
DNA test for Glanzmann's thrombasthenia (RKC Best Practice; imported dogs must be tested to be registered)
Otterhound Club health scheme: list of declared fitters (referenced on the RKC breed page)
Breed Watch: Category 1

Choosing an Otterhound breeder

Otterhound litters are rare. Only 10 Otterhounds were registered with the RKC in 2025, and RKC Find a Puppy showed no Otterhound litters when we checked in September 2026. The Otterhound Club publishes a list of UK breeders. It stresses that it does not recommend one breeder over another and suggests meeting as many as you can. The club also says a wait is normal, and breeders often invite you to visit several times before offering a puppy.

A careful breeder will show hip and elbow results for both parents and their Glanzmann's thrombasthenia status, and will talk openly about epilepsy in the family. They should also be honest about the breed's size, strong scenting instinct, and the beard and oily coat that need regular care. Expect questions about your fencing, your experience with hounds and how much time you have for exercise and training. In England, anyone who breeds three or more litters in any 12-month period (unless none of the puppies are sold), or who breeds dogs and advertises a business of selling dogs, needs a licence from the local council.

Questions to ask an Otterhound breeder:

Can I see hip and elbow results for both parents under the BVA/KC schemes?
What is each parent's Glanzmann's thrombasthenia status?
Has there been any epilepsy in the parents or their close relatives?
What is the inbreeding coefficient of this mating?
How should I exercise a young Otterhound, and how do you suggest I train recall?

Otterhound questions

How rare is the Otterhound?

Very rare. The RKC lists it as a vulnerable native breed, and only 10 Otterhounds were registered in 2025. The Otterhound Club estimates there are fewer than 800 in the world.

Can Otterhounds be let off the lead?

They are scent hounds bred to follow a trail, so the Otterhound Club advises keeping them on a lead unless the area is securely fenced or recall is exceptionally reliable.

Do Otterhounds need a lot of grooming?

The RKC suggests grooming more than once a week, and the breed club recommends a weekly session with attention to the ears and beard. The rough double coat can be slightly oily and is not trimmed for showing.

What is Glanzmann's thrombasthenia?

It is an inherited recessive blood-clotting disorder. The RKC recommends DNA testing Otterhounds for it and, since January 2025, only registers imported Otterhounds proven clear or carrier, or with hereditary clear status.

Otterhound breeders