About

Two grand water champions, Tomahawk and Bullet jumpstarting the final water race run-off at APA Breed Days

The Plott dog specializes in big game such as bear, hogs, and cats. Plotts also make exceptional coon hounds for both leisure and competition coon hunters. The Plott hound has become a number one choice for many coyote and wolf hunters as well. Not only are these dogs found throughout the United States but are also found in various places around the world. The Plott’s popularity has expanded over the last several decades, and representatives of the breed are located throughout Europe, parts of Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia.

The historical foundations of the Plott differ from most hound breeds of the United States. Unlike other running or treeing hounds, the earliest Plotts were not of English foxhound origin but rather were imported from Germany by the Plott family in and around the mid-1700s. The real founder of the breed was Henry Plott who moved to western North Carolina around 1800 and brought representatives of the breed with him. There in the mountains of Southern Appalachia, he and other members of the family began to develop and refine a running, baying, and treeing type that has become the Plott we know today.

The American Plott Association, Inc. was founded May 24, 1987 at Sweetwater, Tennessee. In forming this organization, charter members sought to return to the original, accurate breed standard, recognize the buckskin as a true Plott, give big game hunters a more active role and voice in breed matters, and make the hound owning public aware of past inaccuracies and misconceptions regarding the breed.

The APA, has been instrumental in setting the Breed Standard for the American Kennel Club, and the World Tree Dog Registry and is currently working with the United Kennel Club to modify their Plott breed standard. It is our mission to see that every breed registry maintains an accurate standard for the plott dogs.

Today, APA is going strong and growing by leaps and bounds. The Plott has again found widespread popularity among many not only due to its talent as a hunting breed but also because of its usage in a variety of law enforcement and public service fields. Of particular interest to many who seek APA membership is the Association’s annual publication, the Brindle Book. This outstanding yearbook is replete with all manner of interesting Plott materials. Your membership in APA guarantees you a copy.

Interested in meeting other Plott enthusiasts or just seeing some of the world’s most athletic Plotts in action? Be sure to attend our next APA Breed Days to participate in the largest big game-oriented dog event in the world. Plott owners from all across North America come every year and several visit from foreign countries. We feature swimming, racing, trailing and baying events that all prove to be very entertaining to event participants and spectators alike. You can find us each year on the third weekend in March. Check on our upcoming events page to find where we will be this year!