The fabulous Norwegian Elkhound with most of us are familiar is gray, and according to its AKC or UKC breed standard, any overall color other than gray is a disqualification. If you were showing your dog at an FCI member club, however, you would be entirely within the rules if you showed up with a black Norwegian Elkhound at the end of your leash.

This is not a new, trendy color in the breed. Black Elkhounds were actually developed from the original gray Elkhound back in the early 1800s, but some breeders preferred the all black dogs and continued to breed them, but with different goals that included a stronger prey drive and a keener sense of smell. What resulted was a smaller, more agile dog rarely seen outside of Scandanavia, but that was acknowledged in 1877.  There are those who insist that the Black Elkhound is also a brighter dog with more endurance and better scent tracking ability than the Grey Elkhound (but, some say, he is also a bit more “disputatious” making the male dogs dominant, if not dog aggressive). Certainly, it is advised to keep these keen hunting dogs away from smaller house pets such as cats or scurrying little things.

Image found on Pinterest and happily credited upon receipt of information