oldhens, I agree that Bassets tend to be pretty smart dogs. I've known several people that had them. One lady I know, had hers professionally trained to protect her. When she would tell people that, they'd laugh. Here was this huge pile of bones, with loose skin, laying on the couch, with the droopy sad look on it's face. She took it to work with her. One night, she got tired of the teasing, so she gave a quick command. That dog sprang to life, and was all business. She gave another command, and called it off. The dog settled right down, everyone could pet it then, and it jumped back up on the couch to lay down. I got to thinking about it. I'd hate to get attacked by that dog. They're a good size, not huge but not overly small, and they're compact, with some weight behind them. Where would you grab one to stop it from biting you? No matter where you grab, the loose skin makes it so it's still going to be able to reach you. The sad, dull, slow, over all appearance is truly deceptive.