bear dog
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bear dog (also bear hound) noun A dog adept at tracking or attacking bears, especially one bred for the purpose such as a Plott hound or a black and tan hound, breeds that are large, solidly built, and able to give and withstand punishment.
1913 Kephart Our Sthn High 80 I’ve been told that the Plott hounds are the best beardogs in the country. 1926 Hunnicutt Twenty Years 105 I had just finished saying this when old Drum went on one of the “pot-lickers,” and then the bear hounds each picked out a dog and we had a fight between the bear dogs and the “pot-lickers.” 1939 Hall Coll (Deep Creek NC) We had some four or five real bear hounds that turned off on the Bear Creek side in the laurel and picked up a cold trail. 1956 Hall Coll (Roaring Fork TN) He was give up to be the best bear dog in this country. 2009 Prewitt Coon Hounds 273 Nowadays, the black and tan, the redbone, the bluetick, the English, the treeing Walker, and the Plott are among the standard breeds that hunters say can potentially make good coon hounds.