The secretary takes care of the many administrative requirements of the hunt such as checking to see that horses have current coggins tests. The MFHA Foxhound Kennel Stud Book has been in existence since 1907 and keeps track of all hounds bred by member hunts in the United States and Canada. The English hound, as his name implies, is a hound whose ancestors are in the English Foxhound Studbook. American and English hounds must have less than one sixteenth outcross blood in their pedigree to be considered pure. Some of the best known varieties of American hounds are the Bywater hound, the Walker hound and the July hound.
Crossbred hounds are a cross between English and American hounds.
Only in Canada does the English hound predominate. Crossbred hounds are the most popular in the United States. The hunt must also have a breeding program and produce their own hounds. Their kennels must meet the qualifications of sanitation and space. Since hounds must be trained and controllable, training starts before a hound is a year old.