Hi there! My BIL breeds and trains Blue Ticks and Red Ticks. Blue Ticks are incredible dogs. Most do have a high prey drive, because that's their job in life -- to hunt. My BIL's adult dogs aren't too high energy, but he also hunts them during season, and trains with them the rest of the year, so they burn a lot of that off. If you weren't going to hunt with them, I would suggest giving them another type of "job" so that they are stimulated mentally and physically.

The health problems I'm aware of in the breed are HD, luxating patellas, and eye problems. My BIL's females are around 60lbs, and the males around 70lbs. I believe that is fairly standard. At least compared to the other's around here.

All in all, as I said before, they're great dogs. They're incredibly loyal, highly intelligent, sweet as can be, and can be protective of their home and family. You should definitely see if there are any in your area that you can get to know. Quite an amazing breed of dog.