Stone hounds are artificial hound-like beasts chiseled from stone and then magically infused with life. Two different races are classed as stone hounds: quilen (created by the mogu of Pandaria) and gargons (created by the venthyr of Revendreth).
Stone hounds are a family of [Exotic Beasts] with the Tenacity specialization. As with most Exotic Beasts, they amount to a more powerful version of a more common pet; in this case, wolves. They are notable for their [Eternal Guardian] ability, which allows the controlling hunter to resurrect the stone hound with full health.
The stone hound family was originally simply named "quilen", but was renamed and expanded to include gargons in patch 9.0.1. In order to tame gargons, hunters must first learn the skill from [Gargon Training Manual], a guaranteed drop from Huntmaster Petrus in Revendreth.