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Group:
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Group 6 (Utility)
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History:
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General Appearance:
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Large, strong, muscular yet elegant. Confident, calm and lively. Males in
particular should be powerful and strong.
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Characteristics:
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Amendable, intelligent and fearless companion; distinguished by his
friendliness.
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Temperament:
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Self-assured and playful. Neither timid nor aggressive.
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Head And Skull:
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Head in balance with body and limbs. Strong, but not heavy, elongated
rather than stocky. Proportions of muzzle to skull equal. No wrinkles. Shull
in profile and seen from the front slightly arched. The back part of the
skull not substantially broader than at the eyes. Medium stop. Nose black.
Cheeks only moderately developed, muzzle moderately tapered, but never
snippy. Nasal bridge of even breadth and slightly arched (roman nose).
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Eyes:
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Neither deep set nor protruding, of medium size. Oval in shape with kind
expression. Medium to dark brown in colour. Eyelids close fitting, showing no
haw.
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Ears:
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Set on high and not too far back pendant medium sized, hanging close to
the side of the head, fleshy with rounded tips, well feathered.
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Mouth:
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Strong jaws with perfect regular and complete scissor bite, level bite
tolerated. Teeth evenly placed and vertical in the jaw, with complete
dentition. No constriction of the canines in the lower jaw. Lips close
fitting, black, corner of lips closed.
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Neck:
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Strong, flowing into the withers in a slight arch, without throatiness.
Moderately long, no dewlap.
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Forequarters:
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Shoulders well laid, elbows close fitting. Forelegs straight, well boned
and not too close. Shoulder and upper arm long, Slopping and well muscled.
Pasterns strong, firm and straight when seen from front, almost vertical seen
from side.
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Body:
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Height at withers to length of body in ratio of 9 to 10 (measured from
point of shoulder to point of buttock). Depth of
chest approximately 50% of height at withers. Which should be pronounced,
especially in males. Moderate forechest. Chest broad, deep, reaching at least
to elbows. Oval, not barrel-chested. Back firm and straight with broad loins,
strong and well muscled. Moderately sloping croup with relatively long broad
rump, gently rounded. Rump never higher than withers. Slight tuck up.
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Hindquarters:
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Legs set not too close together and parallel when seen from rear. Well
muscled long, slanting upper thigh. Moderate bend of stifle. Hocks strong,
angle between lower thigh and rear pastern well defined, turned neither in
not out. Dewclaws should be removed.
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Feet:
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Tight and rounded with well arched toes. Front feet pointing directly
forwards. Pads black.
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Tail:
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Well furnished, straight, reaching at least to hock. On the move tail
slightly curved, not carried above level of back. Never forming a ring.
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Gait/Movement:
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Ground covering, even movement in all gaits maintaining a level topline.
Extending well in front with good drive from hindquarters. Seen from front
and behind, legs move in a straight line when walking or trotting.
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Coat:
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Not Specified.
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Colour:
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Lion gold, red, reddish brown, sandy (fawn or cream) and all combinations
in between, always with a black mask. Black hair tips are permitted. Black
must not dominate basic colour. Lighter colour on underside of tail, mane,
feathering on front legs and breeches on hindlegs normal, but must not be
pronounced. A small white patch or stripe on the chest and white hair on the
toes tolerated.
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Sizes:
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Height at Withers
Dogs: 72-80 cms (28.5-31.5 ins)
Bitches: 65-75 cms (25.5-29.5 ins)
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Faults:
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Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and
the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact
proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the
dog.
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Notes:
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Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended
into the scrotum.
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