|
|
Below you will
find the German Shepherd Breed Standard provided by
AKC
German
Shepherd Dog Breed Standard
Herding Group
General Appearance
The first impression of a good German Shepherd Dog is that of a strong,
agile, well muscled animal, alert and full of life. It is well balanced,
with harmonious development of the forequarter and hindquarter. The dog
is longer than tall, deep-bodied, and presents an outline of smooth
curves rather than angles. It looks substantial and not spindly, giving
the impression, both at rest and in motion, of muscular fitness and
nimbleness without any look of clumsiness or soft living. The ideal dog
is stamped with a look of quality and nobility--difficult to define, but
unmistakable when present. Secondary sex characteristics are strongly
marked, and every animal gives a definite impression of masculinity or
femininity, according to its sex.
Temperament
The breed has a
distinct personality marked by direct and fearless, but not hostile,
expression, self-confidence and a certain aloofness that does not lend
itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. The dog must be
approachable, quietly standing its ground and showing confidence and
willingness to meet overtures without itself making them. It is poised,
but when the occasion demands, eager and alert; both fit and willing to
serve in its capacity as companion, watchdog, blind leader, herding dog,
or guardian, whichever the circumstances may demand. The dog must not be
timid, shrinking behind its master or handler; it should not be nervous,
looking about or upward with anxious expression or showing nervous
reactions, such as tucking of tail, to strange sounds or sights. Lack of
confidence under any surroundings is not typical of good character. Any
of the above deficiencies in character which indicate shyness must be
penalized as very serious faults and any dog exhibiting
pronounced indications of these must be excused from the ring. It must
be possible for the judge to observe the teeth and to determine that
both testicles are descended. Any dog that attempts to bite the judge
must be disqualified. The ideal dog is a working animal with an
incorruptible character combined with body and gait suitable for the
arduous work that constitutes its primary purpose.
Size, Proportion,
Substance
The desired height for males at the top of the highest point of
the shoulder blade is 24 to 26 inches; and for bitches, 22 to 24 inches.
The German Shepherd Dog is longer than tall, with the most desirable
proportion as 10 to 8½. The length is measured from the point of the
prosternum or breastbone to the rear edge of the pelvis, the ischial
tuberosity. The desirable long proportion is not derived from a long
back, but from overall length with relation to height, which is achieved
by length of forequarter and length of withers and hindquarter, viewed
from the side.
Head
The head is noble, cleanly chiseled, strong without coarseness,
but above all not fine, and in proportion to the body. The head of the
male is distinctly masculine, and that of the bitch distinctly feminine.
The expression keen, intelligent and composed. Eyes of
medium size, almond shaped, set a little obliquely and not protruding.
The color is as dark as possible. Ears are moderately pointed, in
proportion to the skull, open toward the front, and carried erect when
at attention, the ideal carriage being one in which the center lines of
the ears, viewed from the front, are parallel to each other and
perpendicular to the ground. A dog with cropped or hanging ears must be
disqualified.
Seen from the front the forehead is only moderately arched, and the
skull slopes into the long, wedge-shaped muzzle without abrupt stop. The
muzzle is long and strong, and its topline is parallel to the
topline of the skull. Nose black. A dog with a nose that is not
predominantly black must be
disqualified.
The lips are firmly fitted. Jaws are strongly developed. Teeth
--42 in number--20 upper and 22 lower--are strongly developed and meet
in a scissors bite in which part of the inner surface of the upper
incisors meet and engage part of the outer surface of the lower
incisors. An overshot jaw or a level bite is undesirable. An undershot
jaw is a disqualifying fault. Complete dentition is to be
preferred. Any missing teeth other than first premolars is a serious
fault.
Neck, Topline, Body
The neck is strong and muscular, clean-cut and relatively long,
proportionate in size to the head and without loose folds of skin. When
the dog is at attention or excited, the head is raised and the neck
carried high; otherwise typical carriage of the head is forward rather
than up and but little higher than the top of the shoulders,
particularly in motion.
Topline--
The withers are higher than and sloping into the level back. The
back is straight, very strongly developed without sag or roach,
and relatively short.
The whole structure of the body gives an impression of depth and
solidity without bulkiness.
Chest--Commencing
at the prosternum, it is well filled and carried well down between the
legs. It is deep and capacious, never shallow, with ample room for lungs
and heart, carried well forward, with the prosternum showing ahead of
the shoulder in profile. Ribs well sprung and long, neither
barrel-shaped nor too flat, and carried down to a sternum which reaches
to the elbows. Correct ribbing allows the elbows to move back freely
when the dog is at a trot. Too round causes interference and throws the
elbows out; too flat or short causes pinched elbows. Ribbing is carried
well back so that the loin is relatively short. Abdomen firmly
held and not paunchy. The bottom line is only moderately tucked up in
the loin.
Loin
Viewed from the top, broad and strong. Undue length between the last rib
and the thigh, when viewed from the side, is undesirable. Croup
long and gradually sloping.
Tail
bushy, with the last vertebra extended at least to the hock joint. It is
set smoothly into the croup and low rather than high. At rest, the tail
hangs in a slight curve like a saber. A slight hook- sometimes carried
to one side-is faulty only to the extent that it mars general
appearance. When the dog is excited or in motion, the curve is
accentuated and the tail raised, but it should never be curled forward
beyond a vertical line. Tails too short, or with clumpy ends due to
ankylosis, are serious faults. A dog with a docked tail must be
disqualified.
Forequarters
The shoulder blades are long and obliquely angled, laid on flat and not
placed forward. The upper arm joins the shoulder blade at about a right
angle. Both the upper arm and the shoulder blade are well muscled. The
forelegs, viewed from all sides, are straight and the bone oval rather
than round. The pasterns are strong and springy and angulated at
approximately a 25-degree angle from the vertical. Dewclaws on the
forelegs may be removed, but are normally left on.
The feet are short, compact with toes well arched, pads thick and
firm, nails short and dark.
Hindquarters
The whole assembly of the thigh, viewed from the side, is broad, with
both upper and lower thigh well muscled, forming as nearly as possible a
right angle. The upper thigh bone parallels the shoulder blade while the
lower thigh bone parallels the upper arm. The metatarsus (the unit
between the hock joint and the foot) is short, strong and tightly
articulated. The dewclaws, if any, should be removed from the hind legs.
Feet as in front.
Coat
The ideal dog has a double coat of medium length. The outer coat should
be as dense as possible, hair straight, harsh and lying close to the
body. A slightly wavy outer coat, often of wiry texture, is permissible.
The head, including the inner ear and foreface, and the legs and paws
are covered with short hair, and the neck with longer and thicker hair.
The rear of the forelegs and hind legs has somewhat longer hair
extending to the pastern and hock, respectively. Faults in coat
include soft, silky, too long outer coat, woolly, curly, and open coat.
Color
The German Shepherd Dog varies in color, and most colors are
permissible. Strong rich colors are preferred. Pale, washed-out colors
and blues or livers are serious faults. A white dog must be
disqualified.
Gait
A German Shepherd Dog is a trotting dog, and its structure has been
developed to meet the requirements of its work. General Impression--
The gait is outreaching, elastic, seemingly without effort, smooth and
rhythmic, covering the maximum amount of ground with the minimum number
of steps. At a walk it covers a great deal of ground, with long stride
of both hind legs and forelegs. At a trot the dog covers still more
ground with even longer stride, and moves powerfully but easily, with
coordination and balance so that the gait appears to be the steady
motion of a well-lubricated machine. The feet travel close to the ground
on both forward reach and backward push. In order to achieve ideal
movement of this kind, there must be good muscular development and
ligamentation. The hindquarters deliver, through the back, a powerful
forward thrust which slightly lifts the whole animal and drives the body
forward. Reaching far under, and passing the imprint left by the front
foot, the hind foot takes hold of the ground; then hock, stifle and
upper thigh come into play and sweep back, the stroke of the hind leg
finishing with the foot still close to the ground in a smooth
follow-through. The overreach of the hindquarter usually necessitates
one hind foot passing outside and the other hind foot passing inside the
track of the forefeet, and such action is not faulty unless the
locomotion is crabwise with the dog's body sideways out of the normal
straight line.
Transmission
The typical smooth, flowing gait is maintained with great strength and
firmness of back. The whole effort of the hindquarter is transmitted to
the forequarter through the loin, back and withers. At full trot, the
back must remain firm and level without sway, roll, whip or roach.
Unlevel topline with withers lower than the hip is a fault. To
compensate for the forward motion imparted by the hindquarters, the
shoulder should open to its full extent. The forelegs should reach out
close to the ground in a long stride in harmony with that of the
hindquarters. The dog does not track on widely separated parallel lines,
but brings the feet inward toward the middle line of the body when
trotting, in order to maintain balance. The feet track closely but do
not strike or cross over. Viewed from the front, the front legs function
from the shoulder joint to the pad in a straight line. Viewed from the
rear, the hind legs function from the hip joint to the pad in a straight
line. Faults of gait, whether from front, rear or side, are to be
considered very serious faults.
Angie Young
German Shepherd Breeder
Chattanooga, Tennessee
423-595-8317
camelotshepherds@comcast.net |
