F.C.I. Standard N° 102 / 06. 12. 2004 (Dutch / Ned. standaard)

KLEINER  MÜNSTERLÄNDER (Heidewachtel)     Foto

TRANSLATION : Elke Peper.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN : Germany.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 09.11.2004.

UTILIZATION : Versatile working gundog.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 7       Pointing Dogs.

                                              Section 1.2  Continental Pointing Dogs. Spaniel Type.

                                              With Working Trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : The development of the Small Munsterlander is hidden somewhere in the middle of the 19^th century. After the change of the German hunting law, with the increasing number of hunters and hunting enthusiasts and the systematic cultivation of the game stock the breeding of new German Pointing Dogs began. There are reports saying that around 1870 longcoated „Wachtelhunds“ (German Spaniels) were well known in the Munsterland region. These dogs were firm in pointing, they had  enormous scenting abilities and were also able to retrieve. In the year 1906 the well known heath poet Hermann Löns took care of the matter: He put a public appeal into the magazin „Unser Wachtelhund“  to give him a report on the still existing specimens of the red Hanovarian Heath Hound. However, instead of that he and his brothers discovered a pointing Wachtelhund on the farms, that they called „Heidewachtel“. Apart from the Löns brothers, well known dog men like for example the Baron of Bevervörde-Lohburg put efforts into getting a reasonable breeding stock in other regions as well. Mr. Heitmann, a teacher from Burgsteinfurt, achieved first success with his line breeding. Several other breeding families, known as the so-called „Dorsten type“, appeared during the following years in Westphalia. On March 17, 1912, the „Verband für Kleine Münsterländer Vorstehhunde“ (Club for Small Munsterlander Pointing Dogs) was finally founded. At that time this Club expressed its aims as follows: „The Club pursues the purpose to promote the purity and the true breeding of the longcoated small pointing dog that has been bred in the Munsterland for many decades“. The lack of the fixed breed characteristics at that time inhibited the breeding activities as well as the Club activities. From 1921, the breeders finally followed the breed standard that had been drawn up by Mr. Friedrich Jungklaus. Nevertheless, the true origin of the dogs of that time is not exactly proved.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Strong and harmonious build of medium size, showing balanced proportions with a lot of quality and elegance. Distinguished head. In upright posture the dog displays flowing outlines with horizontally carried tail. Its front legs are well feathered, the hind legs with breeches, the tail has a distinct flag. Its glossy coat should be straight or slightly wavy, dense and not too long. Its movement is harmonious and far reaching.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS : The length of the body from point of shoulders to the buttocks should exceed the height at the withers by not more than 5 cm. The length of the skull from the occiput to the stop is equal to the length of the muzzle from the stop to the nose.

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : The Small Munsterlander is intelligent and capable of learning, full of temperament but even, with steady character; its attitude towards people is alert and friendly (suitable for family life), with good social behaviour and keeps close contact with his master (team spirit); with passionate, persevering predatory instinct, versatile hunting aptitudes and strong nerves and keenness for game.

HEAD : The expression of the head is part of the type.

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Distinguished, lean, flat to slightly arched.

Stop : Only slightly pronounced but distinctly recognizable.

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : Wholecoloured brown.

Muzzle : Powerful, long, straight.

Lips : Short, tight closing, well pigmented – wholecoloured brown.

Jaws / teeth : Large white teeth. Powerful jaws with regular and complete scissor bite with the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws. 42 teeth according to the dentition formula.

Cheeks : Strong, well muscled.

Eyes : Of medium size, neither protruding nor deep set. As dark brown as possible. Eyelids tight fitting to the eyeballs, covering the haws.

Ears : Broad, set on high, lying close to the head, tapering towards the tips, ear leather should not reach beyond the corner of the mouth.

NECK : Its length in balance with the general appearance; gradually widening towards the body. Napeline slightly arched, very muscular. Tight fitting throat skin.

BODY :

Topline : Slightly sloping in a straight line.

Withers : Pronounced.

Back : Firm, well muscled. The spinal processes should be covered by the musculature.

Loins : Short, broad, muscular.

Croup : Long and broad, not short slanting, only slightly sloping towards the tail; well muscled. Broad pelvis.

Chest : Rather deep than broad, breastbone reaching as far backwards as possible. Ribs well arched.

Underline and belly : Slight tuck-up towards the rear in an elegant curve; lean.

TAIL : Set on high, with long flag, strong at the base, then tapering. Of medium length. Carried downwards in repose, horizontally and  not too high above the level of the topline with a slight sweep when in action. In the lower third it may be curved slightly upwards.

LIMBS :

FOREQUARTERS : Viewed from the front straight and rather parallel, viewed from the side legs set well under the body. The distance from the ground to the elbows should be approximately equal to the distance from the elbows to the withers.

Shoulders : Shoulder blades lying close to the body, strongly muscled. Shoulder and upperarm forming a good angle of approximately 90°.

Upper arm : As long as possible, well muscled.

Elbows : Close to the body, neither turning in nor out. The upper arm forming a good angle with the forearm.

Forearm : Strong bones, perpendicular to the ground.

Carpal joint : Strong.

Pasterns : Very slightly sloping.

Front feet : Round and arched with well knit toes and sufficiently thick, tough, robust pads. Not too heavy coat. Parallel in stance or in movement, neither turning in nor out.

HINDQUARTERS : Viewed from the rear straight and parallel. Correct angulation in stifles and hocks. Strong bones.

Upper thigh : Long, broad, muscular; forming a good angle with the pelvis.

Stifle : Strong, upper and lower thigh forming a good angle.

Lower thigh : Long, muscular and sinewy.

Hock joint : Strong.

Metatarsus : Short, perpendicular to the ground.

Hind feet : Round and arched with well knit toes and sufficiently thick, tough, robust pads; not too heavy coat. Parallel in stance or in movement, neither turning in nor out.

GAIT / MOVEMENT : Ground covering, with good drive and appropriate reach, straight forward and parallel coming and going, with well upstanding posture. Pacing gait is undesirable.

SKIN : Tight fitting, without folds.

COAT :

HAIR : Dense, of medium length, not or only slightly wavy, close lying, water-repellent. The outlines of the body may not be hidden by too long coat. By its density it should provide as good a protection against weather, unfavourable terrain conditions and injuries as possible. Short smooth coat on the ears is faulty. Forelegs feathered, hindlegs with breeching down to the hocks, tail with a long flag and white tip, abundant coat on the forechest is undesirable.

COLOUR : Brown-white or brown roan with brown patches, brown mantle or brown ticking; blaze permitted. Tan coloured markings at the muzzle, the eyes and around the anus are permissible („Jungklaus markings“).

SIZE : Height at withers: Dogs:     54 cm.

                                      Bitches:  52 cm.

A deviation of +/- 2 cm is within the standard.

FAULTS : Any departure of the foregoing points must be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.

SEVERE FAULTS :

•  Deviation of the size limits between +/- 2 cm and +/- 4 cm.

•  Clumsy, big-boned conformation.

•  Serious deviations from the correct proportions of body, neck and height and withers.

•  More than 50% of the nose flesh-coloured or spotted.

•  Pointed muzzle. Dished nose bridge.

•  Eyes too light. Light yellow hawk eyes.

•  Serious lack of depth of chest or too flat sided brisket. Barrel shaped brisket.

•  Elbows heavily turning out or in.

•  Steep pasterns.

•  Strongly cow hocked or barrel legged, in stance as well as in movement.

•  Splayed toes; flat feet.

•  Clumsy movement.

•  Coat too curled.

•  Smooth hairless ears or too long and curled fringes on the ears.

ELIMINATING FAULTS

•  Fearfulness, aggressiveness, game or gun shyness.

•  Size deviations of more than +/- 4 cm.

•  Untypical sexual characteristics, sexual malformations.

•  Completely depigmented nose.

•  All deviations from the correct scissor bite except the lack or excess of two P1.

•  Split jaw or split lip.

•  Ektropion, entropion, distichiasis, bird’s eye.

•  Pronounced dewlap.

•  Distinct roach back, swayback; crooked spine.

•  Malformation of the ribcage, such as sternum cut off.

•  Kinky tail, ring tail, other tail abnormalities like too short or too long tail.

•  Wholecoloured dogs.

Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.

N.B. : Male animals must have two apparently normally developed testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

TRANSLATION : Johan Gallant / Walter Schicker.

ORIGIN : Germany.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE VALID ORIGINAL STANDARD : 05.02.1996.

UTILIZATION : Versatile hunting dog, suited in particular for the hunt under the ground and as a flushing dog.

FCI CLASSIFICATION : Group 3       Terriers.

Section 1     Large and medium sized Terriers.

With working trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : After the first World War a group of active hunters separated from the numerically strong Fox‑Terrier Club. It was their aim to create a breed, the sole purpose of which would be hunting performance. The experienced hunters and cynologists Rudolf Frieß, Walter Zangenberg and Carl‑Erich Grünewald decided to select a black and tan hunting dog in particular suitable for the hunt under the ground. A coincidence came in support of their efforts. A zoo director, Lutz Heck / Hagenberg presented Walter Zangenberg with four black and tan terriers which were said to come from pure‑bred Fox‑Terrier lines. These dogs became the foundation stock of the German Hunting Terrier. At the time Dr Herbert Lackner joined the founders. After many years of intensive breeding efforts, and through skilful crossings with the Old English Wirehaired Terrier as well as with the Welsh Terrier, they succeeded to fix the appearance of their breed. At the same time they put great emphasis on breeding a multitalented, well trainable, hard, tongue‑giving and water‑happy dog with an explicit hunting instinct. The German Hunting Terrier Club (Deutscher Jagdterrier‑Club e.V.) was founded in 1926. As ever, the breeders continued to value most carefully their breed for its usefulness as a hunting dog, its steadiness of character, its courage and drive.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : A smallish, generally black and tan, compact, well proportioned working hunting dog.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS : Proportion of chest circumference to height at the withers: The circumference of the chest is 10 to 12 cm more than the height at the withers.

Body length to height at the withers: The body is insignificantly longer than the height at the withers.

Depth of chest to height at the withers: Circa 55 ‑ 60% of the height at the withers.

BEHAVIOUR / CHARACTER : Courageous and hard, takes pleasure in work, enduring, vital, full of temperament, reliable, sociable and trainable, neither shy nor aggressive.

HEAD : Elongated, slightly wedge‑shaped, not pointed, the muzzle slightly shorter than the skull from occiput to stop.

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : The skull is flat, broad between the ears, narrower between the eyes.

Stop : Slightly marked.

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : In harmony with the muzzle, neither too narrow nor too small, not cleft. Black, but when the colour of the coat is dominantly brown, a brown nose is also permitted.

Muzzle : Strong, distinct under‑jaw, strongly pronounced chin.

Cheeks : Well pronounced.

Lips : Tight and well pigmented.

Jaws/Teeth : Big teeth. Strong jaws with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, whereby the row of upper incisors, without gap, perfectly locks over the lower incisors, and with the teeth standing vertically to the jaws. 42 teeth in accordance with the teeth formula.

Eyes : Dark, small, oval, well placed in such a way that injury is hardly possible; the eyelids are tight. Resolute expression.

Ears : Set high, not explicitely small, V‑shaped; slightly touching semi‑drop ears.

NECK : Strong, not too long, well put on and blending strongly into the shoulders.

BODY :

Topline : Straight.

Withers : Well defined.

Back : Strong, straight, not too short.

Loin : Well muscled.

Croup : Well muscled and flat.

Chest : Deep, ribs well sprung, not too broad, long breastbone with ribs well reaching backwards.

Underline : Elegantly curved backwards; short and firm flanks, belly slightly drawn up.

TAIL : Well set to the long croup, docked for circa 1/3. Is rather carried slightly raised than steeply erected, but should never incline over the back. (In countries where tail docking is prohibited by law, it can be left in its natural state. It should be carried horizontally or slightly sabre‑formed.)

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS :

General : Seen from the front the forelegs are straight and parallel, viewed from the side they are placed well under the body. The distance from the surface to the elbows is approximately equal to the distance from the elbows to the withers.

Shoulders : The shoulder‑blade lies well oblique and backwards; it is long and strongly muscled. There is good angulation between shoulder‑blade and upper arm.

Upper arm : As long as possible, well and dry muscled.

Elbows : Close to body, neither turned inward nor outward. Good angulation between upper arm and forearm.

Forearm : Dry, straight and upright with strong bones.

Pastern joint : Strong.

Pastern : Slightly angulated to the ground, bones rather strong than fine.

Forefeet : Often broader than the hind feet, the toes lying close to each other with sufficiently thick, hard, resistant and well pigmented pads. They are parallel, in stance as well as in movement neither turned inward nor outward.

HINDQUARTERS :

General : Viewed from behind straight and parallel. Good angulation between upper thigh and lower thigh and also at the hocks. Strong bones.

Upper thigh : Long, broad and muscular.

Stifle : Strong with good angulation between upper‑ and lower thigh.

Lower thigh : Long, muscular and sinewy.

Hock joint : Strong and placed low.

Hocks : Short and vertical.

Hind feet : Oval to round, the toes lying close to each other, with sufficiently thick, hard, resistant and well pigmented pads. They are parallel, in stance and in movement neither turned inward nor outward.

GAIT / MOVEMENT : Ample ground covering, free, with good reach in the front and powerful drive from the rear. In front‑ and hindquarters parallel and straight; never stilted.

SKIN : Thick, tight, without folds.

COAT

HAIR : Plain, dense; hard rough hair or coarse smooth hair.

COLOUR : The colour is black, dark‑brown or greyish‑black, with fawn (yellow‑red) clearly defined markings at the eyebrows, muzzle, chest, the legs and at the base of the tail. Light and dark mask is equally permitted; small white markings on chest and toes are tolerated.

SIZE AND WEIGHT :

Height at the withers : Dogs     : 33 to 40 cm,

                                  Bitches : 33 to 40 cm.

Weight (desired ideal weight for working) :

                                  Dogs    : 9    to  10 kg,

                                  Bitches : 7,5 to  8,5 kg.

FAULTS : 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.

Missing of one or both M3 (Molars) is not to be considered a fault.

SERIOUS FAULTS :

·      Narrow skull, narrow and also pointed muzzle.

·      Falling away under‑jaw, narrow jaws.

·      Weak bite, any slight irregularity in the placing of the incisors.

·      Light or spotted nose.

·      Light, too big or protruding eyes.

·      Erected, flying, too small, set too low or heavy ears.

·      Steep forequarters.

·      Soft or roached back, too short back.

·      Short breastbone.

·      Too narrow or too wide in front.

·      Steep hindquarters, overbuilt.

·      Elbows clearly turned in or out.

·      Too close or spread toes; cow-hocked, bow-legged or narrow hocks, in stance as well as in movement.

·      Ambling, stilted or tripping gait.

·      Splayed feet, cat feet.

·      Tail inclining over the back, tail set too low or hanging.

·      Short, woolly, open or thin hair, bald at the belly or at the inner sides of the thighs.

DISQUALIFYING FAULTS :

·      Weak in temperament and character, shot‑ or game shy.

·      Over‑ and undershot bite, wry mouth, pincer and partial pincer bite, irregularly placed teeth, missing teeth except for M3.

·      Incorrect pigmentation.

·      Entropion and ectropion, eyes of different colour, blue or spotted eyes.

·      Any departure of the described coat colour.

·      Over‑ and under size.

N.B. : Male animals must have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

TRANSLATION : C. Seidler.

ORIGIN : Germany.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 24.07.1996.

UTILIZATION : Flushing Dog, versatile hunting dog.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 8       Retrievers, Flushing Dogs, Water Dogs.

                                              Section 2     Flushing Dogs.

                                              With working trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : From hunting literature, it can be proved that hunting dogs resembling the present day Wachtelhund have existed for centuries and have been used for flushing game. The term «Wachtelhund» also has historic origins.

Breeding of the German Spaniel, according to a stud book, began at the turn of the century.

The progenitor of the breed was «Lord Augusta 1834 L», who came from Staufenberg (Upper Bavaria). Pure breeding began with a few suitable bitches. At first only brown dogs (sometimes with white markings), and white-brown dogs were bred, the latter occasionally with small tan (red) markings on head and legs, the so-called « Brand ». Through the bitch, «Baby auf der Schanze 1838 L», the brown roan colour occurred in the breed.

Rudolf Friess (R.F.), who influenced the breeding of the German Spaniel for decades, introduced the separate colour breeding for browns and roans. By carefully planned matings within both colour strains he succeded to establish the important precondition - in spite of the small gene pool - to keep away from the damages through inbreeding.

The separation of the colour strains seemed also sensible in view of the somewhat different dispositions of the dogs.

The browns as short distance hunters, easier to make them hunt the game towards the guns, the brown roan colour as long distance hunters, specially willing to follow a trail.

The difference in disposition can nowadays no longer be regarded as a valid distinction between the two strains, as in the meantime, for various reasons, numerous matings between the two strains had taken place. Generally, however, the separation still counts today as a preservation of an unrelated reservoir of blood within the breed.

The German Spaniel was and is still bred exclusively by hunters for hunters as a flushing and versatile hunting dog.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : The German Spaniel is a medium sized, long-haired, very muscular flushing dog with noble head and strong bone. Altogether longer than high, but never looking high on leg.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS :

Relation to body length to height at withers : 1,2 to 1.

Relation to depth of chest to height at withers : 0,5 to 1.

Relation of muzzle to cranial region : 1 to 1.

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : Lively, passionate hunter, friendly, assured, very docile and adaptable, neither nervous nor aggressive.

Characteristics of the German Spaniel are :

·      Possessed of a strong desire to find.

·      Able to pick up scent, firm in tracking.

·      Reliable at giving tongue.

·      A fine nose.

·      Likes retrieving and work in water.

·      Sharp with game and vermin.

·      Working independently but still in a controlled manner when appropriately trained and guided; reliable for tracking wounded game, retrieving lost game and flushing; a versatile gundog especially for woodland with heavy cover and water.

The trait to point was not given attention since breeding began.

HEAD

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Flat, moderately broad, no marked occiput.

Stop : Only moderately developed.

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : Nose leather large and dark with wide open nostrils. Depigmented patches are a fault. Roman nose embellishes the dog.

Muzzle : Strong with nasal bridge remaining evenly broad, slightly rounded towards the end. On no account pointed, not shorter than cranial region.

Lips : Straight, dry, taut. Pigment according to coat colour.

Jaws/Teeth : Complete set of 42 teeth in the following order seen diagramatically from the front :

                        Right               M P C I I C P M          Left

            Upper jaw                   2  4  1 3 3 1 4 2                      Upper jaw

            Lower jaw                   3  4  1 3 3 1 4 3                      Lower jaw

Definition of above tooth formation : I = Incisor, C = Canine, P = Premolar, M = Molar.

Incisors in upper jaw close in incisor bite in front of those in lower jaw. Pincer bite will be tolerated. Teeth well developed, strong.

Cheeks : Dry, skin taut, cheek bones not protruding.

Eyes : Medium brown, as dark as possible. Medium size, set in slightly oblique, neither protruding nor deep set with tight fitting lids, not showing any haw. Hair on rims of eyelids.

Leathers : Set on high and broad, flat without any twist, hanging directly behind eye. Not thick, fleshy or flabby. Evenly furnished with hair reaching over inner edge. Laid forward, leathers reach nose leather.

NECK : Strong, nape of neck specially well muscled. Merging with withers in a blunt angle. No visible throatiness at beginning and widening towards chest without dewlap.

BODY :

Upper line : Straight in the different parts of the body, merging well into each other. Croup slightly sloping, tail in continuation with topline or carried slightly downwards.

Withers :  Strong and well defined.

Back : Short and firm, without any dip behind withers.

Loins :  Strongly muscled, therefore broad in appearance.

Croup : Slightly sloping, never overbuilt. Slightly below height of withers.

Chest : Oval, seen from front. Seen from side, reaching to below elbow joint. Ribcage long, well sprung, neither barrel shaped nor flat.

Lower line and belly : Tucked up moderately from last (false) rib to rear. Underside also covered as much as possible by protective hair and undercoat.

TAIL : In repose, carried straight in continuation of topline or downwards. When alert or excited, carried slightly upwards and wagging vividly. To avoid injury, the tail should be shortened (docked) by not more than a third during the first three days after birth. In countries where docking is not permitted, the tail can be left natural.

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS :

General : Seen from front, straight and parallel, seen from side, legs well under body, standing vertical to ground. Good angulations.

Shoulder : Strongly muscled. Shoulder blade well laid back.

Upper arm : In movement, sliding along close to chest.

Elbows : Close to body, turning neither in nor out.

Forearm : Straight, connection with joints not rickety.

Pastern joint (carpus) :  Strong.

Pastern  : Set slightly oblique.

Front feet : Spoon shaped. Toes close to each other, cat-or harefoot undesirable. Coarse, resistant, well pigmented pads and strong nails which get well worn down.

HINDQUARTERS :

General : Seen from side, good angulation in stifle and hock joints. Seen from rear, straight and parallel, neither bow-legged nor cow hocked; strong bone.

Upper thigh : Broad and very muscular, good angulation between pelvis and upper thigh.

Stifle : Strong with good angulation between upper and lower thigh.

Lower thigh : Long, muscular, sinewy.

Hock joint : Strong.

Hock : Short.  Vertical stance.

Hind feet : As front feet.

GAIT / MOVEMENT : Fluent and ground covering. Legs straight and parallel sliding closely along the body.

SKIN : Coarse and close fitting, no folds and pigmentation.

COAT

HAIR : Strong, close fitting, mostly wavy, sometimes curly (astrakhan) or smooth long coat, with thick undercoat. Hair not too long, much less thin or even silky. On nape, leathers and croup, often curly. Rearside of legs and tail, well feathered. Frequently frill on neck (jabot). Also well coated on belly.

Muzzle and cranial region : Hair short but dense. The leathers are covered by curls or dense wavy hair which also reaches beyond their inner edge. Interdigital gaps have dense but not too long hair.

COLOUR : The German Spaniel is bred in two colour varieties :

·      Solid brown, and more seldom also red*, including all occurring reddish shades (like fox or deer red). Also often with white or ticked markings on chest and toes.

·     Brown roan, more seldom red* roan. As basic colour, brown or red* hair is closely mixed with white hair. Often with the head brown or red*, as well as with patches or a saddle over the whole back. To this colour variety also belong the pied colour patterns with white as basic colour and large brown or red* patches as well as « tiger » pattern where the white basic colour is in addition sprinkled or ticked with clusters of brown or red* hair, even when bred from solid colour parents. In both colours, red* markings (« Brand ») over eyes, on muzzle, legs and round vent can occur.

* Red = all existing reddish shades (fox, roedeer or deer red).

SIZE AND WEIGHT  :

Height at the withers : Dogs :     48 to 54 cm,

                                  Bitches : 45 to 52 cm.

Weight : Varying, according to size, between 18 to 25 kg. Bitches are slightly lighter than dogs.

FAULTS : 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.

·      Marked stop.

·      Missing of a first premolar (PM1).

·      Too deep flews, lips not enough taut.

·      Eyelids not close fitting.

·      Too narrow ear channels (disposition for ear trouble).

·      Barrel chest.

·      High on leg or fine bone.

·      Thin, sparse or silky coat; sparsely coated belly. Ear ends leathery.

·      Slightly over or under in size or weight.

SERIOUS FAULTS :

·      Skins problems : Dermatitis, atopy.

·      Missing teeth, apart from the lack of one PM1.

ELIMINATING FAULTS :

·      Weak temperament, gun-or game-shy.

·      Serious mouth faults (over-or undershot, wry mouth).

·      Entropion, ectropion.

·      Black coat colour.

N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

TRANSLATION : Miss C. Seidler.

ORIGIN : France.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 08.07.1999.

UTILIZATION : Waterdog used for hunting gamebirds. The Waterdog is not just a retriever, he must search for game hidden in water vegetation, must locate it and flush it out. He then retrieves the shot game to his master. He withstands cold and will go into water in any weather.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 8     Retrievers, Flushing dogs, Water dogs.

                                              Section 3   Water dogs.

                                              With working trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : This is an ancient breed seen all over France, used for hunting water game. It is already mentioned and described in 16th century scripts. The Barbet was also used as a retriever by the Navy.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Dog of medium size and proportions with characteristic thick woolly fleece which protects him from cold and damp. The coat forms a beard on the chin to which the breed owes its name.

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : Even temperament, neither aggressive nor nervous, tractable. Very devoted to his master. Good mixer. Loves water.

HEAD : The coat on the head must fall to the bridge of the nose. The beard is long and ample, the profuse moustache covers the whole muzzle.

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Round and broad.

Stop : Pronounced.

FACIAL REGION :

Muzzle : Quite square. The bridge of nose is broad and short.

Lips : Thick, pigmented, completely covered by long hair. The pigmentation of the mucous membranes may be black or brown.

Eyes : Round, preferably dark brown. 

Ears : Set on low (in line with eyes or slightly lower), long, flat, broad, covered by long hair which forms cords. If the ears are held together across the noseleather, they reach (with the hair) at least 5 cm beyond it. The ear cartilage reaches beyond the corner of the mouth.

NECK : Short and strong.

BODY :

Back : Very slighlty convex.

Loins : Arched, short and strong.

Croup : Rounded in profile.

Chest : Broad, well developed, quite deep, rounded ribcage.

TAIL : Somewhat raised, yet not above a horizontal line. Set on low, forming a slight hook at the end.

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS :

Shoulders : Sloping. The scapulo-humeral angle varies from 110 to 115°.

Upper arm : Strong and muscular.

Lower arm : Straight, strong, perpendicular, completely covered by long hair. Strong bone structure.

HINDQUARTERS :

Upper thigh : Slight slope, well muscled.

Hocks  : Set low. Well angulated.

Metatarsus : Well upright.

FEET : Round, broad, covered with hair.

SKIN : Thick.

COAT

HAIR : Long, woolly and curly, forming cords. The coat is profuse and, in its natural state, covers the entire body. That is a particular breed characteristic. Since time immemorial, the Barbet has been clipped in order to ease his work and lifestyle. According to how he is used, the Barbet can present different appearances.

COLOUR : Solid black, grey, chestnut brown, red fawn, sandy, white or pied. All shades from red fawn to sandy are permitted. Preferably the whole body should be in even shade.

SIZE  :

Minimum height at withers : Dogs     58 cm,

                                          Bitches  53 cm.

FAULTS : 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.

·      Head fine and narrow; bridge of nose thin and long; lips thin.

·      Light eyes.

·      Ears high set (higher than eye level), thin, short and narrow.

·      Neck long and thin.

·      Top line hollow.

·      Loin long and weak.

·      Croup straight.

·      Chest narrow.

·      Tail high set on, curled over back. Lack of tail; stumpy tail.

·      Shoulders upright.

·      Upper arm thin.

·      Lower arm  fine boned. Forelegs fringed.

·      Upper thigh flat; hocks straight; hindlegs fringed. Dewclaws.

·      Feet thin and narrow, lacking hair.

·      Skin thin.

·      Coat short, harsh, not woolly, not curly.

·      Colour : All colours other than those mentioned in the standard. Coat with markings (parti or tricolour), black overlay, brindle, spotted, mottled. Solid colour not in even shade.

N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

© Copyright by Yvonne Soomers-Marell