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General appearance
The Belgian Shepherd is a mediolineal dog, harmoniously
proportioned, combining elegance and power, of medium size, with dry,
strong muscle, fitting into a square, rustic, used to the open air life
and built to resist the frequent atmospheric variations of the Belgian
climate.
Through the harmony of its shape and its high head-carriage, the Belgian
Shepherd should give the impression of that elegant strength which has
become the heritage of the selected representatives of a working breed.
The Belgian Shepherd is to be judged in its natural stance, without
physical contact with the handler.
Size
Height at withers:
The ideal weight at withers is on average:62 cm for males; 58 cm for
females.
Limits: 2 cm less, 4 cm more.
Weight:
Males about 25-30 kg.; Females about 20-25 kg.
Measurements:
Average normal measures for an adult male Belgian Shepherd of 62 cm at the
withers:
Head
Carried high, long without exaggeration,
rectilinear, well chiselled and dry. Skull and muzzle are roughly equal in
length, with at the most a very slight bias in favour of the muzzle, which
puts the finishing touch to the whole head.
CRANIAL REGION:
Of medium width, in proportion with the length of the head, with a
forehead flat rather than round, frontal groove not very pronounced; in
profile, parallel to imaginary line extending muzzle line; occipital crest
little developed; brow ridges and zygomatic arches not prominent.
Stop: Moderate.
FACIAL REGION:
Nose: Black.
Muzzle: Medium length
and well chiselled under the eyes; narrowing gradually toward the nose,
like an elongated wedge; bridge of the nose straight and parallel to the
continuation of the topline of the forehead; mouth well split, which means
that when the mouth is open the commissures of the lips are pulled right
back, the jaws being well apart.
Lips: Thin, tight and
strongly pigmented.
Jaws/teeth: Strong,
white teeth, regularly and strongly set in well-developed jaws. Scissor
bite; pincer bite, which is preferred by sheep and livestock herders, is
tolerated. Complete dentition according to the dental formula; the absence
of two premolars 1 (2 P1) is tolerated and the molars 3 (M3) are not taken
into consideration.
Cheeks: dry and quite
flat, although muscled.
Eyes: Medium size,
neither protruding nor sunken, slightly almond-shaped, obliquely set,
brownish colour, preferably dark; black rimmed eyelids; direct, lively,
intelligent and enquiring look.
Ears: Rather small,
set high, distinctly triangular appearance, well-rounded outer ear,
pointed tips, stiff, carried upright and vertical when dog is alert.
Neck/Topline/Body
NECK: Well standing out,
slightly elongated, rather upright, well-muscled, broadening gradually
towards the shoulders, without dewlap, nape slightly arched.
BODY: Powerful without
being heavy; length from point of shoulder to point of buttock
approximately equal to height at withers.
Topline: upper line of
back and loins is straight.
Withers: Pronounced.
Back: firm, short and
well-muscled.
Loins: Solid, short,
sufficiently broad, well-muscled.
Croup: well-muscled ;
only very slightly sloping ; sufficiently broad but not excessively so.
Chest: little broad,
but well let down; upper part of ribs arched; seen from the front
forechest little broad, but without being narrow.
Underline: Begins
below the chest and rises gently in a harmonious curve towards the belly,
which is neither drooping nor tucked up, but slightly raised and
moderately developed.
TAIL: Well set on, strong
at the base, of medium length, reaching at least to hock, but preferably
further; at rest carried down, with tip curved backwards at level of hock;
more raised when moving, although without passing the horizontal, the
curve towards the tip becoming more accentuated, without ever at
any time forming a hook or deviation.
SKIN:
Elastic but taut over all the body; edges of lips and eyelids strongly
pigmented.
Forequaters
General view: Bone solid
but not heavy; muscle dry and strong; front legs upright from all sides
and perfectly parallel when seen from the front.
Shoulder: Shoulder blade long and oblique,
well attached, forming a sufficient angle with the humerus, ideally
measuring 110-115 degrees.
Upper arm: Long and
sufficiently oblique.
Elbow: Firm, neither turning out nor tied
in.
Forearm: Long and straight.
Wrist (carpus): very firm and clean.
Front pastern (metacarpus): Strong and
short, as perpendicular to the ground as possible or only very slightly
sloping forward.
Feet:
Round, cat feet; toes arched and well closed; pads thick and springy;
nails dark and strong.
Hindquaters
General view: Powerful,
but not heavy; in profile hindlegs are upright and seen from behind
perfectly parallel.
Upper thigh: Medium length, broad and
strongly muscled.
Stifle: approximately on the plumb line from
the hip; normal stifle angulation.
Lower thigh: Medium length, broad and
muscled.
Hock: Close to
the ground, broad and muscled, moderate angulation.
Back pastern (metatarsus):
Solid and short; dewclaws not desirable.
Feet:
may be light oval; toes arched and well closed; pads thick and springy;
nails dark and strong.
Coat
Since the coat varies in length, direction, appearance
and colour among Belgian Shepherds, this particular point has been adopted
as the criterion for distinguishing between the four varieties of the
breed: the Groenendael, the Tervueren, the Malinois and the Laekenois.
These four varieties are judged separately and can each be awarded a C.A.C.,
a C.A.C.A.B. or a reserve title.
HAIR:
In all the varieties the hair must always be dense, close-fitting and of
good texture, with the woolly undercoat forming an excellent protective
covering.
A. LONG HAIR: The hair is
short on the head, the outer side of the ears and the lower part of the
legs, except on the rear side of the forearm which is covered from elbow
to wrist by long hairs called fringes. The hair is long and smooth on the
rest of the body and longer and more abundant around the neck and on the
forechest, where it forms a collarette or ruff and a jabot or apron. The
opening of the air is protected by thick tufts of hair. From the base of
the air the hair is upright and frames the head. The back of the thighs is
covered with very long abundant hair forming the culottes or breeches. The
tail is furnished with long, abundant hair forming a plume.
The Groenendael and the Tervueren are the long-haired.
B. SHORT HAIR: The hair
is very short on the head, the outer sides of the ears and the lower part
of the legs. It is short over the rest of the body and fuller at the tail
and around the neck, where it forms a collarette or ruff which begins at
the base of the ear, stretching as far as the throat. As well, the back of
the thighs is fringed with longer hair. The tail is ear of corn shaped,
but does not form a plume.
The Malinois is the short-haired.
C. ROUGH HAIR:
What especially characterises the rough hair variety is the roughness and
dryness of the hair, which, moreover, is rasping and tousled. About 6 cm
long over the whole body, the hair is shorter on the top of the muzzle,
the forehead and the legs. The hair around the eyes and those furnishing
the muzzle should not be so long as to disguise the shape of the head.
However, it is essential to have furnishings on the muzzle. The tail
should not form a plume.
The Laekenois is the rough-haired.
Colors
Mask: For Tervueren and
Malinois the mask must be very pronounced and tend to encompass the top
and bottom lip, the corners of the lips and the eyelids in one single
black zone. A strict minimum of six points of skin pigmentation is called
for: the two ears, the two upper eyelids and the two lips, upper and two
lower, which must be black.
Black overlay: In
Tervueren and Malinois, the black overlay means that the hairs have a
black tip which shades the base colour. This blackening is in any case
“flamed” and must not be present in great patches nor in real stripes
(brindled). In the Laekenois the black shading is more discreetly
expressed.
Groenendael: Only uniform
black.
Tervueren: Only
fawn with black overlay or grey with black overlay, with black mask;
however, the fawn with black overlay is still preferred. The fawn must be
rich, neither light nor washed-out. Any dog whose coat colour is anything
but fawn with black overlay or does not match the desired intensity of
colour cannot be considered an elite specimen.
Malinois: Only fawn with
black overlay and with black mask.
Laekenois:
Only fawn with traces of black overlay, mainly on the muzzle and the tail.
For all varieties: a small amount of white is tolerated on forechest and
toes.
Gait
Lively and free movement at all gaits;
the Belgian Shepherd is a good galloper, but its normal gaits are the walk
and especially the trot; limbs move parallel to the median plane of the
body. At high speed the feet come nearer to the median plane; at the trot
the reach is medium, the movement even and easy, with good rear drive, and
the topline remains tight while the front legs are not lifted too high.
Always on the move, the Belgian Shepherd seems tireless; its gait is fast,
springy and lively. It is capable of suddenly changing direction at full
speed. Due to its exuberant character and its desire to guard and protect,
it has a definite tendency to move in circles.
Characteristics
The
Belgian Shepherd is a watchful and active dog, bursting with energy, and
always ready to leap into action. As well as its innate skill at guarding
flocks, it also possesses the highly prized qualities of the best guard
dog of property. Without any hesitation it is the stubborn and keen
protector of its owner. It brings together all those qualities necessary
for a shepherd, guard, defence and service dog.
Its lively, alert temperament and its confident nature, showing no fear or
aggressiveness, should be obvious in its body stance and the proud
attentive expression in its sparkling eyes.
When judging this breed, one should take into consideration its calm and
fearless temperament.
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.
General appearance:
Cloddy, lacking elegance; too light or too slender; longer than high;
fitting into a rectangle.
Head: heavy, too strong,
lacking parallelism, not sufficiently chiselled or dry; forehead too
rounded; stop too accentuated or too flat; muzzle too short or pinched;
Roman nose; brow ridges or zygomatic arches too prominent.
Nose, lips and eyelids:
traces of depigmentation.
Dentition: badly aligned
incisors. Serious fault: lack of one incisor (1 I), one premolar 2 (1 P2),
one premolar 3 (1 P3) or three premolars 1 (3 P3).
Eyes: light, round.
Ears: large, long, too
broad at the base, set low, carried outward or inward.
Neck: slender; short or
deep set.
Body: too long; thoracic
cage too broad (cylindrical).
Withers: flat, low.
Topline: back and/or
loins long, weak, sagging or arched.
Croup: too sloping,
overbuilt.
Underline: too much or
too little let down; too much belly.
Tail: set too low;
carried too high, forming a hook, deviated.
Limbs: bone too light or
too heavy; bad upright stance in profile (e.g. front pasterns too sloping
or weak wrists), from the front (feet turning in or out, out at elbow,
etc.), or from behind (hindlegs too close, too wide apart or barrel
shaped, hocks close or open, etc.); too little or exaggeratedly angulated.
Feet: spreading.
Gait: moving close, too
short a stride, too little drive, poor back transmission, high stepping
action.
Coat: all four varieties:
insufficient undercoat.
Groenendael and Tervueren:
woolly, wavy, curly hair; hair not long enough.
Malinois: hair half-long where it should be
short; smooth-haired; harsh hairs scattered in the short coat; wavy coat.
Laekenois: hair
too long, silky, wavy, crisp-haired or short; filled with fine hairs
scattered in tufts in the rough hair; hairs too long around the eye or the
lower end of the head (the chin); bushy tail.
Colour: for all four
varieties: white marking on chest forming tie; white on the feet going
beyond toes. Groenendael:
reddish tinges in the coat; grey breeches.
Tervueren: grey.
Tervuren and Malinois:
brindle; tints not warm enough; not enough or too much black overlay or
set in patches over the body; not enough mask.
Tervueren, Malinois and Laekenois:
too light a fawn; a base colour which is very diluted, named washed-out,
is considered a serious fault.
Temperament:
specimens lacking in self-confidence or overly nervous.
Disqualifications
Temperament: aggressive
or timid specimens.
General appearance: lack
of breed type.
Dentition: overshot;
undershot, even if contact is not lost (reverse scissor bite); crossbite;
absence of one canine (1 C), one upper carnassial (1 P4) or lower
carnassial (1 M1), one molar (1 M1 -upper jaw- or 1 M2; M3 are not taken
into consideration), one premolar 3 (1 P3) plus one other tooth or a total
of three teeth (excluding the premolars 1) or more.
Nose, lips, eyelids:
strong depigmentation.
Ears: drooping or
artificially kept erect.
Tail: missing or
shortened, at birth or by docking; carried too high and ringed or curled.
Coat: lack of undercoat.
Colour: any colours which
do not correspond with those of the described varieties; too widespread
white markings on forechest, especially if they reach as far as the neck;
white on feet going more than halfway up the front or the back pasterns
and forming socks; white markings anywhere other than forechest and toes;
lack of mask, including a muzzle of lighter colour than the rest of the
coat in Tervueren and Malinois.
Size: outside the limits
laid down.
N.B.:
Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended
into the scrotum
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