General Appearance
Rugged appearance; supple, muscular and well proportioned.

Characteristics
Very intelligent, gay and lively.

Temperament
Fearless, with no trace of timidity or aggressiveness.

The Breed Standard

With Kind Permission from the Kennel Club

Head and Skull
Skull slightly rounded and slightly longer from occiput to stop than it is wide when measured through points of cheekbones. Head is composed of two equal rectangles, occiput to stop and stop to end of nose, when viewed in profile from above. Muzzle square and very strong; any tendency to snipiness highly undesirable. Stop clearly defined. Nose large and square, always black.

Eyes
Horizontally placed, well open and rather large, not oblique. Intelligent and gentle in expression. Dark brown, eye rims always black.


Photo of "Fluke" by Jean Eckford

Ears
Set on high and covered with long hair. Should not lie too flat against side of head. Fairly short, length of ear being equal to or slightly less than half length of head. When dog alert ears should be lifted slightly and swing very slightly forward.

Mouth
Teeth very strong and white with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws. Lips always black.


Photo of "Ozzy" by Hazel Cawley-Nash

Neck
Of good length; strong and muscular; arched, giving proud carriage of head and flowing smoothly into well placed shoulders.

Forequarters
Shoulders well angulated and well laid back, forelegs well muscled, strongly boned.

Body
Back firm and level, chest broad, medium spring of rib, well let down, very slight slope at croup, determining set of tail. Very slightly longer in body than height at shoulder.

Hindquarters
Well angulated, with hocks set not too low and turning neither in nor out, but leg below hock not quite vertical. Hindlegs, particularly thighs, well muscled. Double dewclaws set low on hindlegs of utmost importance.

Feet
Strong, turning neither in nor out, slightly rounded, about midway between cat foot and hare foot. Nails always black, pads firm and hard, toes close together. Well covered with hair.

Tail
Long, well covered with hair with upward hook at tip. Carried low but always held centrally. Bone of tail reaching at least point of hock.

Gait/Movement
Effortless, and when dog extends himself covering a great deal of ground. Extremely supple, enabling dog to turn quickly. Strong, firm, very smooth with plenty of drive.

Coat
Long, not less than 7 cms (2¾ ins) on body. Slightly wavy and very dry. A fine dense undercoat required all over body. Head carries hair forming a moustache, beard and eyebrows, lightly veiling eyes.

Colour
All black, or with white hairs scattered through black coat. Fawn in all its shades, darker shades preferred. Fawns may have dark shadings on ears, muzzle, back and tail, but these shadings must blend gradually into rest of coat since any demarcation line denotes a bi-colour which is not permissible. May also be slate grey.

Size
Height: dogs: 61-69 cms (24-27 ins) at withers; bitches: 58-65 cms (23-25½ ins) at withers. Slight undersize before 18 months, or slight oversize in maturity permissible.

Photo of "Mr Hedges" with Kim Bishop

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 and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog.

Note
Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.