SAMOYED
Approved
August 10, 1993
Effective
September 29, 1993
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STANDAR A.K.C.
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General Conformation
(a) General Appearance - The Samoyed, being essentially a working dog,
should present a picture of beauty, alertness and strength, with agility,
dignity and grace. As his work lies in cold climates, his coat should be heavy
and weather-resistant, well groomed, and of good quality rather then quantity.
The male carries more of a "ruff" than the female. He should not be
long in the back as a weak back would make him practically useless for his
legitimate work, but at the same time, a close-coupled body would also place
him at a great disadvantage as a draft dog. Breeders should aim for the happy
medium, a body not long but muscular, allowing liberty, with a deep ch est and
well-sprung ribs, strong neck, straight front and especially strong loins.
Males should be masculine in appearance and deportment without unwarranted
aggressiveness; bitches feminine without weakness of structure or apparent
softness of temperament.
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Bitches may be slightly longer in back than males.
They should both give the appearance of being capable of great endurance but be
free from coarseness. Because of the depth of chest required, the legs should
be moderately long. A very short-legged dog is to be deprecated. Hindquarters
should be particularly well developed, stifles well bent and any suggestion of
unsound stifles or cowhocks severely penalized. General appearance should
include movement and general conformation, indicating balance and good
substance.
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(b) Substance - Substance is that sufficiency of bone and muscle which rounds out a
balance with the frame. The bone is heavier than would be expected in a dog of
this size but not so massive as to prevent the speed and agility most desirable
in a Samoyed. In all builds, bone should be in proportion to body size. The
Samoyed should never be so heavy as to appear clumsy nor so light as to appear
racy. The weight should be in proportion to the height.
(c) Height - Males--21 to
23½ inches; females--19 to 21 inches at the withers. An oversized or undersized
Samoyed is to be penalized according to the extent of the deviation.
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(d) Coat (Texture and
Condition) - The Samoyed is a doublecoated dog. The body should be well covered
with an undercoat of soft, short, thick, close wool with longer and harsh hair
growing through it to form the outer coat, which stands straight out from the
body and should be free from curl. The coat should form a ruff around the neck
and shoulders, framing the head (more on males than on females). Quality of
coat should be weather resistant and considered more than quantity. A droopy
coat is undesirable. The coat should glisten with a silver sheen. The female
does not usually carry as long a coat as most males and it is softer in
texture.
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(e) Color - Samoyeds should
be pure white, white and biscuit, cream, or all biscuit. Any other colors
disqualify.
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Movement
(a) Gait - The Samoyed should trot, not pace. He should move with a
quick agile stride that is well timed. The gait should be free, balanced and
vigorous, with good reach in the forequarters and good driving power in the
hindquarters. When trotting, there should be a strong rear action drive. Moving
at a slow walk or trot, they will not single-track, but as speed increases the
legs gradually angle inward until the pads are finally falling on a line
directly under the longitudinal center of the body. As the pad marks converge
the forelegs and hind legs are carried straight forward in traveling, the
stifles not turned in nor out. The back should remain strong, firm and level. A
choppy or stilted gait should be penalized.
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(b) Rear End - Upper thighs
should be well developed. Stifles well bent-approximately 45 degrees to the
ground. Hocks should be well developed, sharply defined and set at
approximately 30 percent of hip height. The hind legs should be parallel when
viewed from the rear in a natural stance, strong, well developed, turning
neither in nor out. Straight stifles are objectionable. Double-jointedness or
cowhocks are a fault. Cowhocks should only be determined if the dog has had an
opportunity to move properly.
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(c) Front End - Legs should be parallel and straight to the pasterns. The pasterns
should be strong, sturdy and straight, but flexible with some spring for proper
let-down of feet. Because of depth of chest, legs should be moderately long.
Length of leg from the ground to the elbow should be approximately 55 per cent
of the total height at the withers-a very short-legged dog is to be deprecated.
Shoulders should be long and sloping, with a layback of 45 degrees and be firmly
set. Out at the shoulders or out at the elbows should be penalized. The withers
separation should be approximately 1-1½ inches.
(d) Feet - Large, long,
flattish-a hare-foot, slightly spread but not splayed; toes arched; pads thick
and tough, with protective growth of hair between the toes. Feet should turn
neither in nor out in a natural stance but may turn in slightly in the act of
pulling. Turning out, pigeon-toed, round or cat-footed or splayed are faults.
Feathers on feet are not too essential but are more profuse on females than on
males
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Head
(a) Conformation - Skull is wedge-shaped, broad, slightly crowned, not
round or apple-headed, and should form an equilateral triangle on lines between
the inner base of the ears and the central point of the stop. Muzzle--Muzzle
of medium length and medium width, neither coarse nor snipy; should taper
toward the nose and be in proportion to the size of the dog and the width of
skull. The muzzle must have depth. Whiskers are not to be removed. Stop--Not
too abrupt, nevertheless well defined. Lips--Should be black for
preference and slightly curved up at the corners of the mouth, giving the
"Samoyed smile." Lip lines should not have the appearance of being
coarse nor should the flews drop predominately at corners of the mouth. |
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Ears--Strong and thick, erect, triangular and slightly rounded at the tips;
should not be large or pointed, nor should they be small and
"bear-eared." Ears should conform to head size and the size of the
dog; they should be set well apart but be within the border of the outer edge
of the head; they should be mobile and well covered inside with hair; hair full
and stand-off before the ears. Length of ear should be the same measurement as
the distance from inner base of ear to outer corner of eye. |
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Eyes--Should be dark
for preference; should be placed well apart and deep-set; almond shaped with
lower lid slanting toward an imaginary point approximately the base of ears.
Dark eye rims for preference. Round or protruding eyes penalized. Blue eyes disqualifying.
Nose--Black for preference but brown, liver, or Dudley nose not
penalized. Color of nose sometimes changes with age and weather. Jaws and
Teeth--Strong, well-set teeth, snugly overlapping with scissors bite.
Undershot or overshot should be penalized.
(b) Expression - The expression, referred to as "Samoyed expression," is
very important and is indicated by sparkle of the eyes, animation and lighting
up of the face when alert or intent on anything. Expression is made up of a
combination of eyes, ears and mouth. The ears should be erect when alert; the
mouth should be slightly curved up at the corners to form the "Samoyed
smile." |
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Torso
(a) Neck - Strong, well muscled, carried proudly erect, set on sloping
shoulders to carry head with dignity when at attention. Neck should blend into
shoulders with a graceful arch.
(b) Chest - Should be deep, with ribs well sprung out from the spine and
flattened at the sides to allow proper movement of the shoulders and freedom
for the front legs. Should not be barrel-chested. Perfect depth of chest
approximates the point of elbows, and the deepest part of the chest should be
back of the forelegs-near the ninth rib. Heart and lung room are secured more
by body depth than width.
(c) Loin and Back - The withers forms the highest part of the back.
Loins strong and slightly arched. The back should be straight to the loin,
medium in length, very muscular and neither long nor short-coupled. The dog
should be "just off square"--the length being approximately 5 per
cent more than the height. Females allowed to be slightly longer than males.
The belly should be well shaped and tightly muscled and, with the rear of the
thorax, should swing up in a pleasing curve (tuck-up). Croup must be full,
slightly sloping, and must continue imperceptibly to the tail root.
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- Tail - The tail should
be moderately long with the tail bone terminating approximately at the hock
when down. It should be profusely covered with long hair and carried forward
over the back or side when alert, but sometimes dropped when at rest. It should
not be high or low set and should be mobile and loose -- not tight over the
back. A double hook is a fault. A judge should see the tail over the back once
when judging.
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Disposition - Intelligent,
gentle, loyal, adaptable, alert, full of action, eager to serve, friendly but
conservative, not distrustful or shy, not overly aggressive. Unprovoked
aggressiveness is to be severely penalized.
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Disqualification
Any color other than pure white, cream, biscuit, or white and biscuit.
Blue eyes.
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