~
Conformation Terms & Definitions
~
A
Camel back: general term used to describe an arched back Carpal: largest bone in the pastern (wrist) Cat foot: describes a tight-knuckled foot in which the toes are well arched Caudal/cockerel: the vertebrae that make up the tail Cervical vertebrae: the vertebrae that make up the neck Cheeky: too much fill in the skull cavities, bulging sides of face China eye: blue or clear eye coloration Chiseling: pertaining to head structure, the outline and smoothness of the facial region Chops: jowls, thick, heavy flesh on the lips and jaws Clipping: a gaiting fault in which the rear feet actually knick the pads of the front feet when in a full trot Close-coupled: a short loin in comparison to other proportions Coarse: lacking refinement Cobby: very compact all over Conformation: term describing the physical structure of the entire dog Coupling: the loin Cow-hocked: hocks bending inwards when in a natural stance Crabbing: gaiting fault in which the front and rear legs do not line up when viewed from behind or in front Crest: the arch on the top of the neck in some breeds Cropped ear: an ear that had been surgically altered or trimmed to stand up erect Croup: the region on the top of the dog between the hip bones, extending to were the tail is set on Dentition: the number and placement of teeth in the mouth Depth (of chest): an indication of the volume of internal room for the heart, lungs, etc: referenced to the elbow Dewclaws: extra toe or toes on the inside of the pasterns or hocks: commonly removed in most breeds Dewlap: loose hanging skin under the neck Dish face: a concave top of muzzle or slightly upturned nose Divergent hocks: hocks that turn outward when at a natural stance Dock tail: a tail that has been surgically shortened or removed Double coat: a two layered type of coat, the first thick and plush, the outer one consisting of coarser guard hairs Down face: pertaining to the planing of the head, the slope of the muzzle plane being steeper than that of the skull plane Down in the pastern: weak pasterns Drive: referring to the amount of thrust from the rear when gaiting Drop ear: an ear folded or creases in at least one place Dry neck: taut skin on the underline of the neck (opposite of wet neck) Dudley nose: flesh colored nose leather East-west: front structural fault in which the legs and feet point outwards, away from each other Elbowing out: the elbows out-turned, away from body Even bite: meeting of upper and lower incisors with no overlap Ewe neck: a concave neck line Expression: general appearance of the look in the eye Eyeteeth: upper canine teeth F Feathering: fringe of hair on the underside of the tail, brisket, and backs of legs Femur: main bone in the rear legs Fibula: one of the bones that make up the lower thigh Fiddle front: elbows turned outward, pasterns turned inward, toes pointed outward Flag: a long feathered tail, carried high Flat croup: a croup with insufficient slope or taper from the hip bones to the root of the tail Flat sided: lacking proper spring of ribs Flews: inner corners of the upper lips Flewsy: too much flews Flying ears: erect/prick ears on a breed that should not have prick ears Flying trot: a very fast gait where all four feet are off the ground for a brief moment French front: see "fiddle front" Frill: see "apron" Full dentition: refers to an adult dog with all its teeth in and fully developed Furnishings: see "feathering" G Gait: the pattern of footfall: when used in a show ring setting, it describes the dog's movement at a trot Gaskin: lower second thigh Gay tail: a tail carried high and slightly curved over the back Goose neck: a long tube-like neck (opposite of bull neck) Goose stepping: a gaiting fault with an accentuated and seemingly careless lift in the forelegs Grizzle: a mixture of three or more colors on one hair Guard hairs: the coarse outer coat on a double coated breed H Hackles: hairs on the back and the back of the neck that the dog raises when alerted Hackney gait: a fault in all but two AKC recognized breeds in which the front legs are lifted high with an arching wrist Hard knuckled: a tight foot with prominent arches in each of the toes Hare foot: an elongated foot with little arch in the toes Harlequin: color pattern usually piebald (bi-color splashes) Haw: the third eyelid: membrane on the inner corner of the eye, seen in wet faced breeds Height: measured from the ground to the point of the withers Hock: the collection of tarsus bones on the rear legs: the true heel Hocking out: see "divergent hocks" Hucklebones: top of hip bones Humerus: bone of the upper arm Incisors: the smaller row of teeth between the two canines; present on both upper and lower jaws Jowls: flesh of the lips and jaws Kiss marks: tan spots on the cheeks and over the eyes in some breeds Kiss of Ala: a small snip of differing color on the center of the top of the skull Knuckling over : a universal fault where the carpal (wrist) bones flex forward under the weight of the dogs standing L Layback: term used to describe the dog's front or rear angulations Layon: the angle of the shoulder blade from the nearest vertical axis Leather: outer flap of the ear Level bite: see "even bite" Level gait: no rise or fall of the withers or top line when at a standard show ring gait Liver: a color; deep brown Loaded: pertaining to over-development of certain groups of muscles Loin: sides of the dog in the lumbar vertebrae region Loose front: loose attachment of muscles to the shoulder, producing a gait in which the front is slung all about Lumbar vertebrae: the vertebrae running over the ribs to the tail Lumber: an awkward, uncoordinated looking gait
M
O
Padding: a gaiting fault in which the front feet flip up and outward to avoid clipping with the rear Paddling: caused by and east-west or in at the elbows front; front feet are slung stiffly outwards when gaiting Pads: the thick leathery projections on the souls of the feet Paper foot: an overly flat foot with thin pads and little, if any, arch to the toes Peak: see "occiput" Parti: variegated patches of two or more colors Pastern: region of the front leg between the carpus and the foot (the wrist) Pelvis: hip bones Penciling: thin lines of black between otherwise tan colored tows in some breeds Pigeon toed: feet (front or rear) pointing inwards, towards each other Pig mouth: see "overshot" Pincer bit: see "even bite" Planes: referring to the head, the plane of the muzzle and the plane of the top skull Planing: the comparison of the angles of the two planes of the head Plume: see "feathering" Poke: neck carried low and outwards when gaiting Popping hock: gaiting fault describing an accentuated lift of the hock portion just after full extension of the rear Pounding: gaiting fault; front stride is shorter than the rear, front feet pound the ground in an ungainly manner Prick ear: an erect or upright ear Puppyish: immature in overall conformation (i.e. no spring of ribs, or loose front action: typical traits of puppies) Racy: tall and of a lithe, slight build Ragged: muscling appears rough and ragged, instead of smooth Rangy: disproportionately tall, long, and of a lighter build than is desired Rat tail: thick root covered in curly hair, tapering to a sharp point with little to no hair Reach: describes the length of forward stride taken by the forelegs when in motion Refinement: pertaining to the amount of raciness Restricted: a gaiting fault caused by under-angulation where either the front or the rear appears painfully constricted Ribbed up: a long rib cage Ring tail: carried up and in a semi-circle over the croup Roach back: a noticeable arch over the thoracic and lumbar regions Rocking horse: refers to a dog who braces (or rocks backwards) while in a stack rather than lean over its front Rolling: a gait in which the rear seems to be swaying and ambling along Roman nose: a down faced dog with the addition of a further sloping tip of nose plane Rubber hocks: a gaiting fault in which the hocks flex and twist both ways to bear the weight of the rear Rudder: another term for the tail Ruff: the thick. lush hair growth around the neck in some breeds Saber tail: tail carried in a semi-circle Sable: color pattern; silver, gold, tawny, or grey hairs tipped in black Sacrum: vertebrae of the pelvic girdle Saddle: large black marking over the back Scissors bite: a bite type; the outer surfaces of the lower incisors touches the inner surfaces of the upper incisors Screw tail: a twisted, kinked tail Self: one solid color Semi-prick ear: ears carried erect with the tips leaning forward Shelly: a shallow, narrow body lacking proper fill and spring of ribs as well as being fine boned Sickle hocks: straight, restricted hock joints resulting in the inability to fully extend hocks while gaiting Sickle tail: carried out an in a semi-circle Single tracking: all footprints falling upon a single, central line of travel while gaiting Skully: a very broad top skull Slab sides: flat, under sprung ribs Slew foot: general term for feet turned outwards Smooth coat: a very short, tight fitting and slick single layer coat Snipy: a pointed muzzle lacking proper fill and under jaw Splay foot: a flat foot with toes spread apart from each other Spring: refers to the amount of roundness to the rib cage Spread: the distance between the front legs Standoff coat: a heavy, somewhat long coat that stands out from the body, rather than lying flat Steep: used to denote incorrect angles Steep croup: a croup which makes a dramatic slope from the hip bones to the root of the tail Stern: another term for the tail Sternum: breastbone Stifle: kneecap Stilted: a gaiting style; very choppy with lots of up and down bounce due to straight angulation Stop: the indentation between the eyes; the step up from the muzzle plane to the skull plane Straight front: too little angulation in the front Straight in the pastern: not enough give in the pastern area when in a natural stance Substance: pertaining to the amount of bone Sway back: a noticeably concave top line T Thoracic vertebrae: the vertebrae that make up the spine over the rib cage area Throaty: excess amount of loose skin under the neck Thumb marks: black splotches on the backs of the pasterns Tibia: the smaller of the two major bones in the hock Tied at the elbows: see "paddling" Topline: the horizontal made by the top of the withers through the bottom of the croup Tuck up: the shallower depth of body beneath the loin area Tulip ear: carried erect with only the edges turning forward and in Twisting hocks: see "rubber hocks" Type: the characteristic physical qualities that distinguish one breed from another Typey: a specimen with outstanding breed type Ulna: the smaller of two major bones in the forearm Underline: the contour of the underside of the brisket and the abdominal floor Undershot: an underbite, opposite of overshot Unsound: a dog with one or more severe conformational or health faults that would render it incapable of working Varminty: a keen and piercing expression Walleye: a bluish eye Webbed: a thin but solid membrane between all toes Weedy: rangy and with insufficient amount of bone Well let down: having short hocks Wet neck: see "throaty" Wheel back: see "roach back" Whip tail: a long, straight, evenly tapering, smooth coated tail Winging: a gaiting fault in which one or both front limbs twist outward Wirehair: a coat of hard, crisp, somewhat kinked hairs Withers: the region between the neck and the back Wry mouth: a cross bite where the upper and lower jaws do not line up
|
