HINDQUARTERS HIP, THIGH AND STIFLE
cringing in the ring. Faults— shyness, timidity, or nervousness, stubbornness, snappiness or ill temper. COAT The coat should be double, the outer coating consisting of long, straight, harsh hair; the undercoat short, furry and so dense as to give the entire coat its “stand- off” quality. The hair on the face, tips of ears and feet should be smooth. Mane and frill should be abundant and particularly impressive in males. The forelegs well feath- ered, the hind legs heavily so, but smooth below the hock joint. Hair on tail profuse. Faults— Coat short or flat, in whole or in part; wavy, curly, soft or silky. Lack of undercoat. Smooth-coated specimens. HEAD SKULL AND STOP The head should be refined and its shape, when viewed from top or side, be a long, blunt wedge tapering slightly from ears to nose. Top of skull should be flat showing no prominence at nuchal crest (the top of the occiput). Cheeks should be flat… Skull and muzzle should be of equal length, balance point being the inner cor- ner of eye. In profile the top line of skull should parallel the top line of muzzle, but on a higher plane due to the presence of a slight but definite stop. Faults— Two- angled head. Too prominent stop, or no stop. Overfill below, between, or above eyes. Prominent nuchal crest. Domed skull. Prominent cheekbones. MUZZLE Cheeks should be flat and should merge smoothly into a well-rounded muzzle… Jaws clean and powerful. The deep, well- developed underjaw, rounded at chin, should extend to base of nostril. Nose must be black. Lips tight. Upper and lower lips must meet and fit smoothly together all the way around. Teeth level and evenly spaced. Faults— Snipy muzzle, short, receding, or shallow underjaw, lacking breadth and depth. Overshot or undershot, missing or crooked teeth. Teeth visible when mouth is closed. EYES, EARS AND EXPRESSION Eyes medium size with dark, almond- shaped rims, set somewhat obliquely in skull. Color must be dark, with blue or merle eyes permissible in blue merles only. Faults— Light, round, large or too small. Prominent haws. Ears small and flexible, placed high, carried three-fourths erect, with tips breaking forward. When in repose the ears fold lengthwise and are thrown back into the frill. Faults— Set too low. Hound,
prick, bat, twisted ears. Leather too thick or too thin. Expression—Contours and chis- eling of the head, the shape, set and use of ears, the placement, shape and color of the eyes combine to produce expression. Normally the expression should be alert, gentle, intelligent and questioning. Toward strangers the eyes should show watchful- ness and reserve, but no fear. BODY NECK AND BACK Neck should be muscular, arched and of sufficient length to carry the head proudly. Faults— Too short and thick. Back should be level and strongly muscled. Faults— Back too long, too short, swayed or roached. LION, CROUP AND TAIL There should be a slight arch at the loins and the croup should slope gradually to the rear. The hipbone (pelvis) should be set at a 30-degree angle to the spine. Faults— Croup higher than withers. Croup too straight or too steep. The tail should be sufficiently long so that when it is laid along the back edge of the hind legs the last vertebra will reach the hock joint. Carriage of tail at rest is straight down or in a slight upward curve. When the dog is alert the tail is normally lifted, but it should not be curved forward over the back. Faults— Too
The thigh should be broad and muscu- lar. The thighbone should be set into the pelvis at the right angle corresponding to the angle of the shoulder blade and upper arm. Stifle bones join the thighbone and should be distinctly angled at the stifle joint. The overall length of the stifle should at least equal the length of the thighbone and preferably should slightly exceed it. Faults— Narrow thighs. HOCKS AND FEET Hock joint should be clean-cut, angular, sinewy, with good bone and strong liga- mentation. The hock (metatarsus) should be short and straight viewed from all angles. Faults— Cow-hocks. Hocks turning out. Poorly defined hock joint. Feet should be oval and compact with the toes well arched and fitting tightly together. Pads deep and tough, nails hard and strong. Faults— Feet turning in or out. Splay feet. Hare feet. Cat feet. GAIT Gait—smoothness and lack of waste motion when trotting. The trotting gait of the Shetland Sheepdog should denote effortless speed and smoothness. There should be no jerkiness, nor stiff, stilt- ed, up-and-down movement. The drive should be from the rear, true and straight, dependent upon correct angulation, mus- culation and ligamentation of the entire hindquarter, thus allowing the dog to reach well under his body with his hind foot and propel himself forward. Reach of stride of the foreleg is dependent upon correct width of chest and construction of rib cage. The foot should be lifted only enough to clear the ground as the leg swings forward. Viewed from the front, both forelegs and hindlegs should move forward almost perpendicular to ground at the walk, slanting a little inward at a slow trot, until at a swift trot the feet are brought so far inward toward center line of body that the tracks left show two parallel lines of footprints actually touching a center line at their inner edges. There should be no crossing of feet nor throwing the weigh from side to side. Faults— Stiff, short steps, with a choppy, jerky movement. Mincing steps, with a hopping up and down, or a balancing of weight from side to side (often erroneously admired as a “dancing gait” but permissible in young puppies). Lifting of front feet in hackney-like action, resulting in loss of speed and energy. Pacing gait.
short, twisted at end. FOREQUARTERS SHOULDER
From the withers, the shoulder blades should slope at a 45-degree angle forward and downward to the shoulder joints. At the withers they are separated only by the vertebra, but they must slope outward sufficiently to accommodate the desired spring of rib. The upper arm should join the shoulder blade at as nearly as pos- sible a right angle. Elbow joint should be equidistant from the ground or from the withers. Faults— Insufficient angulation between shoulder and upper arm. Upper arm too short. Lack of outward slope of shoulders. Loose shoulders. Turning in or out of elbows. FORELEGS AND FEET Forelegs straight viewed from all angles, muscular and clean and of strong bone. Pasterns very strong, sinewy and flexible. Faults— crooked legs. Light bone. Feet should be oval and compact with the toes well arched and fitting tightly togeth- er. Pads deep and tough, nails hard and strong. Faults— Feet turning in our out. Splay feet. Hare feet. Cat feet.
S HOW S IGHT M AGAZINE , J ULY 2015 • 297
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