JUDGING THE CURLY-COATED RETRIEVER
by KATHRYN COWSERT
T he Curly-Coated Retriever is a breed with a long and cherished history as one of the oldest of known retriever breeds. In the show ring, the breed should exemplify the vir- tues listed in the standard, and should never be judged as a “generic look- ing” retriever. This is a distinct breed with specific traits that provide the desired overall type that is sought by breed fanciers. First and foremost, the breed should exhibit Curly-Coated Retriever breed type. A good moving dog with little or no breed type is not a Curly-Coated Retriever. The overall first impression of this breed should be of a balanced, athletic, durable hunting retriever. The breed should appear to have good length of leg, providing the necessary upstand- ing quality desired. An appearance of a squat or lower stationed to the ground dog does not reflect the upstanding appearance and is not typical of this retriever. The depth of chest from with- ers to elbow should be equal to the length of leg from elbow to ground. The overall proportion is slightly off square with the deep ribcage going well back into the short loin. The mass and bone should never appear spindly or massive,
but rather show a robust and strong bal- ance exuding grace and symmetry. The breed standard calls for 23-25 inch bitches and 25-27 inch males. They are allowed to be outside of this range only if they are “clearly superior” speci- mens of the breed, which entails hav- ing the proper outline and proportion, correct coat, and superior movement. In order to have correct bone and mass, a bitch should weigh approximately 60-85 pounds and the males weighing approximately 70-95 pounds; weight being dependent on the height of the Curly-Coated Retriever at the with- ers. It is not uncommon for judges to be adjudicating various height ranges in the same ring and same class. And judges should be mindful of selecting specimens possessing the best over- all breed type rather than purely on size alone. Upon first examination of the Curly headpiece, the impression should be of a wedge-shaped head possessing paral- lel planes. The length of muzzle from tip of nose to center of stop should equal the length of backskull from the cen- ter of the shallow stop to the occiput. The breadth across the flat or nearly flat backskull at the occiput to the ears should equal the length of backskull.
And the depth of the backskull on the side of head also should equal the length of backskull. All of these pro- portions give the headpiece a wedge- shaped outline. The slight tapering of the headpiece from backskull toward the muzzle is smooth with no inclina- tion toward any kind of cheekiness or dewlap. This smooth transition allows for good breadth of muzzle, open and large nostrils, and workman-like jaws able to carry large fowl or small furred game. The appearance of the wedge shape is apparent looking down from above as well as from the side, ending with a mild tapering of the muzzle at the nose. The eyes should be almond-shaped with no visible haw, and set obliquely on the skull, never prominent, bulging or round. Color of eyes can be black or brown, never lighter than amber and preferably the color of the eye should tone with the coat color. The expres- sion should give the impression of alert intelligence. The smallish ears are set on a line slightly above the corner of the eye and fold close to the head. Ear length should not reach much past the inside corner of the eye. High or low set ears not lying close to the head, poorly shaped or placed eyes, and incorrect
274 • S how S ight M agazine , S eptember 2017
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