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Feet - Medium sized, short, oval, pointing straight forward. Toes - Tightly knit and well knuckled. Pads - Thick and strong. Hindquarters: Angulation - To balance the front. Well angulated at stifle and hock. Legs - Well boned. Upper and lower thighs are strongly muscled. Lower thigh is slightly longer than the distance from hock to ground. Stifles - Well bent. Hocks (Metatarsal bones) - Perpendicular to the ground and viewed from the rear, parallel. Feet, toes and pads - Same as forefeet. Coat: Medium length hair, harsh; topcoat close and tight. Undercoat is soft and dense. Hair is short on the head and the foreparts of the legs and slightly longer on neck, chest and back parts of the hind legs. Dogs are to be shown in an untrimmed, natural state. Faults include wooly, curly, or open coats. Fluffy coats (longer hair on body and furnishings, with ear fringes) are a serious fault. Color: A sable pattern seen in colors of grey through red and combinations of these colors in various shades. All are equally acceptable. Lighter shades of these colors are desirable on the chest, belly, buttocks, lower legs, feet and hocks, with darker hairs on back, neck, and sides of the body. Lighter harness markings are essential. Although a dark muzzle is acceptable, a well- defined mask with lighter hair around eyes, on muzzle and under the throat, giving a distinct contrast to the head color is highly desirable. White is permitted as a narrow blaze, neck spot, slight necklace, and white markings on the legs, and chest. White in excess of one third of the dog's total color is a very serious fault. Any color other than described above is a very serious fault. Gait: Sound with strong reach and drive. The Swedish Vallhund is a herding dog requiring agility and endurance. Viewed from the front, the legs do not move in exact parallel planes, but incline slightly inward to compensate for shortness of leg and width of chest. The forelegs should reach forward in a free stride without too much lift. Hind legs should drive well under the body and move on a line with the forelegs, with hocks turning neither in nor out. Feet should travel parallel to the line of motion with no tendency to swing out, cross over or interfere with each other. Short, choppy movement and overly close or wide movement is faulty. Temperament: The breed is watchful, energetic, fearless, alert, intelligent, friendly, eager to please, active, and steady, making a good herding and companion dog. Sound temperament, neither vicious or shy. Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault, and the seriousness of the fault should be in exact proportion to its degree. The following faults are to be so severely penalized as to effectively eliminate the dog from competition: Fluffy coat, any color other that described above, nose not predominantly black, more than one-third white, any bite other than scissors.
Approved April 12, 2005 Effective September 1, 2005
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