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It then continues with: Square, distinctive coat, stand-out, ruff, cape, culottes, unique silhouette.
Some of these words are derived from the French language, so further exploration is needed to conclude the desired physical pic- ture. Off to the dictionary: Ruff – A separate collar of starched pleated linen or lace worn by men and women in the 16th and 17th centuries; a growth of long, colorful or bushy hair or feathers on the neck of a bird or other animal.” Cape – Cloak, mantle, poncho, wrap, shawl or robe. Culottes – A pair of women’s knee-length shorts, cut to resemble a skirt. Silhouette – An outline, shape, shadow, profile. An outline of something filled in with black or a dark color on a light background, especially when done as a… work of art. Unique – Exclusive, exceptional, distinctive, matchless, irre- placeable, rare. When the word unique is added to silhouette, something magical occurs, giving strength to the desired image. Visualize the following: Exclusive shape, exceptional profile, distinctive shadow, matchless outline, rare work of art and irreplaceable outline. The physical picture created becomes remarkable when these two words are placed together. There is no quarter for any other picture. When the Schipperke is viewed as a silhouette, it is imme- diately identified as a “Schipperke.” Other breeds that can be iden- tified by its silhouette alone are the Pembroke Welsh Corgi and the Old English Sheepdog. (Neither has a tail.) Other words that can be utilized for the word “unique” when describing “silhouette” are “exclusive, one of a kind, exceptionally distinctive, irreplaceable and rare.” The antonym of unique is “common.” I certainly would never describe a Schipperke seen in silhouette form as common. Just by reading the “general appearance” we know what this dog is not. He is not long in body or any color other than black. He doesn’t have a hound-like expression and he does not have a tail. Since the 1500s, the Schipperke has never been visualized as having a tail. The lack of a tail accentuates the unique silhouette. At the tail end of the paragraph identified as “general appear- ance,” the term “fault” is mentioned. The dictionary and thesaurus have been utilized for those words found in the “general appear- ance” section. If used as a noun, the definition would be: Fault – Error, mistake, blunder, blemish, imperfection, defect, omission, flaw, shortcoming or deficiency. The ant- onym is strength. In its Breed Standard, the Schipperke is described as a small, thickset, cobby, black, “tailless” dog. There is a very small group of breeders who feel the presence of tails is merely a fault. How- ever, when being exhibited, the appearance of a tail totally destroys the silhouette. Let’s explore this word “fault.” Below are examples gathered by looking in the dictionary. The choices are:
Liability, error, mistake, blunder, blemish, imperfection, defect, and flaw. AKC Rep – Why did you choose to give that tailed Schip- perke the points? Judges Responses –
I view the tail on a Schipperke as only a fault. I view the tail on a Schipperke as a defect. I view the tail on a Schipperke as just a flaw. I view the tail on a Schipperke as a blunder. I view the tail on a Schipperke as an imperfection. I view the tail on a Schipperke as a mistake. (And that is what it is!)
BIO Jo Patrick is a licensed breeder-judge of 22 years, with the Herding Group, a couple of Sighthounds, and Great Pyrenees. She is a Schipperke Club of America approved mentor, having served on multiple Judges Education committees and as a presenter at a number of Study Groups and at one SCA National. Jo is the current Schipperke Club of America Delegate. Please, when judging our breed either as a sweeps judge or a licensed judge, do not view them as common. Value everything found in our “General Appearance.” The Schipperke possesses “a distinctive coat and unique silhouette.” Other words mentioned under General Appearance are agile, active, watchdog, and hunter. He is all of these. He is curious and loyal. He is extremely intelligent and remembers everything that’s important to him. I have told my puppy buyers that he is a cross between a two-year-old and a raccoon; into everything and tells you “no” a lot. He is fun!! He is not for everyone, but those of us who adore the Schipperke do so forever. Would anyone use any of the other words when answering that question? The word “fault” is easily used without thought. The standard neither mentions nor describes a tail. It is acknowledged only as being “docked.” “No tail is visually discernible.” Other descriptive words found in the Breed Standard under “General Appearance” are small, thickset, cobby, black, tailless dog, with a fox-like face. He is small, but he does not give the impression of being toy-like. Thickset refers to having substance. Cobby refers to being as tall as he is long.
SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, OCTOBER 2021 | 247
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