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Breed
Standard
General
Appearance
Heavily boned, powerfully built, not too compact and never appearing
short on the leg.
Characteristics
Sled dog capable of surviving in Arctic temperatures and of pulling
heavy loads at steady speeds.
Temperament
Affectionate, friendly, loyal, devoted companion but not a ‘one
man’ dog, playful on invitation, generally impressive by his
dignity after maturity but tends to show dominance to other dogs.
Head
and Skull
Head broad, powerful, not coarse, in proportion to size of dog.
Skull broad between ears, gradually narrowing to eyes, moderately
rounded between ears, flattening on top as it approaches eye, rounding
off to moderately flat cheeks. Very slight but perceptible stop.
Muzzle large in proportion to size of skull, scarcely diminishing
in width or depth from stop. Nose black except in red and white
dogs when it is brown. Pink streaked ‘snow nose’ acceptable.
Eyes
Brown, almond-shaped, moderately large, set obliquely. Dark eyes
preferred, except in red and white dogs where light eyes are permissible.
Blue eyes highly undesirable.
Ears
Small in proportion to head. Triangular in shape, slightly rounded
at tips, set wide apart, at back of skull. Ears forward when erect.
When dog is working sometimes folded against skull.
Mouth
Upper and lower jaws broad with large teeth, with a perfect, regular
and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping
lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Neck
Strong and moderately arched.
Forequarters
Shoulders moderately sloping; forelegs heavily boned and well muscled,
straight as far as pasterns which are short, strong and almost vertical
viewed from side.
Body
Strong and powerfully built, chest strong and deep; back straight
but not level, sloping slightly downwards from shoulder to croup.
Loins well muscled, never so short as to interfere with movement.
No excess weight.
Hindquarters
Hindlegs broad and powerfully muscled through thighs; stifles moderately
bent, hock joints broad and strong, moderately bent and well let
down. Viewed from behind, hindlegs vertical, standing and moving
true, in line with movement of front legs. Legs indicate tremendous
propelling power. Dewclaws on hindlegs undesirable.
Feet
Large and compact, toes close, well arched, pads thick and tough,
toenails short and strong. Protective growth of hair between toes.
Tail
Moderately high set, following line of spine at start then curving
gently upwards. At rest may hang straight down. Well furred and
carried over back when dog is working, not tightly curled to rest
on back, nor short furred and carried like a fox brush, but giving
appearance of a waving plume.
Gait/Movement
Single tracking at trot is normal but movement not too wide or too
close at any gait. Easy, tireless, rhythmic movement, produced by
powerful drive from hindquarters.
Coat
Thick, coarse guard coat, not long and soft. Dense undercoat, from
2.5-5 cms (1-2 ins) in depth, oily and woolly. Coarse guard coat
stands out, with thick fur around neck. Guard coat varies in length
as does undercoat, but in general coat of medium length along sides
of body, increasing somewhat around shoulders and neck, down back
and over croup, as well as in breeching and plume.
Colour
Range is from light grey through intermediate shadings to black,
or from gold through shades of red to liver, always with white on
underbody, parts of legs, feet and part of mask markings. Markings
either caplike or masklike on face. Combination of cap and mask
not unusual. White blaze on forehead, white collar, or spot on nape
permissible. Heavy mantling of unbroken colour acceptable, broken
colour extending over body in spots or uneven splashings undesirable.
Only solid colour permissible is all white.
Size
Height: dogs: 64-71 cms (25-28 ins); bitches: 58-66 cms (23-26 ins).
Weight between 38-56 kgs (85-125 lbs), size consideration not to
outweigh type.
Faults
Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault
and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should
be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health
and welfare of the dog.
Note
Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended
into the scrotum.
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