AKC Breed Standards
for the German Shepherd Dog
German Shepherd Breed Info for AKC German
Shepherds.
A member of the Herding Group, AKC breed
standards
differ slightly from the FCI
standard established in Germany, the
country of origin. These are standards that German
Shepherd breeders are supposed to strive for. In
looking over this list, I see quite a few traits not present in my AKC
registered American German Shepherd.
AKC Breed Standards for the German Shepherd
AKC Breed Standards for General Appearance
The first impression of a good German
Shepherd Dog is that of a strong,
agile, well muscled animal, alert and full of life. It is well
balanced, with harmonious development of the forequarter and
hindquarter. The dog is longer than tall, deep-bodied, and presents an
outline of smooth curves rather than angles. It looks substantial and
not spindly, giving the impression, both at rest and in motion, of
muscular fitness and nimbleness without any look of clumsiness or soft
living. The ideal dog is stamped with a look of quality and
nobility--difficult to define, but unmistakable when present. Secondary
sex characteristics are strongly marked, and every animal gives a
definite impression of masculinity or femininity, according to its sex.
AKC Breed Standards for Temperament
The breed has a distinct personality marked
by direct and fearless, but
not hostile, expression, self-confidence and a certain aloofness that
does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. The
dog must be approachable, quietly standing its ground and showing
confidence and willingness to meet overtures without itself making
them. It is poised, but when the occasion demands, eager and alert;
both fit and willing to serve in its capacity as companion, watchdog,
blind leader, herding dog, or guardian, whichever the circumstances may
demand. The dog must not be timid, shrinking behind its master or
handler; it should not be nervous, looking about or upward with anxious
expression or showing nervous reactions, such as tucking of tail, to
strange sounds or sights. Lack of confidence under any surroundings is
not typical of good character. Any of the above deficiencies in
character which indicate shyness must be penalized as very serious
faults and any dog exhibiting pronounced indications of these must be
excused from the ring. It must be possible for the judge to observe the
teeth and to determine that both testicles are descended. Any dog that
attempts to bite the judge must be disqualified. The ideal dog is a
working animal with an incorruptible character combined with body and
gait suitable for the arduous work that constitutes its primary
purpose.
The desired height for
males at the top of the
highest point of the shoulder blade is 24 to 26 inches; and for
bitches, 22 to 24 inches.
The German Shepherd Dog is longer than tall,
with the
most desirable proportion as 10 to 8½. The length
is measured from the point of the prosternum or breastbone to the rear
edge of the pelvis, the ischial tuberosity. The desirable long
proportion is not derived from a long back, but from overall length
with relation to height, which is achieved by length of forequarter and
length of withers and hindquarter, viewed from the side.
The head is noble,
cleanly chiseled, strong without
coarseness, but above all not fine, and in proportion to the body. The
head of the male is distinctly masculine, and that of the bitch
distinctly feminine.
The expression keen,
intelligent and
composed. Eyes of medium size, almond shaped, set a
little obliquely and not protruding. The color is as dark as possible. Ears
are moderately pointed, in proportion to the skull, open toward the
front, and carried erect when at attention, the ideal carriage being
one in which the center lines of the ears, viewed from the front, are
parallel to each other and perpendicular to the ground. A dog with
cropped or hanging ears must be disqualified .
Seen from the front the forehead is only
moderately
arched, and the skull slopes into the long, wedge-shaped muzzle without
abrupt stop. The muzzle is long and strong, and its
topline is parallel to the topline of the skull. Nose black. A dog with
a nose that is not predominantly black must be disqualified
Teeth
--42 in number--20 upper and 22 lower--are strongly developed and meet
in a scissors bite in which part of the inner surface of the upper
incisors meet and engage part of the outer surface of the lower
incisors. An overshot jaw or a level bite is undesirable. An undershot
jaw is a disqualifying fault . Complete dentition is
to be preferred. Any missing teeth other than first premolars is a serious
fault .
The neck is strong and
muscular, clean-cut and
relatively long, proportionate in size to the head and without loose
folds of skin. When the dog is at attention or excited, the head is
raised and the neck carried high; otherwise typical carriage of the
head is forward rather than up and but little higher than the top of
the shoulders, particularly in motion.
Topline -- The withers
are higher than and sloping into the level back. The back
is straight, very strongly developed without sag or roach, and
relatively short.
The whole structure of the body
gives an impression of depth and solidity without bulkiness.
Chest --Commencing at the
prosternum,
it is well filled and carried well down between the legs. It is deep
and capacious, never shallow, with ample room for lungs and heart,
carried well forward, with the prosternum showing ahead of the shoulder
in profile. Ribs well sprung and long, neither
barrel-shaped nor too flat, and carried down to a sternum which reaches
to the elbows. Correct ribbing allows the elbows to move back freely
when the dog is at a trot. Too round causes interference and throws the
elbows out; too flat or short causes pinched elbows. Ribbing is carried
well back so that the loin is relatively short. Abdomen
firmly held and not paunchy. The bottom line is only moderately tucked
up in the loin.
Loin Viewed from the top,
broad and strong. Undue length between the last rib and the thigh, when
viewed from the side, is undesirable. Croup long
and gradually sloping.
Tail bushy, with the last
vertebra
extended at least to the hock joint. It is set smoothly into the croup
and low rather than high. At rest, the tail hangs in a slight curve
like a saber. A slight hook- sometimes carried to one side-is faulty
only to the extent that it mars general appearance. When the dog is
excited or in motion, the curve is accentuated and the tail raised, but
it should never be curled forward beyond a vertical line. Tails too
short, or with clumpy ends due to ankylosis, are serious
faults . A dog with a docked tail must be disqualified .
The shoulder blades are long and obliquely
angled, laid on flat and not
placed forward. The upper arm joins the shoulder blade at about a right
angle. Both the upper arm and the shoulder blade are well muscled. The
forelegs, viewed from all sides, are straight and the bone oval rather
than round. The pasterns are strong and springy and angulated at
approximately a 25-degree angle from the vertical. Dewclaws on the
forelegs may be removed, but are normally left on. The feet are short,
compact with toes well arched, pads thick and firm, nails short and
dark.
The whole assembly of the thigh, viewed from
the side, is broad, with
both upper and lower thigh well muscled, forming as nearly as possible
a right angle. The upper thigh bone parallels the shoulder blade while
the lower thigh bone parallels the upper arm. The metatarsus (the unit
between the hock joint and the foot) is short, strong and tightly
articulated. The dewclaws, if any, should be removed from the hind
legs. Feet as in front.
The ideal dog has a double coat of medium
length. The outer coat should
be as dense as possible, hair straight, harsh and lying close to the
body. A slightly wavy outer coat, often of wiry texture, is
permissible. The head, including the inner ear and foreface, and the
legs and paws are covered with short hair, and the neck with longer and
thicker hair. The rear of the forelegs and hind legs has somewhat
longer hair extending to the pastern and hock, respectively. Faults
in coat include soft, silky, too long outer coat, woolly, curly, and
open coat.
The German Shepherd Dog varies in color, and
most colors are
permissible. Strong rich colors are preferred. Pale, washed-out colors
and blues or livers are serious faults . A white dog
must be disqualified .
A German Shepherd Dog is a trotting dog, and
its structure has been
developed to meet the requirements of its work.
General Impression The
gait is
outreaching, elastic, seemingly without effort, smooth and rhythmic,
covering the maximum amount of ground with the minimum number of steps.
At a walk it covers a great deal of ground, with long stride of both
hind legs and forelegs. At a trot the dog covers still more ground with
even longer stride, and moves powerfully but easily, with coordination
and balance so that the gait appears to be the steady motion of a
well-lubricated machine. The feet travel close to the ground on both
forward reach and backward push. In order to achieve ideal movement of
this kind, there must be good muscular development and ligamentation.
The hindquarters deliver, through the back, a powerful forward thrust
which slightly lifts the whole animal and drives the body forward.
Reaching far under, and passing the imprint left by the front foot, the
hind foot takes hold of the ground; then hock, stifle and upper thigh
come into play and sweep back, the stroke of the hind leg finishing
with the foot still close to the ground in a smooth follow-through. The
overreach of the hindquarter usually necessitates one hind foot passing
outside and the other hind foot passing inside the track of the
forefeet, and such action is not faulty unless the locomotion is
crabwise with the dog’s body sideways out of the normal straight line.
Transmission The typical
smooth,
flowing gait is maintained with great strength and firmness of back.
The whole effort of the hindquarter is transmitted to the forequarter
through the loin, back and withers. At full trot, the back must remain
firm and level without sway, roll, whip or roach. Unlevel topline with
withers lower than the hip is a fault. To compensate for the forward
motion imparted by the hindquarters, the shoulder should open to its
full extent. The forelegs should reach out close to the ground in a
long stride in harmony with that of the hindquarters. The dog does not
track on widely separated parallel lines, but brings the feet inward
toward the middle line of the body when trotting, in order to maintain
balance. The feet track closely but do not strike or cross over. Viewed
from the front, the front legs function from the shoulder joint to the
pad in a straight line. Viewed from the rear, the hind legs function
from the hip joint to the pad in a straight line. Faults of gait,
whether from front, rear or side, are to be considered very serious
faults .
Cropped or hanging ears.
AKC Breed Standards - Approved February 11,
1978
German Shepherd Breed
Info © The American Kennel
Club, Inc.
