The Standards of the German Shepherd Dog
as adopted by the
German Shepherd Dog Club of America, Inc.,
and approved by the
American Kennel Club
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.
Character
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 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 muzzle is long and strong
with the lips firmly fitted, and its topline is parallel to the
topline of the skull. Seen from the front, the forehead is only
moderately arched, and the skull slopes into the long,
wedge-shaped muzzle without abrupt stop. Jaws are strongly
developed.
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.
of medium size, almond shaped, set a little
obliquely and not protruding. The color is as dark as possible.
The expression keen, intelligent, and composed.
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, but a little
higher than the top of the shoulders, particularly in motion.
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.
The feet are short, compact, with toes well
arched, pads thick and firm, nails short and dark. The dew claws,
if any, should be removed from the hind legs. Dew claws on the
forelegs may be removed, but are normally left on.
The German Shepherd Dog is longer than
tall, with the most desirable proportions as 10 to 8 1/2. The
desired height for males at the top of the highest point of the
shoulder blade is 24to26 inches; and for bitches, 22 to 24
inches. The length is measured from the point of the prosternum
or breastbone to the rear edge of the pelvis, the ischical
tuberosity.
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. Rib:
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.
Withers The withers are higher than and
sloping into the level back. Back: The back is straight,
very strongly developed without sag or roach, and relatively
short. 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. 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 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.
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 hind quarters
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 hind quarter 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 crab wise 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.
The German Shepherd Dog varies in color,
and most colors are permissible. Strong rich colors are
preferred. Nose black. Pale, washed-out colors and blues and
livers are serious faults. A white dog or a dog with a nose that
is not predominantly black, must be disqualified.
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 shorthair, and the neck with longer and
thicker hair. The rear of the forelegs and hindlegs 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.
Cropped or hanging ears; undershot jaw;
docked tail; white dogs; dogs with noses not predominantly black;
any dog that attempts to bite the judge.
Revised 1978
Note: American Kennel Club disqualifications
Monorchidism; Cryptorchidism; Any dog that, in the opinion of the
judge, attacks any person in the ring.
