The Pyrenean sheepdog
Pyrenean sheepdog (Chien Berger des Pyrénées)
FCI-Standard: No 141 / 01.09.1997 / GB
Origin: France
Date of publication of the original valid standard: 30.07.1997
Utilization: Sheepdog
General appearance:
Dog below a minimum size and weight denoting a
maximum nervous energy. A facial expression always wide-awake, a clever
and suspicious look together with a great liveliness of movements, give
this dog a characteristic appearance equal to none other.
Head
Cranal Region:
Skull:
The
skull is moderately developed, almost flat with a medial furrow
slightly marked, rounding harmoniously on the sides and has a
slightly pronounced occipital protuberance. The forepart slopes
gently down to the muzzle. The head in its general shape is
triangular and recalls that of the brown bear.
Stop: Not apparent
Facal Region:
Nose: The nose is black
Muzzle: Straight, rather a little short, with the predominance of the skull on the face quite obvious, slim without exaggeration and shaped like a wedge. The hair on the muzzle must be as it will be explained hereafter in the description of the coat (hair).
Lips: The lips, not very thick, cover perfectly the lower jaw and do not show any apparent labial comissure. The mucous membranes of the lips and the palate are either black or strongly marked with black. The nose is black.
Teeth: The canines are strong, the dentition must be complete. The teeth of the upper jaw cover those of the lower jaw keeping contact. The pincer-bite is allowed.
Eyes: Black eyelids, whatever the colour of the coat, enclosing expressive eyes, wide open and dark brown in colour. They must be neither prominent nor too deep set. Wall eyes or eyes with different coloured spots are allowed in dogs with harlequin coat or slate grey, of which they are nearly always a characteristic feature.
Ears:
The ears must be quite short, moderately wide at the base and set
not too close to each other on the top of the skull, nor too widely
separated at either side of the head. They are generally cropped,
but those not cropped, if they are well placed, are not considered
as a fault. Qualities otherwise being equal, preference is given to
the cropped and well carried ear. The lower part of the natural ear
must be erect and mobile. Ideally, the upper third or the upper half
of the ear must fall forward or to the side, in a symmetrical way
for both ears.
Neck:
Rather long, quite muscular, well set into the
shoulders.
Body:
Bone structure is lean.
Back:
Quite long, but well sustained.
Loin:
Short and slightly curved; it seems even more so
because the dog's coat is often thicker on the rear and the croup.
Croup:
Rather short and quite sloping.
Chest:
The chest (brisket), moderately developed, comes
seldom down to the level of the elbows. The ribs slightly rounded.
Flank:
Only slightly let down.
Tail:
Well feathered, not very long, set rather low and
forming a hook at its tip. When the dog is alert, the tail must not go
over the line of the back. Many subjects are docked. Some have a
naturally rudimentary tail, never having been docked.
Limbs:
Forequarters: Lean, sinewy, feathered with hairs; pastern joint pronounced.
Shoulders: Quite long, moderately sloping; the point
of the shoulder-blade jutting out clearly from the topline.
Hindquarters:
The angulations are rather closed. Dogs with semi-long hair have the limbs without fringes.
Thigh: Muscular, but only barely let down.
Hocks: Lean, placed low, well bent and sometimes a little close together.
Dewclaws: The hind legs may or may not have
single or double dewclaws. The dewclaw being an ancient
characteristic of the shepherd breeds, the subjects with dewclaws
must be preferred.
Feet:
Lean, quite flat, of an accentuated oval shape. The
pads are dark, the nails small, hard and covered with hair which goes
under the foot and in between the toes.
Gait/Movement:
At the walk the Pyrenean Sheepdog has, through his
conformation, a rather restricted gait; ambling is not penalized, but it
is a gait often used by the working dogs aiming at extending the walk to
follow the pace of the sheep, or used at the end of the day when feeling
tired. Therefore ambling is not acceptable in the show ring. The trot,
preferred gait of our little sheepdog, must be true and vigorous; at the
short trot the head is carried a bit high, at the extended trot the head
is in line with the back; the feet are never lifted very much, the
movement is flowing; he skims over the ground. The correct movement,
pleasant to the eye, is given by the balance of the
shoulder-hindquarters angulations.
Skin:
Fine, often mottled with dark patches, whatever the
colour of the coat.
Coat:
Long or
semi-long. Fairly harsh; dense, almost flat or slightly wavy; denser and
more woolly on rump and thighs. Hair on muzzle short. Longer on face and
cheeks, where it grows away from the nose and eyes.
Hair:
The hair is long or semi-long, but always dense,
almost flat or slightly wavy; thicker and more woolly on the rump and
the thighs, its texture being like something in between goat's hair and
sheep's wool. In some animals, the mixture of dry hair and woolly hair
may give rise to strands on the croup and the thighs. The hair on the
muzzle is shorter and less dense. Sideways on the muzzle and the cheeks,
the hair is brushed (tousled) front to back. The eyes must be apparent
and not covered with hair.
Colour:
Various shades
of fawn, with or without black hairs, there may be a little white on
chest and feet. Light to dark grey, often with white on head, chest and
legs. Blue merle, slate blue or brindle. Black or black and white.
Unmixed colours preferred. Large areas of white, predominance of white,
or black and tan undesirable.
Size:
Males : from 40 cm to 48 cm.
Females : from 38 cm to 46 cm.
A tolerance of 2 cm over size is tolerated in the
subjects of perfect type.
Faults:
Any departure from the forgoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.
General appearance: Heavy dog, not lively; thick musculature; ordinary expression; bad movement; short or restricted trot.
Skull: Ogival skull; bulging forehead; head too short, too long or too narrow; stop pronounced; hair too abundant, especially when it covers the eyes.
Muzzle: Muzzle square or rectangular, muzzle too long or too short; lack of pigmentation; hair too abundant, obstructing the eyes (see "hair").
Eyes: Eyes too small, too round, light or with a wild looking expression. Depigmented eyelids.
Ears: Ears set too low, carried badly, thick, heavy, falling flat against the sides of the head, ears carried in asymmetrical fashion.
Neck: Neck set badly, thick or weak joining with the shoulders, or too long.
Body: Heavy ensemble. Square dog. Topline horizontal, roach back.
Tail: Badly carried tail or without a hook at its tip.
Forequarters: Double dewclaw. Faulty position of legs.
Shoulders: Shoulder too straight or too short.
Hindquarters: Straight hocks, lack of suppleness in the joints.
Feet: Thick feet; cat feet; nails long, white.
Hair: Hair too abundant on the head, especially when it covers the eyes and on the muzzle, when it looks like griffon moustaches. Bad texture. Curly and frizzy.
Colour:
Too many and too big white patches. Black coat with tan on the head
and on the legs (called bas rouges = red socks).
Serious faults:
Naturally erect ears
Eliminations faults:
Nose: Nose other than absolutely black.
Bite: Under- or overshot mouth.
Eyes: Wall eye in dogs other than the harlequins or slate greys; white spots on eyelids.
Coat (colour): White coat.
Size:
Size outside the limits.
N.B.:
Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
