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General Appearance
A compact, closely knit dog of medium size, a leggy dog having the appearance,
as well as the agility, of a great ground coverer. Strong, vigorous, energetic
and quick of movement. Ruggedness, without clumsiness, is a characteristic of
the breed. He can be tailless or has a tail docked to approximately four inches.
Size, Proportion, Substance
Height--17½ to 20½ inches, measured from the ground
to the highest point of the shoulders. Any Brittany measuring under 17½ inches
or over 20½ inches shall be disqualified from dog show competition. Weight--Should
weigh between 30 and 40 pounds. Proportion--So leggy
is he that his height at the shoulders is the same as the length of his body. Body
Length--Approximately the same as the height when measured at the
shoulders. Body length is measured from the point of the forecast to the rear of
the rump. A long body should be heavily penalized. Substance--Not
too light in bone, yet never heavy-boned and cumbersome.
Head
Expression--Alert and eager, but with the soft
expression of a bird dog. Eyes--Well set in head. Well
protected from briars by a heavy, expressive eyebrow. A prominent full or popeye
should be penalized. It is a serious fault in a dog that must face briars. Skull
well chiseled under the eyes, so that the lower lid is not pulled back to form a
pocket or haw that would catch seeds, dirt and weed dust. Preference should be
for the darker colored eyes, though lighter shades of amber should not be
penalized. Light and mean-looking eyes should be heavily penalized. Ears--Set
high, above the level of the eyes. Short and triangular, rather than pendulous,
reaching about half the length of the muzzle. Should lie flat and close to the
head, with dense, but relatively short hair, and with little fringe. Skull--Medium
length, rounded, very slightly wedge-shaped, but evenly made. Width, not quite
as wide as the length and never so broad as to appear coarse, or so narrow as to
appear racy. Well defined, but gently sloping stop. Median line rather
indistinct. The occiput only apparent to the touch. Lateral walls well rounded.
The Brittany should never be "apple-headed" and he should never have
an indented stop. Muzzle--Medium length, about two
thirds the length of the skull, measuring the muzzle from the tip to the stop,
and the skull from the occiput to the stop. Muzzle should taper gradually in
both horizontal and vertical dimensions as it approaches the nostrils. Neither a
Roman nose nor a dish-face is desirable. Never broad, heavy or snippy. Nose--Nostrils
well open to permit deep breathing of air and adequate scenting. Tight nostrils
should be penalized. Never shiny. Color: fawn, tan, shades of brown or deep
pink. A black nose is a disqualification. A two-tone or butterfly nose should be
penalized. Lips--Tight, the upper lip overlapping the
lower jaw just to cover the lower lip. Lips dry, so that feathers will not
stick. Drooling to be heavily penalized. Flews to be penalized. Bite--A
true scissors bite. Overshot or undershot jaw to be heavily penalized.
Neck, Topline, Body
Neck--Medium length. Free from throatiness, though not
a serious fault unless accompanied by dewlaps, strong without giving the
impression of being over muscled. Well set into sloping shoulders. Never concave
or ewe-necked. Topline--Slight slope from the highest
point of the shoulders to the root of the tail. Chest--Deep,
reaching the level of the elbow. Neither so wide nor so rounded as to disturb
the placement of the shoulders and elbows. Ribs well sprung. Adequate heart room
provided by depth as well as width. Narrow or slab-sided chests are a fault. Back--Short
and straight. Never hollow, saddle, sway or roach backed. Slight drop from the
hips to the root of the tail. Flanks--Rounded. Fairly
full. Not extremely tucked up, or flabby and falling. Loins short and strong.
Distance from last rib to upper thigh short, about three to four finger widths.
Narrow and weak loins are a fault. In motion, the loin should not sway sideways,
giving a zig-zag motion to the back, wasting energy. Tail--Tailless
to approximately four inches, natural or docked. The tail not to be so long as
to affect the overall balance of the dog. Set on high, actually an extension of
the spine at about the same level. Any tail substantially more than four inches
shall be severely penalized.
Forequarters
Shoulders--Shoulder blades should not protrude too
much, not too wide apart, with perhaps two thumbs' width between. Sloping and
muscular. Blade and upper arm should form nearly a ninety degree angle. Straight
shoulders are a fault. At the shoulders, the Brittany is slightly higher than at
the rump. Front Legs--Viewed from the front,
perpendicular, but not set too wide. Elbows and feet turning neither in nor out.
Pasterns slightly sloped. Down in pasterns is a serious fault. Leg bones clean,
graceful, but not too fine. Extremely heavy bone is as much a fault as spindly
legs. One must look for substance and suppleness. Height at elbows should
approximately equal distance from elbow to withers. Feet--Should
be strong, proportionately smaller than the spaniels', with close fitting, well
arched toes and thick pads. The Brittany is "not up on his toes." Toes
not heavily feathered. Flat feet, splayed feet, paper feet, etc., are to be
heavily penalized. An ideal foot is halfway between the hare and the cat foot.
Dewclaws may be removed.
Hindquarter
Broad strong and muscular, with powerful thighs and well bent stifles,
giving the angulation necessary for powerful drive. Hind Legs--Stifles
well bent. The stifle should not be so angulated as to place the hock joint far
out behind the dog. A Brittany should not be condemned for straight stifle until
the judge has checked the dog in motion from the side. The stifle joint should
not turn out making a cowhock. Thighs well feathered but not profusely, halfway
to the hock. Hocks, that is, the back pasterns, should be moderately short,
pointing neither in nor out, perpendicular when viewed from the side. They
should be firm when shaken by the judge. Feet Same as
front feet.
Coat
Dense, flat or wavy, never curly. Texture neither wiry nor silky. Ears should
carry little fringe. The front and hind legs should have some feathering, but
too little is definitely preferable to too much. Dogs with long or profuse
feathering or furnishings shall be so severely penalized as to effectively
eliminate them from competition. Skin--Fine and fairly
loose. A loose skin rolls with briars and sticks, thus diminishing punctures or
tearing. A skin so loose as to form pouches is undesirable.
Color
Orange and white or liver and white in either clear or roan patterns. Some
ticking is desirable. The orange or liver is found in the standard parti-color
or piebald patterns. Washed out colors are not desirable. Tri-colors are allowed
but not preferred. A tri-color is a liver and white dog with classic orange
markings on eyebrows, muzzle and cheeks, inside the ears and under the tail,
freckles on the lower legs are orange. Anything exceeding the limits of these
markings shall be severely penalized. Black is a disqualification.
Gait
When at a trot the Brittany's hind foot should step into or beyond the print
left by the front foot. Clean movement, coming and going, is very important, but
most important is side gait, which is smooth, efficient and ground covering.
Temperament
A happy, alert dog, neither mean nor shy.
Disqualifications
Any Brittany measuring under 17½ inches or over 20½ inches
A black nose
Black in the coat
Approved April 10, 1990
Effective May 31, 1990
For More information visit AKC.org