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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
Hind legs broad
and powerfully muscled through thighs; stifles moderately bent, hock joints broad and strong, moderately bent and well let
down. Viewed from behind, hind legs vertical, standing and moving true, in line with movement of front legs. Legs indicate
tremendous propelling power.
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 under body, parts of legs, feet and part of mask markings. Markings either caplike or mask like 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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