meet the... Spinone Italiano

Head

• General Appearance: Somewhat elongated, mesaticephalic, and substantial, but never narrow. Always in proportion to the rest of the body. The back skull is oval in shape, with the topskull gently arched when viewed in profile or from the front. The skull is only moderately broad but not narrow. The occipital protuberance is well pronounced, and the parietal crest is well marked. The forehead is only moderately developed, never steep or flat. The superciliary arches are moderate. A median furrow that starts at the stop and runs toward the occiput is well-developed. The head is light, dry, and clean-cut, without excess skin, wrinkles, or folds.
• Expression: Somewhat unruly in appearance only, yet noble and alert.
• Stop: The stop is slight but appears more abrupt due to coat furnishings.
• Skull: The ideal muzzle-to-skull ratio is 1:1, with the long plane of the topskull being equal to the long plane of the muzzle.
  The ideal muzzle-to-skull axis is divergent.
• Muzzle: The muzzle is full, deep, broad, and rectangular throughout, or with just a slight (almost imperceptible) taper toward the end of the muzzle. The plane, or bridge of the muzzle, is straight and level or slightly convexed (Roman). The upper and lower jaws are well developed, approximately equal in length, and have good bone substance, never appearing snipy or weak.
• Lips or Flews: The lips are fairly clean and dry and fit somewhat tightly over the teeth and jaws, giving the muzzle a very slight taper, or they may appear somewhat clean and fit well over the teeth and jaws. The upper lip should extend to just cover the lower jaw without protruding well below it or appearing pendulous and wet.
• Nose: The nose is well-pigmented and pink to liver in color. The nostrils are well opened.
• Cheeks: The cheeks may appear lean, flat, and smooth, or some padding of the cheeks may be present to denote strength.
• Dentition and Bite: Forty-two strong, clean, and white teeth. The bite may be level, scissor, or reverse-scissor. Contact must be made between the top and bottom incisors. Missing or broken teeth due to routine work is not to be penalized.
• Eyes: Moderately large in size, open oval to almost round. Ochre to amber in color. The eye rims are well-fitted and well-pigmented. The eyes are never bulging. There should be sufficient bone in the surrounding orbital sockets to protect the eyes. Any signs of entropion or ectropion are incorrect for this breed.
• Ears: Moderate to fairly long in length, falling just below the jawline. When held forward, they should reach the middle of the zygomatic arch. They are triangular in shape, with rounded tips, drop or pendant, and hang with the inner edges flat and close to the head. They are highly mobile.

Body and Tail

• General Description: Deep, robust, and substantial, never cloddy or racy. The width at the forequarters is approximately equal to the width at the hindquarters. The proportions allow the body to almost fit into a square.
• Neck: A moderate length allows for good head carriage and movement, with the length being approximately 2/3rds of the head length. It is powerfully muscled with a slight arch. The neck tapers smoothly from the deeper and broader body toward the head. The neck is fairly clean-cut, with only a minimal loose skin forming a slightly developed dewlap, never heavy throatiness or pendulous dewlap.
• Chest: Deep and broad but never wider than deep, with forechest slightly developed, never overly prominent. The brisket extends to the point of the elbows.
• Topline: Level from slightly pronounced withers to the lumbar region, rising slightly at the loin and rounding off to a gently sloped croup. The back is short, broad, strongly muscled, straight until the lumbar region, and supple. The loin is taut, slightly arched, yet supportive. The back is never elongated, swayed, or roached.
• Croup: Broad, powerfully muscled, and gently sloped.
• Underline: A slight tuck-up is present, or the underline may run parallel to the topline. The underline is taut and firm, without any indication of sagging or excess weight.
• Ribs: Long, well-sprung, well-laid-back, and oval-shaped, never barrel-chested or slab-sided.
• Tail: Set neither high nor low on the croup but as a natural extension of the topline. It is thick at the base and tapering toward the tip. The tail is carried in accordance with the dog’s mood and energy level, often horizontally, just below the horizontal, or downward in a relaxed position. It may be left natural (preferred) or docked. Natural tails are of a moderate length, with the tip of the last vertebrae extending to the hock joints when held down. The tail may be straight or gently curved. Docked tails are cut to a length of 5½ -10 inches.

Forequarters and Hindquarters

• Forequarters: The forequarters are always balanced with the hindquarters and slightly angulated and feature laid-back shoulder blades. The shoulder blades are long and approximately equal in length to the upper arm and forearm.
• Elbows: The elbows are close to the body. The point of the elbows is approximately half the dog’s height at the withers.
• Forelegs: Frontal View: Straight, of good muscle, of moderate (yet sturdy) bone, and parallel to one another.
  Side View: The forelimbs appear straight with strong pasterns.
• Pasterns: Never weak or broken.
• Hindquarters: The upper and lower thighs are long, equal in length, strong, moderate (yet sturdy) bone, and well-muscled.
  Rear View: When viewed from the rear, the rear pasterns are parallel to one another.
  Side View: Good angulation will allow the rear toes to align with the point of the rump or within one to two paw-lengths behind the point of the rump, with the rear pasterns remaining perpendicular to the ground and parallel to one another.
• Stifle Joint: Sufficiently angulated with a good bend to well-let-down rear pasterns.
• Stifle Joint: The angulation of the hindquarters is always in balance with the angulation of the forequarters.
• Feet: Oval to hare, with well-arched toes and tough pads. The toes are well-padded.

Coat

• Skin: Well-fitted, yet supple. The skin should never obstruct the outline of the dog.
• Coat Type: Medium-short length, between 1 ½ and 2 ½ inches, give or take ½ inches. It is shaggy, tousled, rough, and harsh and may be straight to slightly waved but never woolly or curled. The head furnishings are strong, with stiff, thick hair forming eyebrows, mustache, and beard. On the body, the coat is fairly flat, stiff, and harsh.
• Coat Color or Pattern: White with or without orange or liver markings. Roan in orange or liver, with or without orange or liver markings. Orange or liver with or without white or roan markings.

Movement

The movement of the Spinone Italiano breed is smooth, easy, effortless, efficient, and steady. The characteristics of a healthy structure are evident. When moving away, the forelegs and rear pasterns should remain parallel to one another. When viewing movement from the front, the forelegs should remain parallel, with elbows and paws moving neither in nor out. From the rear, the back pads should be visible when the rear legs are extended. As speed increases, the forelimbs and hindlimbs will converge to the centerline of gravity. From the side, the topline should remain firm and level. Good reach of movement in the front allows the forepaw to extend out in line with the nose. When extended, the width between the forefeet should be approximately equal to the width between the hindfeet when extended, indicating balance, good reach, and good drive. Dogs that exhibit any sign of breathing or locomotive difficulty shall be disqualified from the show ring.

Temperament

The Spinone Italiano breed is an exceptional hunter, capable of navigating and locating game in any terrain. They are known to be sociable, friendly, affectionate, calm, and gentle. They enjoy interaction with their family as a companion but enjoys the challenge of the field, especially that of challenging terrain. They are, for the most part, even-tempered, get well on with other dogs, and are especially fond of children. In the field, they are steady, confident, and enjoy working at their own pace. Any unprovoked aggressive or fearful behavior toward people is incorrect for this breed.

Faults

All dogs should be in proper, healthy condition, free from disease or defect. Any departure from this description is considered a fault. Unless altered, all male dogs should have two fully descended testicles.