meet the... Tibetan Terrier

Head

• General Appearance: Mesaticephalic skull type, moderate in size, wedge-shaped under the fur, and in proportion to the rest of the body. The head is of a moderate length, with a fairly broad topskull. The topskull is fairly arched between the ears and from the occiput to the stop. When felt in profile or from above, the head tapers slightly from the topskull toward the nose. The head is clean-cut and without excess skin or wrinkles.
• Expression: Alert, watchful, intelligent, and rather resolute.
• Stop: The stop is marked but never abrupt or exaggerated.
• Skull: The ideal muzzle-to-skull ratio is approximately 3:2 to 4:3, with the topskull being just longer than the muzzle.
  The ideal muzzle-to-skull axis is parallel.
• Muzzle: The muzzle is full, deep, and broad. The plane, or bridge of the muzzle, is straight. The upper and lower jaws are well-developed, approximately equal in length, have good bone substance, and are never snipey or weak. The lower jaw/chin is well-developed.
• Lips or Flews: The lips are clean and fit tightly over the teeth and jaws.
• Nose: The nose is well-pigmented, black, or self-colored in nonstandard color varieties. The nostrils are well-opened.
• Cheeks: The zygomatic arches are curved and developed but never overly developed and bulging. The cheeks are smoothly muscled. They should not appear chiseled or coarse.
• Dentition and Bite: Forty-two strong, clean, and white teeth. The bite may be level, scissor, reverse-scissor, or slightly undershot (less than 1/8 of an inch of space between upper and lower incisors is permissible). Contact preferred between the top and bottom incisors.
• Eyes: Moderate in size, oval to open almond in shape, and medium to dark brown 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: Medium in size, set just above eye level, triangular in shape, and drop or pendant. They fall to the sides, hanging fairly close to the head. The ears are never long, overly large, or set high on the plane of the skull.

Body and Tail

• General Description: Compact, solid, and of good substance. The body is never racy or refined. The width at the forequarters is approximately equal to the width at the hindquarters. It is indicative of both speed and stamina without appearing racy and power without appearing bulky.
• Neck: Moderate length allows for an upright (yet natural) head carriage. It is strongly muscled with a slight arch. The neck tapers smoothly from the deeper and broader body toward the head. The neck is clean-cut and without excess skin, throatiness, or dewlap.
• Chest: Deep and broad but never wider than deep. The brisket extends to the point of the elbows. The prosternum is only slightly developed.
• Topline: Level from withers to croup. The back is broad, strongly muscled, and straight, yet supple. The loin is taut, short, and slightly arched, yet supportive. The back is never swayed or roached.
• Croup: Flat and level with the back.
• Underline: A slight tuck-up is present. 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 fairly high on the croup. 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, forward over the back or to either side of the spine. The tail should never be tucked. The tail is of a moderate length, with the tip of the last vertebrae extending to the hock joints when held down.

Forequarters and Hindquarters

• Forequarters: The forequarters are always balanced with the hindquarters and well-angulated with well-laid-back shoulder blades. The shoulder blades are 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 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 equal in length, strong, sturdy, moderate 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: Well-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 round and compact, with well-arched toes and tough pads.

Coat

• Skin: Well-fitted, yet supple. The skin should never obstruct the outline of the dog.
• Coat Type: Thick and abundant double coat. The undercoat is soft, woolly, and dense. The outercoat is medium-long to fairly long, yet not so long that the coat on the body reaches the ground. Daylight should always be visible under the dog. The outer coat is profuse and rather fine, yet harsh to the touch. It may be straight or slightly wavy. It hangs fairly long and shaggy on the head, face, body, and appendages. There should be a headfall that hangs in front of the eyes, although it may be clipped back when the dog is not being directly evaluated by the judge.
• Coat Color or Pattern: CKC recognizes two color varieties of the Tibetan Terrier breed: the standard and nonstandard.
  
  Standard coat color variety: Any color with the exception of liver-based color patterns. Permissible standard coat colors include white, gold, cream, gray, grizzle, sable, smoke, black, parti-colors, and tricolors.
  
  Nonstandard coat color variety: Liver-based colors and patterns.

Movement

Smooth, effortless, efficient, and energetic. 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

Lively, even-tempered, alert, and watchful, the Tibetan Terrier breed are loyal and affectionate companions toward their people. However, they are known to be indifferent toward strangers. They are very protective of their families and make for exceptional watchdogs, barking to alert only when something is amiss and never indiscriminately. Their protective tendencies can become territorial aggression directed toward other animals if they are not properly trained and socialized from puppyhood. 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.