The KC Breed Standard:

General Appearance – Medium-sized working sled dog, quick and light on feet. Free and graceful in action, with well-furred body, erect ears and brush tail. Proportions reflect a basic balance of power, speed and endurance, never appearing so heavy or so coarse as to suggest a freighting animal, nor so light and fragile as to suggest a sprint-racing animal. Males are masculine but never coarse, bitches feminine but without weakness of structure. Muscle firm and well developed, no excess weight.

Characteristics – Medium size, moderate bone, well balanced proportions, ease and freedom of movement and good disposition.

Temperament – Friendly and gentle, alert and outgoing. Does not display traits of the guard dog, not suspicious with strangers or aggressive with other dogs but some measure of reserve expected in mature dog. Intelligent, tractable and eager disposition. An agreeable companion and willing worker.

Head and Skull – Medium size in proportion to the body, presents a finely chiseled fox like appearance. Slightly rounded on top, tapering gradually from widest point to eyes. Muzzle medium length and width, neither snipey nor coarse, tapering gradually to rounded nose. Tip of nose to stop equidistant from stop to occiput. Stop clearly defined but not excessive. Line of the nose straight from the stop to tip. Nose black in grey, tan or black dogs; liver in copper dogs; and may be flesh coloured in pure white dogs. In winter, pink-streaked ‘snow nose’ is acceptable.

Eyes – Almond-shaped, moderately spaced and set obliquely. Any shade of blue or brown, one of each colour, or parti-colours equally acceptable. Expression keen, but friendly, interested, even mischievous.

Ears – Medium size, relatively close together, triangular in shape, the height slightly greater than width at base. Set high on head, strongly erect, the inner edges being quite close together at the base, when the dog is at attention carries practically parallel. Slightly arched at the back. Thick, well-furred outside and inside, tips slightly rounded.

Mouth – Lips well pigmented, close fitting. Jaw strong, with a perfect regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws.

Neck – Medium length and thickness, arched and carried proudly erect when standing. When moving at a trot, extended so that the head is carried slightly forward.

Forequarters – Shoulder blade well laid back, upper arm angles slightly backward from point of shoulder to elbow, never perpendicular to the ground. Muscle holding shoulder to ribcage firm and well developed. Straight or loose shoulders highly undesirable. Viewed from the front, forelegs moderately spaced, parallel and straight with elbows close to the body, turning neither in nor out. Viewed from the side, pasterns slightly sloping, wrist strong but flexible. Length from elbow to ground slightly more than distance from elbows to top of withers. Bone proportionate, never heavy. Dewclaws may be removed.

Body – Straight and strong with level topline from withers to croup. Medium length, not cobby, nor slack from excessive length. In profile, body from point of shoulder to rear point of croup slightly longer than height from ground to top of withers. Chest deep and strong but not too broad, deepest point being just behind and level with elbows. Ribs well sprung from spine but flattened on sides to allow for freedom of action. Loins slightly arched, well muscled, taut and lean, narrower than ribcage with a slight tuck-up. Croup slopes away from spine at an angle, but never so steeply as to restrict the rearward thrust of hind legs.

Hindquarters – Viewed from rear, hind legs moderately spaced and parallel. Upper thighs well muscled and powerful, stifles well bent, hock joint well defined and set low to the ground. Dewclaws, if any, should be removed.

Feet – Oval, not long, turning neither in nor out in natural stance. Medium size, compact, well furred and slightly webbed between toes. Pads tough and thickly cushioned. Trimming of fur between toes and around feet permissible.

Tail – Well furred, of round fox brush shape set on just below level of topline and usually carried over back in a graceful sickle curve when dog at attention. When carried up, tail should not curl too tightly, nor should it curl to either side of body, or snap flat against back. Hair on tail of medium length and approximately same length all round. A trailing tail is normal for dog when working or in repose.

Gait/Movement – Smooth and seemingly effortless. Quick and light on feet, gaited on a loose lead at a moderately fast trot, exhibiting good reach in forequarters and good drive in hindquarters. When walking, legs move in parallel, but as speed increases, gradually angling inward to single track. As pad marks converge, forelegs and hind legs carried straight with neither elbows nor stifles turning in nor out, each hind leg moving in path of foreleg on same side. Topline of back remaining firm and level during gaiting.

Coat – Double, and medium in length, giving a well furred appearance, never so long as to obscure clean-cut outline of dog. Undercoat soft and dense of sufficient length to support outer coat. Guard hairs of outer coat straight and somewhat smooth-lying, never harsh, rough or shaggy, too silky nor standing straight off from body. Absence of undercoat during shedding normal. No trimming of fur on any part of dog, except feet.

Colour – All colours and markings, including white, allowed. Variety of markings on head is common, including many striking patterns not found in other breeds.

Size – Height: dogs 53–60cms (21–23.5ins) at withers; bitches 51–56cms (20–22ins) at withers. Weight: dogs 20–27kgs (45–60lbs); bitches 16–23kgs (35–50lbs). Weight should be in proportion to height. These measurements represent the extremes in height and weight, with no preference given to either extreme. A dog should not exceed 60cms (23.5ins) or a bitch exceed 56cms (22ins).

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. Note – Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

© The Kennel Club