Poodle Breed description: Character & Co

Breed characteristics of the Poodle

The Poodle is classifiedby the FCI as Group 9(Companionand Society Dogs),Section 2(Poodles). The breed standard does not require a working test.

According to its grace, the Poodleaprancingandlight-footedßsible gait.

Size divisions

Today the poodle is available in four different sizes and therefore the maximum weights of the dogs are also different. In the table below you can see the maximum weight and the approximate height at the withers:

The head

The head of this dog breed is distinguished, straight and in proportion to the body. Itmust also be well cut, neither too heavy nor excessivelyfine. The width of the skull is less than half the length of the head, givingan oval shape whenviewed from above, and a somewhat convex shape inprofile. The longitudinal axes of the skull andbridge of the noseare slightly divergent.

Thesuperciliary archesaremoderatelyaccentuated butcovered with long hair and between them is a forehead furrow, decreasingtowards the strongly pronounced occiput.In theMiniature Poodlethe occiput may be less accentuated . The stop is little pronounced in all size divisions ,but in no caseabsent. The cheeks are also not prominent, but thereforeshaped bythebones.The part below the eyes is wellchiseledand slightly filled.The zygomatic bones are only slightly accentuated.

The muzzle

The nose of the Poodle should be welldeveloped,vertical whenviewedinprofile,with open nostrils. In black,whiteand graydogs the nose is black; in the browns it is brown.In apricot or red-colored dogs the nose may bebrown or blackaccording to the intensity of theapricot color. However, in light apricotdogs the nose sponge must be as dark as possible.

The upper profile of the strong muzzle itself is straight and in length about nine-tenths of the length of the skull. The two lower jaws are almost parallel and thelower profile of the muzzle is determined bythe lower jaw and not by the edge of the upper lip. Thereby the lips are moderatelydeveloped, rather dry and of medium thickness. The upper lip lies on the lower lip without overhanging. In the black,white andgrayPoodles the lipsare black, in brownPoodlesbrown.IntheapricotPoodlesandred-furred specimens the lips are more or lessdark brownor black. The corner of the lips may not be pronounced.

Poodles usually have a completescissor bite with strong teeth.

The Eyes & Ears

This breed of dog has an alertexpression due to the almond-shaped eyes, which are set at the level of theStoppslightly oblique set in at the level of the stop.At the same time they are of blackordark brown color.AtthebrownPoodlesmaytheEyesdarkamberbeTheEyelidsareblackatthe black,whiteßenandgrayPoodles,brownatthebrown poodles.With thelight apricot-Poodlesthe eyelids must be as possiblenkel be.

The ears, on the other hand, are quite long and drooping along the cheeks. The base is in the prolongation of a line starting from the profile of the nasal crest and passingbelow theouter cornerofthe eye. They are invariably flat, but broader below the baseand rounded at thetip, which reaches and ideally overlaps the corner of the lips when drawn forward. They are covered by long, wavy hair.

The rump

The firm neck shows a slightly arched nape line, is of medium length and wellproportioned. Thehead is carried high and proud.In section, the neck is oval and without dewlap. Its length is slightly less than that of the head. The body is also considered to be well proportioned.The length slightly exceeds the height at the withers. At the same time, the upperprofileline isharmonious andfirm, leading over moderatelypronounced withers, the height of whichshould bealmost thesame as the heightfromthetop of thecroupto the ground. Continuing, there is a short back and firm, muscled loins and a rounded, but not sloping, croup.

Therib cagereaches to the elbows and is equal in width to two thirds of the depth . The forechest shows thatthe tip of the sternum isslightly prominent and sufficiently high.InLarge Poodles the chest girth(measured behind the shoulders)should exceed the height at thewithers by at least 10cm. An oval shapein cross-section is shown, which is broad in the region of the back.

The lower profile line as well as the belly are tucked up, but it does not appear exaggerated.

The tail

The tail of the Poodle is quitehighonHeighttheLumbarset. In the breed standard it is written that ideally they should be"10after9"atComparisontoback line should be carried.

The limbs

In general, the legs of the Poodle standperfectly straight and parallel, well muscled with good bone. Theheight from elbow to groundis slightly more thanhalftheheight at the withers. The shoulder blade of equal length forms an angle of approximately 110º with the upper arm. The front tarsaljoint should act as an extension of the forearm and the strong front pasternshould be almost straight in profile.

Thelegs should alsobe parallel when viewed frombehind. Thereby the musculature of a breed specimen is well developed and appears clearly. Thehip joint as well as the femorotibialjointmust alsobewell developed. The hock joint is therefore described in the breed standard as relativelywellangulated. The rather short hind pastern is thus vertical. The Poodle must be born without dewclaws.

The paws arerather small, tightly closed and form a short oval. At the same time the toes are well arched and compact, the pads hard and firm. The clawsare black in black and grayPoodles. In the brown ones they are brown. In thewhite Poodles, the claws may be any color from horn-colored to black. In the Apricot Poodlesand the Red Poodles they are brown or black; as dark as possible, depending on the color of the coat .

The coat

This breed has a skin that issupple,not limp and pigmented .

Atblack,brown,grayandapricotcoloredorredfalbenPoodlesmustthePigmentationtheColorof the Hair coatcorrespondAttheweißenPoodleswilla silver-gray skin color is aimed at.

• Poodles with curly hair (woolly poodles)have ücoat of fine, woolly texture texture,which is verycrimped,elasticundthePrintof thehand should be resistant to pressure of the hand. The wool is dense, abundant and of uniformßieven length and thus forms as wellequalmäßcurls.
• Corded poodles also havelush furoffine,woollyanddensetexture. However, this forms thecharacteristic cords, which should be at least 20 cmlong.
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Color-wise, the Poodle can be found in solid black,white, brown, gray, apricot and red fawn. The brown should be rich,fairly dark,evenand warm. Beige and its lighter shades are not allowed. Gray is alsodesired to be even,richneitherblackish norwhitish. Apricot Poodles usually have a very even coloring as well, whichcan range fromcreamtoorange(apricot)to reddish.

Eyelids,nasal spongeas well as lips, gums,palate,naturalopenings,scrotumand pads of feet are always well pigmented.In light colored apricotdogs, the entire pigmentation must be as dark as possible.