DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 1998.
UTILIZATION : Pointing dog.
CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 7 Pointing Dogs.
Section 1.2 Continental Pointing
Dogs, Spaniel type.
With working trial.
BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : The French Spaniel is a descendant of the bird dogs described by Gaston Febus and used in the Middle Ages. It is he who is at the origin of the diverse varieties of hunting Spaniels. Through the selection he developed into the elegant and athletic dog, pointing very firmly which, today, excels in the working trials. The first standard was drawn up in 1891 by James de Connick; it has been revised several times since, and then was adapted to the diverse evolutions of the breed.
GENERAL APPEARANCE : Medium size dog, elegant and muscled, built on normal proportions, of braccoid type. His balanced construction shows energy and toughness appropriate to his utilization. His bone structure is strong without being coarse.
IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS : The length of the body (from the point of the shoulders to the point of the buttock) is superior by 2 to 3 cm to the height at the withers (the animal fits into a rectangle). The length of the chest is equal or superior to 6/10th of the length of the body.
BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : Balanced, frank, soft, calm and docile, enthusiastic hunter, sociable with his fellow creatures and an ideal companion in all circumstances. Excellent pointing dog, he is also endowed with the retrieve.
HEAD : Carried proudly, without heaviness, without excessive leanness showing well defined dimensions. Of medium length and width.
CRANIAL REGION :
Skull : The lateral sides are almost parallel. The superciliary arches are marked. In profile, the axes of the skull and the muzzle are slightly divergent.
Stop : Progressive and moderately pronounced.
FACIAL REGION :
Nose : Well pigmented, the nostrils widely open.
Muzzle : The slightly convex nasal bridge is preferable to the straight one; it is a little shorter than the skull.
Lips : The upper lip fits well. Seen in profile, it falls almost vertically in the front and curves progressively up to the only slightly visible but well closed corner of the lips. The upper lip must not cover excessively the lower lip.
Eyes : The eyes of a dark amber colour express softness and intelligence. They are quite big, of oval shape. The eyelids well adapted to the eyeball. The upper eyelid is well endowed with eyelashes.
Ears : The leather is well set on, well set back at eye level; furnished with wavy silky hair down to the rounded tip. Pulled lightly towards the front, the tip must just reach the beginning of the nose.
NECK : Muscled, profile slightly curved, oval shape, without dewlap.
BODY :
Topline : In slight depression in relation to the withers, straight, well firm in action.
Withers : Lean, quite high and broad.
Loin : Broad, not too long and powerfully muscled.
Croup : Broad, rounded in the extension of the loin and without visible bony outline.
Chest : Plenty of heart room, of great capacity, let down to elbow level.
Sternal region : Ample and rounded.
Underline : Harmoniously raised towards the belly.
TAIL : Not docked, reaching the point of the hock, not deviated, set below the topline and falling obliquely, curved like a sabre. Strong at its root, tapering progressively towards the tip. Furnished with long wavy silky fringes starting at a few centimeters from the root, lengthening to the middle part, then getting progressively shorter towards the tip.
LIMB :
FOREQUARTERS : The forequarters are straight and vertical. The back of the forelegs is furnished with wavy silky feathering of medium length above the elbow, but definitely longer at level of the forearm and falling to the level of the pastern.
Shoulders : Well attached against the chest and quite oblique (50° in relation to the horizontal).
Upper arm : Of inferior length by a third of the height at the withers; its slant on the horizontal is nearly 60°.
Forearm : Lean and muscled.
Pastern joint / Pastern : Well defined, lean, with visible bone structure and not coarse. The pastern is very slightly oblique.
Forefoot : Oval, with tight, well arched toes and strong, black nails. Furnished with hair in the interdigital spaces. The pads are firm and dark.
HINDQUARTERS : Seen from behind, the hindquarters are vertical; the limbs are powerful and muscled from the upper thigh to the lower thigh.
Upper thigh : Broad and quite long with powerful and very visible muscles. Its slant on the horizontal is between 65° and 70°.
Lower thigh : Of noticeably equal length to that of the upper thigh, with sculpted and visible muscles.
Hock joint : Solid and strong.
Hind foot : Oval and slightly longer than the front foot, but otherwise with the same characteristics.
GAIT / MOVEMENT : Easy, supple, regular and energetic while remaining elegant. The legs move well in the axis of the body without exaggerated vertical displacement of the topline and without rolling.
SKIN : Supple and well fitting to the body.
COAT
HAIR : Long and wavy on the leathers, falling beyond their tips, as well as on the back of the legs and the tail. Flat, silky and well furnished on the body with a few undulations behind the neck and above the root of the tail. Short and fine on the head.
COLOUR : White and brown with medium spotting, sometimes getting predominant, with irregular patches, slightly or moderately flecked and roan without excess. The brown varies from cinnamon to dark liver. The white blaze and the white on the head, if the marking is not too wide, are appreciated. The absence of white on the head is perfectly admissible. All the outer mucous membranes are brown without depigmentation notably on the nose and the eyelids.
SIZE :
From 56 to 61 cm for the males.
From 55 to 59 cm for the females.
With a tolerance for each of 2 cm over.
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.
Skull too broad.
Muzzle too short.
Light eye.
Leather partially white, too short or triangular.
Dewlap.
Deviated tail.
Incorrect position of the legs.
Lack of bone.
Hair curly on the body.
Lack of silky fringes (feathering).
Eye surrounded by white (marking), the eyelids being pigmented.
ELIMINATING FAULTS :
Lack of type (insufficient ethnical characteristics which means that the animal on the whole does not sufficiently resemble its fellow creatures of the breed).
Distinct convergence of the axes of the skull and the muzzle.
Upper and lower pragmathism with a gap of more than one millimetre.
Any other teeth missing apart from the PM1.
Entropion or ectropion.
Heterochromous eyes (different colours).
Eye definitely too light, in animals over the age of 2 years.
Strabismus (cross-eyed).
Presence of dewclaws on the hind legs.
Any other colour than white and brown.
Depigmentation (important pink on the nose and/or on the eyelids).
Size outside the limits of the standard.
Timid, aggressive or biter.
Important morphological anomaly.
Disabling defect.
N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
ORIGIN : Germany.
UTILIZATION : Pointing dog.
CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. : Group 7 Pointing Dogs.
Section 1.2 Continental Pointing
Dogs, Spaniel type.
With working trial.
General Appearance
Strong muscular build, streamlined appearance. Massive and bear-like look is to be avoided. With lightweight dogs strong muscles are essential. Intelligent expression, noble and clean-cut outlines. Dogs under 22 inches (56 cm) and those with poor bone structure should not be used for breeding purposes.
Coat and Colour
Great importance to be given to coat. The coat should not be excessive nor too short; on the back and the side of the body approximately 1 - 2 inches (3 - 5 cm) long. Underneath the neck, the chest, and belly, the hair can be somewhat longer. On the ears the hair is wavy and overhanging. Tail with good feathering. Backs of the front and hind legs are feathered, shorter on the lower running parts of the leg. Spaces between toes have dense hair growth for protection against rough ground. Protruding hair between the toes is not desired. On the head, hair is considerably shorter, but nevertheless longer than on a short-haired dog. Overall, the coat should be smooth and slightly waved so that the dog is able to shake off water easily. The hair may be shiny, but not silky, and should be firm to the touch. The complete coat only develops fully after the first year of life, often still later. During summer the dog loses more than half of its winter coat. Colour brown with light spot on chest, white with patches and small brown spots.
Head
Long, equally divided between skull and jaw. Slightly curved crown. Stop rising gradually, not abruptly cut in.
Nose: Bridge of nose only slightly arched and not too narrow. Depending on the colour of the dog, the nose should be more or less brown. Nose not split. Lips not overhanging too much. Over-and under biters should not be used for breeding purposes. Eyes brown, no light hawks eye. Eyes well closed, without visible red eyelid. Dogs with open eyes should not be used for breeding purposes. The eyes should be neither too deep in the skull nor protruding. Ears lying close to skull, broad at the skull, rounded at the bottom, inner edges covered with hair. Hairs on the ears slightly waved and overhanging at end of ear.
Neck
Strong and noble. Without loose skin, joining the chest in a pleasing line.
Forequarters
The shoulder blade, the upper arm, the forearm and pastern should, when viewed from the front, be vertical when the dog is standing. Shoulders should lie flat against the body. The elbows pointing directly to the rear or at the most slightly outwards. When the dog is motionless and seen from the side, shoulder blade and forearm should form a 90 degree angle, but the forearm with the lower arm a flat angle (about 135 degrees). No steep pastern, joint only very slightly bent, yet not entirely straight.
Body
Back has to be straight and strong, not overbuilt in front or back. Back should be strongly developed without sag. Chest should give the appearance of depth in comparison to width, no barrel-shaped appearance. Has to be deeper than the elbow joint, accordingly the abdomen must be correspondingly tucked up to give the hind legs sufficient room when running. Loins especially muscular. Croup should not be straight, but slightly sloped. Downwards hanging skinfolds on the flanks are to be avoided. The back determines the right proportions of the length to the height of the dog.
Hindquarters
Seen from the back, the hip bone, the thigh bone, the shank bone and the metatarsus should form a vertical line. Well-angled hocks. Dewclaws are to be removed. Toes well closed. Pads firm and strong.
Tail
High set, either almost straight or slightly bent upwards. Should not be carried too high, but at least in the front part, almost horizontal. The tail tip should not hang forward. Good feathers, longest at the middle of the tail.
Faults
1. Bushy eyebrows and long beard.
2. Curly hair and curls.
3. Red or black nose.
4. Open eyes.
5. Ears too long or too big. Leathery ends on ears.
6. Cow-hocks. Bowed legs.
7. Cat or long hare-paws.
8. Curled tail.
Disqualification
Black, red, and pure white with only little markings.
N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
