Lhasa Apso Breed Standard

7/30/2019 Lhasa Apso Breed Standard

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The breed standard for the LhasaApso is effectively a blueprintfor the breed. It sets down thevarious points of the dog inwords, enabling a picture to beconjured up in the mind of thereader. However, this is more

easily said than done. Not only dostandards vary from country tocountry, but peoples interpreta-tions of breed standards vary also.It is this difference of interpreta-tion that makes judges selectdifferent dogs for top honors, for

Breed Standard for the

LHASA APSO

Quality in a LhaApso shimmers

through on the

dogs coat, but

what is under h

magnificent coa

of equal or grea

importance. Jud

look for Lhasa

Apsos with sou

construction an

overall balance


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their opinions differ as to whichdog most closely fits the breedstandard. That is not to say that agood dog does not win regularly

under different judges, nor that aninferior dog may rarely even beplaced at a show, at least notamong quality competition.

The breed standard andpresentation vary from the US tothe UK, the authors homeland.

The breed standard given here isthat authorized by the AmericanKennel Club (AKC), in which the

size clause is more flexible thanthat used in Britain, where theideal height for dogs is 10 inchesat shoulder, with bitches slightlysmaller. Another significant differ-

ence is in the section on mouthand muzzle, for in Britain thestandard only calls for a reversescissor bite, the option of a level

bite having been deleted from thestandard many years ago.However, in the US, the bite maybe level or slightly undershot.

It is true that for the showring, most of the undercoat isgroomed out for purposes ofpresentation, but we must neverlose sight of the fact that theLhasa Apso comes from a land

with extremes of climate where agood undercoat is imperative forsurvival.

Now to the thorny questionof dark tips, which in the US

42 LHASA APSO

The author is most

passionate about

the importance of

dark ear tips on the

Lhasa. This duo wellillustrates this

special breed

hallmark.


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may or may not be present on theears and beard. Although notevident to non-breeders, this isrelated to the black nose pigment

required in the standard. Breed-ing together, over a prolongedperiod of time, Apsos that carryno black coat pigment at all even-tually lose depth of skin pigment.

This can be seen especially onthe nose, which loses color, not

just in the winter months whenwinter nose can all too often beused as an excuse for poor

pigmentation.

THE AMERICAN KENNEL CLUBSTANDARD FOR THE LHASAAPSO

Character:Gay and assertive, butchary of strangers.

Size:Variable, but about 10 inchesor 11 inches at shoulder for dogs,bitches slightly smaller.

Color: All colors equally accept-able with or without dark tips toears and beard.

Body Shape:The length frompoint of shoulders to point of

buttocks longer than height atwithers, well ribbed up, strongloin, well-developed quarters andthighs.

Coat:Heavy, straight, hard, notwoolly nor silky, of good length,and very dense.

Mouth and Muzzle:The preferredbite is either level or slightlyundershot. Muzzle of mediumlength; a square muzzle is objec-tionable.

B r e e d S t a n d a r d 43

Head study

showing prop

structure and

expression,

groomed

properly for t

show ring.

In profile, showing

proper balance,

structure and type,

with a correct,

mature coat.


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Head: Heavy head furnishingswith good fall over eyes, goodwhiskers and beard; skull narrow,falling away behind the eyes in amarked degree, not quite flat, butnot domed or apple-shaped;straight foreface of fair length.Nose black, the length from tip ofnose to eye to be roughly aboutone-third of the total length fromnose to back of skull.

Eyes: Dark brown, neither verylarge and full, nor very small andsunk.

Ears: Pendant, heavily feathered.

Legs:Forelegs straight; bothforelegs and hind legs heavily

furnished with hair.

Feet:Well feathered, should beround and catlike, with goodpads.

Tail and Carriage: Well feathered,should be carried well over backin a screw; there may be a kink atthe end. A low carriage of stern is

a serious fault.

While the Lhasa Apsos breedstandard is concise but fairly self-explanatory, readers interested inshowing their Apsos should learnas much as possible from estab-lished breeders and exhibitors. It issensible to attend judges seminars,often hosted by breed clubs. Herethe finer points of the breed can beexplained fully and discussed.

There are, however, a fewfurther points that benefit fromfurther elaboration in this book.

Those not famil iar with the LhasaApso often find it difficult tounderstand the construction of themouth and most usual placement

of teeth, which is slightly under-shot, or in British parlance,reverse scissor. Often a new petowner can be thoroughlydismayed when, taking his newpuppy along to the vet for the firsttime, he is wrongly told that themouth is incorrect.

44 LHASA APSO

Head study, show-

ing a dog with the

coat divided into a

topknot typical

for the breed toshow the eyes.

A pet trim that is

easily maintained

and approximates

a puppys tousled

appearance

appeals to many

people.


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Level bites, in which the

incisors meet edge to edge, arestill found in the breed and in theUS are considered correct, but aslightly undershot bite means thatthe upper teeth close just insidethe lower. This is a highly func-tional bite. However, the lowerteeth should not be too farforward of the upper set, norshould they be set into the jawsuch that they protrude at a severeangle, for these not only lookuntypical but also are not at all apractical set of teeth. Normal scis-sors bites are also found, but these

causes the typical Oriental expres-

sion to be lost. Another anomalyis the parrot mouth, which isseverely overshot. Thankfully thisis a rare occurrence and is highlyundesirable, so any puppies bornwith such a mouth should neverbe bred from.

Something not mentioned inthe standard is the chin. However,all dedicated Apso breeders willagree that an Apso does need tohave some chin to give thedesired Oriental expression towhich I have previously referred.Most dogs with slightly undershot


(Left) Soft top

head and neck

forward, sugge

ing upright sho

ders, and not m

behind the tail

suggesting poo

angulation beh

(Right) Short n

loaded shoulde

and wide front

poor tail set, w

topline, steep

the croup, whi

often accompa

a poor tail set.

When evaluatin

coated breeds

the Lhasa Apso

judges or breed

hands must dis

what the sins t

coat disguises;

ment will revea

faults of struct

and topline. (Le

Long backed, st

shoulders, high

rear. (Right) To

on leg, short ne

low-set tail.


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bites do have sufficient chin,although there are exceptions.

Looking at the head of theLhasa Apso in profile, the propor-

tion from tip of nose to stopversus stop to back of skull

should be 1 to 2. Thus, this isactually a partial-brachycephalicbreed (partially short-nosed).

Length is measured from

point of shoulders to point ofbuttocks. This is the foremost

46 LHASA APSO

Champion-quality

dogs and bitches

are used for breed-

ing in order to

perpetuate the

best qualities of

the Lhasa Apso.


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point of the shoulder blade, notthe top tip of the blade as hassometimes been misreported.

Thus, in effect, the Apso is really

not much longer than the majorityof breeds of dog. It shouldcertainly not be so long that itresembles a train!

In the AKC breed standard,there is no mention of the move-ment or gait of the Lhasa Apso, butin Britain it is described as Free

and jaunty. An incorrect actionfound in the hind movement ofmany Apsos today is that the dogshows the full pad of the hind feet

as he moves away. This is thecorrect movement for a Shih Tzu,but certainly not for a Lhasa Apso.When an Apso moves away, youshould only be able to see a thirdof the pad, for the feet should notbe kicked up so high into the airthat the whole foot is visible.


Best in Show! T

Lhasa Apso take

the top prize at

breed show in

Australia.

Lhasa Apso Breed Standard

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