Vladimir.Uno: Shar Pei Standards

^{Standard stipulation}	^{FCI Nr.309/1994} ^{(Chinese Shar-pei)}	FCI Nr.309/1999 ( American Shar-pei )
^Origin	^{China (Dialack-Canton)} ^{China (Dailack, Namhoi, Guangdong)}	^China ^(U.S.A.)
^Patronage	^{Hong Kong}	^{F.C.I. (U.S.A.)}
^{Date of issue}	^{January 25, 1994}	^{August 9, 1999}
^{Valid original standard}	^{January 25, 1994}	^{April 14, 1999}
^Utilization	^{Hunting and watchdog.}	^{Hunting and watch-dog.}
^Temperament	^{Active and agile. Calm, independent, loyal and affectionate to people.} ^{“Active and agile” are the key words. Need to hunt and guard.}	^{Calm independent, loyal, affectionate to his family.}
^Height	^{19 to 23 inch at withers} ^{(48.3 to 58.4 cm.)}	^{17.5 to 20 inch at withers} ^{(44 to 51 cm.)}
^Weight	^{40 to 65 lbs. (18 to 29.5 kgs.)}	^{Not specified.}
^Head	^{The skull is round and big at the base, but flat and broad at the forehead.} ^{The Chinese description of the head is “Wo Lo Tau”, meaning “Calabash”shaped head.} ^{Should not be large or heavy in proportion to body.}	^{Rather large in proportion to body.}
^Tongue	^{Bluish-black tongue and gum preferred, pink and spotted only permissible in lighter colored dogs.}	^{Bluish black is preferred. Pink spotted tongue permissible. Solid pink tongue highly undesirable.}
^Back	^{Very strong and straight, with very strong back bone.} ^{This is required for an active and agile rural working and hunting dog.}	^{Dips slightly behind withers; then it rises slightly over loin.} ^{This is to balance the larger head.} ^{Croup rather flat.}
^Tail	^{There are several types of tail. The most common are the curl, and double ring; this can be a big or a small curl. The tail must be firm and tightly over the hip.} ^{Thick and round at the root, tapering to a fine point is implied here as a preferred tail.}	^{Thick and round at the root, tapering to a fine point. May be carried high and curved, carried in tight curl or curved over or to either side of the back.} ^{The tail is set very high, a characteristic feature of the breed.} ^{This feature is usually disregarded in most judging in shows.}
^Wrinkles	^{In the adult dog pronounced wrinkles are only allowed over the forehead and withers.}	^{Folds of skin on body in mature dogs highly undesirable except on withers and base of tail, which show moderate wrinkling.}
¡@	^{Wrinkles on the forehead must be apparent but must not obstruct the eyes...The wrinkles on the forehead form a marking which resembles the Chinese Symbol for Longevity.}	^{Wrinkles on forehead and cheeks continuing to form dewlap.}
¡@	^{... loose skin around the throat. The loose skin should not be excessive. Excessive skin around the body in adults is most undesirable.}	^{The loose skin under the neck should not be excessive.}
¡@	^{Slight fold of skin on withers.}	^{Wrinkles over skull and withers.}
^Coat/Hair	^{Short, hard, bristly and as straight as possible. Length must not be over 2.5cm long.} ^{Horse coat is shorter than brush coat.} ^{Horse coat is preferred over brush coat}	^{Short, harsh and bristly. The coat is straight and offstanding on the body, but generally flatter on the limbs.The coat may vary in length from 1cm to 2.5 cm.Brush coat preferred over horse coat}
	^{No undercoat. Never trimmed.}	^{No undercoat. Never trimmed.}
^Muzzle	^{Length of muzzle nearly equal to the length of the skull.} ^{Moderate in length, broad from the eyes but narrowing slightly towards the nose.}	^{“Hippopotamus” muzzle impart to the Shar-pei a unique look.}
¡@	^{The shape of the mouth when viewed from top should either be in the shape of a roundish roof tile commonly known as “Roof Tile Mouth” or with a wide jaw in the shape of a toad¡¦s mouth, known as “Toad Mouth”} ^{A most distinctive feature of traditional Shar-pei. Top of muzzle is curved like a roof tile. No padded or bulge on top.}	^{A distinctive feature of the breed. Broad from root to tip of nose with no suggestion of tapering. Lips and top of muzzle well padded. Bulge at the base of the nose permissible.}
¡@	^{Snipy muzzle is not a fault, only less preferred over broader muzzle.}	^{Snipy muzzle is a serious fault.}
^Ear	^{Small, thick, equilaterally triangular in shape, slightly rounded at tips. Tips pointing towards eyes and folded to the skull. Wide apart and close to skull.} ^{Small but NOT very small. Small in proportion to head. Thickness is not emphasized here.}	^{Small ears.} ^{Very small, rather thick, equilaterally triangular in shape, slightly rounded at tip and set high on skull with tips pointing towards eyes...wide apart and close to skull.}
¡@	^{Erect and standing ears are permissible but less desirable.}	^{Pricked ears highly undesirable.}
^Eyes	^{Medium sized, almond shaped. As dark as possible. Light colored eyes are undesirable.}	^{Dark, almond-shaped with a scowling expression. Lighter color permissible in dilute-colored dogs.}
^Feet	^{Moderate size, compact, well padded, toes well knuckled.} ^{Hind feet may have dewclaws and not specified in standard. May remove for better management.}	^{Moderate size, compact, not splayed. Toes well knuckled.} ^{Hind feet free from dewclaws.}
^Forequarters	^{Pasterns slightly sloping, strong and flexible.}	^{Pastern slightly sloping, strong and flexible.}
^Hindquarters	^{Strong and muscular. Moderately angulated.} ^¡@ ^¡@ ^¡@ ^{Hocks well let down.}	^{Muscular, strong, moderately angulated. Wrinkles on upper thighs, lower thighs, rear pasterns as well as the thickening of the skin on hocks undesirable.} ^{Hocks well let down.}
^Color	^{Solid colors black, blue black, black with a hint of rust brown, red, and fawn. Cream is acceptable but less desirable.} ^{Darker shading or trace mark down the back, different tone of same solid color permissible around shoulder. A distinctive color feature of this breed.}	^{All solid colors acceptable except white. Tail and rear part of thighs frequently of a lighter color. Darker shading down the back and on the ears permissible.}

^Summary

^{FCI
Nr.309/1999 standard is basically a standard for Western type Shar-pei which
the breeders here in China and Hong Kong refer to as the "meat-mouth¨. On
Jan. 12, 1998, AKC approved second edition of Chinese Shar-pei standard, and
the FCI issued the Nr.309/1999 standard one year later. This Nr.309/1999
standard is actually quite similar to the American AKC standard.}

^{The fact
of life is that the Western type Shar-pei (meat-mouth) are already well
accepted by many breeders around the world. Any attempt to replace it with a
separate traditional Chinese Shar-pei standard is not practical and do no
justice to the already existing type of dog. For FCI, the case of Shar-pei is
intrinsically the same as the case for Akita. To solve this issue, one option
is to let Nr.309/1999 remains as a standard for Western type Shar-pei and FCI
Nr.309/1994 revived as the standard for the original traditional type Chinese
Shar-pei.}

^{In
summary, the most distinctive differences between the traditional type
(bone-mouth) and the Western type (meat-mouth) are the head, coat and tail. The
difference in features between to two types is summarized below:}

^Features	^{FCI Nr.309/1994}	^{FCI Nr.309/1999}
^Head	^{The skull is round and big at the base, but flat and broad at the forehead.} ^{The Chinese description of the head is “Wo Lo Tau” meaning “Calabash” shaped head.} ^{Should not be large or heavy in proportion to body.}	^{Rather large in proportion to body.}

^{According to the Nr.309/1999 standard,
a meat-mouth requires a heavy head, rather large in proportion to body.
This description has cause breeding of more and more heavier head costing the
dog speed and agility.}

^{If
Shar-pei is a "hunting and watchdog¨ as the standards claim it to be,
then the performance of bone-mouth is outstanding when tested side-by-side with
a meat mouth. Therefore, "active and agile¨ are the keywords which
have been taken out from the Nr.309/1994 standard to produce the Nr.309/1999
standard.}

^Utilization	^{Hunting and watchdog.}	^{Hunting and watch-dog.}
^Temperament	^{Active and agile. Calm, independent, loyal and affectionate to people.} ^{“Active and agile¨ are the key words. Need to hunt and guard.}	^{Calm independent, loyal, affectionate to his family.}

^{The heavier head of meat-mouth
naturally cause the back to dip to balance the weight.}

^Back

^{Very
strong and straight, with very strong back bone.}

^{This
is required for an active and agile rural working and hunting dog.}

^{Dips slightly behind withers; then
it rises slightly over loin.}

^{This is to balance the larger head.}

^{Croup rather flat.}

^{Height 23
inch at the withers is indeed a good and reasonable size for a rural "hunting
and watchdog¨. Although 23 inch is uncommon nowadays for a Shar-pei, many
old memories in Hong Kong and China pointed out that they have seen larger dogs
than what we commonly see today. With today¡¦s better nutrition and exercise,
it is easier to obtain a larger structure. It is true that some traditional
Shar-pei breeders in Hong Kong also think that 20 inch is the right size,
meaning this is the statistical mean (the right size) for Shar-pei but it must
not be confused with the maximum. If one set the height at maximum to be 20
inch, then in actual breeding the end result will be producing a dog on average
of below 20 inch. Therefore 23 inch is a reasonable maximum limit
for the dog, meaning the average height will be below this maximum limit.}

^Height

^{19 to
23 inch at withers}

^{(48.3
to 58.4 cm.)}

^{17.5
to 20 inch at withers}

^{(44 to
51 cm.)}

^{Muzzle is
distinctively different between the two types. The Western type requires a
¡§Hippopotamus¡¨ look permitting a bulge at the base of the nose. Traditional
type basically requires a ¡§Roof tile¡¨ look. One can imagine a roof tile which
has a curved and smooth surface. Any bulge or padding or protrusion on the
surface, it can not function and would not be a roof tile. A ¡§Toad Mouth¡¨
only suggests a very developed cheek like a toad but still the top of muzzle
should be smooth and straight.}

^Muzzle	^{Length of muzzle nearly equal to the length of the skull.} ^{Moderate in length, broad from the eyes but narrowing slightly towards the nose.}	^{“Hippopotamus¨ muzzle impart to the Shar-pei a unique look.}
¡@	^{The shape of the mouth when viewed from top should either be in the shape of a roundish roof tile commonly known as ¡§Roof Tile Mouth¡¨ or with a wide jaw in the shape of a toad¡¦s mouth, known as ¡§Toad Mouth¡¨.} ^{A most distinctive feature of traditional Shar-pei. Top of muzzle is curved like a roof tile. No padded or bulge on top.}	^{A distinctive feature of the breed. Broad from root to tip of nose with no suggestion of tapering. Lips and top of muzzle well padded. Bulge at the base of the nose permissible.}
¡@	^{Snipy muzzle is not a fault, only less preferred over broader muzzle.}	^{Snipy muzzle is a serious fault.}

^{Coat is another distinctive feature
separating the two types. It is easy to differentiate the coat between the two
types, and totally different preference when judging the two types. In general
terms, Shar-pei has horse coat and brush coat, and sometimes people even refer
to a bear coat. They are only referring to the difference in length of the coat
with horse coat being the shortest, followed by brush coat and the longest is
the bear coat. A bear coat is too long to be shown in a dog show which means it
is over 1 inch in length.}

^Coat/Hair

^{Short, hard, bristly and as straight
as possible. Length must not be over 2.5cm long.}

^{Horse coat is shorter than brush
coat.}

^{Horse coat is preferred over brush
coat}

^{Short, harsh and bristly. The coat
is straight and offstanding on the body, but generally flatter on the limbs.}

^{The coat may vary in length from 1cm
to 2.5 cm.}

^{Brush coat preferred over horse coat}

^{For a traditional type Shar-pei, the
coat must be short and hard and therefore the judges should prefer the shorter
horse coat over any other longer length coat. The Nr.309/1994 standard says "Length
must not be over 2.5cm and this preference implies that the coat should be
shorter and harder the better. Over the years, the judges in the Western world
developed to prefer the brush coat over the horse coat. The horse coat was
treated as if it is a fault because the Nr.309/1999 standard requires “from
1 cm to 2.5 cm” which implies that below 1 cm can be a problem. This
description is inferior than the AKC standard for Shar-pei coat which says "coat
lengths may range from extremely short “horse coat” up to the “brush coat¡¨ not
to exceed one inch in length at the withers.¡¨ In the U.S., although both "horse coat¨ and "brush coat¨ are within the standard ”brush coat¨ is
preferred without much explanation. The Nr.309/1999 went even one step further
specifically excluding the "horse coat¨ (below 1 cm) from the standard. At
least, the FCI can take the credit that Nr.309/1999 standard is more specific
than the AKC standard.}

^{So the
coat of the Western type Shar-pei has eventually become a short hair Chow Chow.
If you look at a bear coat Western Shar-pei, it is already a step short of
becoming a full Chow Chow. This is not a surprise at all because Shar-pei
evolved from the Tang dog and Chow Chow is also a Tang dog.}

^{Traditional
Shar-pei breeders place important emphasis on "Mou Ngan¨ meaning "coat and
eye¨. Coat in Cantonese is pronounced "Mou¨ and eye is "Ngan¨. This is
definitely true as the name of this breed itself implies. The name Shar-pei
literally means "Sandy Skin¨ and this "Sand¨ like texture is the result of
very short and stiff standing coat on the body. ¡§Ngan¡¨ or the eyes give the
Shar-pei its brave, daring, and confident look.}

^Eyes

^{Medium sized, almond shaped. As dark
as possible. Light colored eyes are undesirable.}

^{Dark, almond-shaped with a scowling
expression. Lighter color permissible in dilute-colored dogs.}

^{Without a proper "Ngan¨ or eye set
in the facial look, a Shar-pei can have all the correct features but still
lacks a majestic look. An almond shaped eye means more specifically a
triangular eye, which is an essential element in the facial expression.}

^{The tail
is another very distinctive feature which separates the traditional type from
the Western type. In this case, it is unusual that Western judges tend to
interpret the standard very broadly and at times close their eyes on the
requirement of the tails. The key words are ¡§Thick and round at the root,
tapering to a fine point¡¨. This ¡§tapering to a fine point¡¨ need
to be strictly enforced if it needs to be a good Shar-pei. ¡§A fine point¡¨
means it is almost sharp and pointed and there can be no other interpretation
for this.}

^Tail

^{There are several
types of tail. The most common are the curl, and double ring; this can be a
big or a small curl. The tail must be firm and tightly over the hip.}

^{Thick and round
at the root, tapering to a fine point is implied here as a preferred tail.}

^{Thick and
round at the root, tapering to a fine point. May be carried high and
curved, carried in tight curl or curved over or to either side of the back.}

^{The tail is
set very high, a characteristic feature of the breed.}

^{This feature
is usually disregarded in most judging in shows.}

^{This is written even in the
Nr.309/1999 Western type meat-mouth Shar-pei standard but this is not strictly
enforced. For the traditional type breeders here in China and Hong Kong, they
refer to the different types of tail by object names such as spear, sickle,
hook, and coin. Except for the coin which means a double coiled tail, all the
other descriptions are sharp pointed objects. Western judges will not hesitate
to select a Champion even the hair on the tail is quite long. "Tapering to
a fine point¨ is not upheld at all for Western type Shar-pei, but this is
of utmost importance when referring to a traditional Shar-pei.}

^{Finally
the wrinkles. The word “wrinkle¨ is the curse for Shar-pei from day one when it
became known to the world. The skin happens to be loosely attached to the body
but not to such extend as wrinkled and folded all over the body. Basically by
appearance, the skin should be well fitted onto the body with a little fold at
the withers and some decorative wrinkles on the forehead. Shar-pei originally
has nothing to do with the wrinkles. The wrinkled image is mainly a Western
market creation.}

^Wrinkles	^{In the adult dog pronounced wrinkles are only allowed over the forehead and withers.}	^{Folds of skin on body in mature dogs highly undesirable except on withers and base of tail, which show moderate wrinkling.}
¡@	^{Wrinkles on the forehead must be apparent but must not obstruct the eyes...The wrinkles on the forehead form a marking which resembles the Chinese Symbol for Longevity.}	^{Wrinkles on forehead and cheeks continuing to form dewlap.}
¡@	^{... loose skin around the throat. The loose skin should not be excessive. Excessive skin around the body in adults is most undesirable.}	^{The loose skin under the neck should not be excessive.}
¡@	^{Slight fold of skin on withers.}	^{Wrinkles over skull and withers.}

Vladimir.Uno

WoodCrafts & Slavic Gods and Art & SharPei Breed Manual

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Shar Pei Standards

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