Breed standard
General Appearance: Strong, upstanding, with a degree of elegance. Distinctive coat.
Characteristics: Intelligence, steady, reliable.
Temperament: Bold, friendly, self confident and independent. May seem aloof.
Head & Skull: Head wedge-shaped in both side and front profiles. In proportion to body size. Slight stop. Foreface and skull equal length. Planes of skull and muzzle parallel. Nose black in blacks and brown in livers.
Eyes: Large, not prominent, oval-shaped, obliquely set. Dark brown in blacks, in livers brown tone to blend with coat colour.
Ears: Rather small, set slightly above level of eye, lying close to head, covered with small curls.
Mouth: Jaws strong, with perfect regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping teeth and set square to jaws.
Neck: Strong and slightly arched, of medium length, free from throatiness and flowing freely into well laid back shoulders.
Forequarters: Shoulders well laid back and muscular. Upper arm and shoulder blade approximately equal length. Forelegs straight with strong pasterns and set well under body.
Body: Chest deep with well sprung ribs, oval in cross section with brisket reaching elbow. Forechest visible. Ribs extend well back into short, deep and powerful loin. Slight tuck up to flank. Topline strong and level. The dog should be slightly longer in body measured from point of shoulder to point of buttock than in height from withers to ground.
Hindquarters: Strong, muscular. Moderate turn of stifle. Hocks well let down and well bent.
Feet: Round, tight with well-arched toes.
Tail: Flows from topline. Should reach approximately to hock: carried straight on a level with topline when moving.
Gait/Movement: Effortless, powerful gait with good extension and drive. Parallel movement. At speed, legs tend to converge.
Coat: Body coat a thick mass of small tight, crisp curls lying close to skin, extending from occiput to tip of tail: without undercoat or bare patches. Elsewhere hair smooth.
Colour: Black or liver.
Size: Ideal height at withers: Dogs 69 cms (27 ins), Bitches 64 cms (25 ins).
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 and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog.
Note: Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.