Dalmatians are medium-sized, short coated dogs. The accepted size is between
19-24 inches at the shoulder. Weight ranges from 40-70 pounds. Females are generally smaller than males. Today, many Dalmatians are much larger than the accepted breed standard. Males can be seen as large as 27 inches and weigh 90 pounds. In Great Britain, Dalmatians are usually larger than in the States. The Dalmatian is built for long distance endurance. It is well-muscled, without being coarse, with a capacious, deep chest. The coat is quite short and predominantly white with distinctive round spots in either black or liver (brown). The spots range in diameter from the size of a dime to the size of a half-dollar. Some Dalmatians have one or more 'patches'. These are large unbroken areas of black or brown. Though the spots are already present at birth, Dalmatians are born with pure white fur, unless patched. These patches are silky large areas of black or brown. Patches disqualify a Dal from the conformation show ring, but have no impact on the dog's quality as pet. Many pet owners find patches to be very attractive. Other physical disqualifications in ring are over size (over 24") and undersize (under 19"). Other (disqualifying) spotting colors is being tri colored. Tri-coloration is where both black and liver colored spots exist on the same dog.
