Dog Term Glossary
A
Action- Gait of dog, the way it walks, trots or runs.
Angulation- The angle at which the bones meet the joint; applied especially to the
shoulder, hip, stifle and hock joints.
Apple head- Round or dome-shaped skull.
Arm band- A stiff paper band bearing the number of your entry, worn around the left
arm.
B
Back- The vertebrae between the shoulder and the tail.
Bad mouth- Crooked or unaligned teeth; jaw over- or undershot in excess of what is
required by the standard for a particular breed.
Bait- Goodies used to keep a dog alert in the ring. Usually cooked liver.
Baiting- Tantalizing a dog with a tidbit to make him “show”.
Balance- Over-all proportion of the dog, indicating the symmetry of its conformation.
Bandy legs- Hocks turned outward, the opposite formation from cow-hocks. Bandy
legs are a serious faults in all breeds and are frequently the result of rickets.
Bat ears- Large, erect ears, such as those like a French Bulldog.
Beard- The profuse whisker growth on the muzzle and chin.
Barrel ribs- Ribs that follow a circular line of approximately the same arc from the
brisket back along spinal column; barrel-shaped.
Beefy- Grossly overdeveloped.
Benched- Type of dog show where all enteritis must remain on display on their
predesignate benches during show hours.
Bitch- The female of the dog species.
Bitchy- Over-refined male.
Bite- Relation between the upper and lower teeth when jaws are closed.
Blaze- White or colored streak down center of head between eyes.
Blocky- Square formation of head.
Bloom- Coat in healthy, lustrous condition.
Bodied up- Mature; well developed.
Bossy- Padded with superfluous muscular development, especially over shoulder and
upper arm.
Breeching- Tan-colored hair inside thighs.
Brindle- Irregular black-striped coat markings on a lighter colored background, usually
fawn, red, blue or brown.
Brisket- Lower part of the rib cage between the forelegs, the depth or shallowness of
which is usually judged in relationship to the elbows.
Burr- Inner formation of ear.
Butterfly nose- A nose spotted or speckled with flesh color.
Buttocks- Fleashy part of rump.
Botton ear- Ear folding forward, tip close to skull, leather short.
C
Camel back- A roach back of which the curve begins at the withers and extends over
the loin.
Canines- Two upper and two lower fang-like teeth just behind incisors.
Cat-foot- Short, round, compact, highly- arched foot.
Chalking- Altering the natural color or texture of a dog’s coat by means of chemicals or
dyes, or by using any foreign substance such as chalk, hence the name.
Champion of Record- A dog having won the prescribed number of points needed, whose title has been verified by official club.
Character- A dog’s personality and disposition, as identified with its breed.
Cheek- Fleshy part of side of head below eyes, back and above mouth.
Cheeky- Round, protruding cheeks.
Chest- The rib cage; the forepart of the body between the shoulder blades, extending
to the last rib.
Chiseled- Clean-cut in head, particularly beneath eyes.
Chops- Pendulous jaw.
Cloddy- Thick set or overly heavy. Used to denote dogs lacking grace and liberty.
Close behind- Moving with hocks close together, but not necessarily cow-hocked.
Close-coupled- Short from last rib to hip bones.
Coarse- Lacking in refinement; cloddy.
Cobby- Short-bodied; compact.
Collar- Marking around neck, usually white.
Common- Lacking elegance; not typical; coarse.
Conformation- Physical make-up.
Coupling- Length of body, long or short, best indicated by the distance between the
last rib and the hip bones.
Cow-hocked- Weak hock joints turned in toward each other, causing feet to turn out.
Crabbing- Same as sidewheeling.
Crated- A dog confined to its crate.
Crest- Upper arched point of neck.
Cropped- The ear leather trimmed to a point and standing erect.
Croup- The rear portion of the back above the tail.
Crown- Highest part of skull.
Cryptorchid- Male with neither testicle descended and visible, a disqualification.
Cushion- Fullness of upper lips.
D
Dew claws- Extra claws inside the legs.
Dewlap- Loose skin under throat.
Dish-faced- Nose higher at the tip than at stop, with slight concave line between.
Disqualification- Disciplinary action taken against an exhibitor, either to bar him from
future competition or to nullify any award made at a show with an infraction was
committed.
Distemper teeth- Discolored, pitted teeth, generally the aftereffect of a bout of
distemper, an acceptable but undesirable condition rarely penalized unless
accompanied by deformity.
Domed- Evenly rounded topskull.
Double handling- Keeping the dog alert during the judging by having someone attract
its attention from outside the ring.
Down-faced- Muzzle tilting downward, Roman nose.
Down in pastern- Weak or faulty pastern joints; flat-footed.
Drive- A solid thrusting action of the hind quarters, denoting sound locomotion.
Drop ears- Long, soft, pendulous ears that hang flat and close to head.
Dry neck- Skin taut, neither loose nor wrinkled.
Dudly nose- Flesh- or liver-coated nose.
Dumped- Applied to a favored dog that has not placed.
E
Elbows- Joint between upper arm and forearm.
Elbowing out- Turning elbows out from the body; not held close to sides.
Entire- Having two testicles descended in the scrotum.
Even bite- Meeting of front teeth at edges with no overlap of upper or lower teeth.
Ewe-necked- Cancave curvature of neck line; weak neck.
Expression- General appearance of the head, eyes and ears denoting alertness and
intelligence.
F
Faking- The use of unethical or prohibited artificial means to remove or hide natural
defects.
Fault- Any characteristic that deviates from the “ideal” as expressed in the breed
Standard.
Fiddle face- Long, thin, snipey, pinched foreface.
Fill- Fullness beneath the eyes; not chiseled out.
Flank- The lower part of the body between the last rib and the hips.
Flat-sided- Flat in ribs; lacking proper roundness through ribs, chest.
Flews- Lips which are pendulous, particularly at inner corners.
Flicking pasterns- A extremely loose movement at the lower forelegs, considered a
fault in all breeds.
Forearm- Foreleg between elbows and pastern.
Foreface- Muzzle in front of eyes.
French front- Forelegs close together at the pasterns and sticking out at the elbows,
with the front feet out at a 45-degree angle, a bad fault in most breeds.
Front- Forepart of body, forelegs, chest, brisket, shoulders.
Full eye- Round, slightly protruding eye.
Fun match- A popular match that has no real point value, but great for training.
G
Gait- Leg action when a dog is moving in any designated manner.
Gay tail- Tail carried over back line.
Grizzle- Intermingling of white hairs with a base coat.
H
Hackney- An abnormally high action of the front legs, usually indicating lack of drive.
Harefoot- Long, close-toed, narrow foot.
Harsh coat- Stiff, wiry coat.
Haw- Third eyelid inside the inner corner of the eye.
Height- Measurement from withers to ground.
High stationed- Tall and upstanding with plenty of leg.
Hip Dysplasia- Hip Dysplasia and subluxation refer to wide aspects of congenial
abnormalities to the hip joint, such as deformed head of femur, or an enlargement or
shallowing of the acetabulum, creating a loosely fitting joint and resulting in varying
degrees of lameness and immobility.
Hocks- The area between the hock joint and the foot.
Hound ears- Long, pendulous leathers.
Hound marks- Tri-color; white, tan and black.
Huckle bones- Top of hipbones.
J
Jacket- The tight body coat of a terrier.
Jowls- Flesh of lips and jaws.
K
Kinked tail- Sharply bent tail.
Knucked over- Bent out at the pasterns.
L
Layback of shoulder- Angle of the scapula bone in relation to the forearm.
Leather- Ear flap.
Leggy- Extremely long-legged.
Level bite- Front teeth of the upper and lower jaws meeting edge to edge.
Loaded shoulders- Overdeveloped of shoulder muscles.
Loin- Region on either side of vertebral column between last ribs and hindquarters.
Loose leash- Dog under minimum restraint.
Loose movement- Erratic action due to poor muscle development.
Low-set- Base of tail not on straight line with back, set lower or below level of topline.
Low-set ears- Ears set or attached to side of head rather than on top.
Low-slung- Close to the ground; short legged.
Lower thigh- Stifle to hock.
Lumber- Overweight.
Lumbering- Moving in a ungainly manner.
M
Mantle- Darker part of coat on shoulders, back and sides.
Mask- The black muzzle on certain breeds.
Monorchid- A male dog with only one testicle descended into the scrotum, a
disqualification.
Muzzle- The foreface below the eye, nasal bone, nostril and jaws.
N
Nosril- External opening of nose.
O
Objection- A protest lodged against a exhibit for a supposed infraction.
Occiput- Highest point of the back skull.
Otter tail- Tail thick at root, round, and tapering, hair parted or divided on underside.
Out at elbows- Elbows visibly turned out from the body.
Out at shoulders- Loosely jointed shoulder blades.
Overhang- Heavy, pronounced brow.
Overshot- Front teeth of upper jaw overlapping front teeth of under jaw when mouth is
closed.
P
Pacing- Moving the legs on each side of the body simultaneously in the same
direction.
Paddling- A loose, flickering motion of the forelegs, denoting lack of reach.
Parti-color- Variegated in patches of two or more colors.
Pastern- Bones forming joint between radius and ulna; metacarpals between forearm
and top of foot.
Penciling- Black lines dividing tan on toes.
Pigeon-toed- Toes turning in or pointing toward each other.
Pincer bite- Front teeth meet edge to edge.
Plain- Nondescript, unappealing.
Points- Color on face, ears, legs, tails, usually white, black or tan.
Poke- To carry the neck stretched forward in an abnormally low, ungainly position,
usually when moving.
Poor- Out of condition.
Pricked ears- Ears that are naturally erect.
Punishing- Relates to strong, powerful jaws.
Put down- To condition or prepare for the show ring; also means unplaced in
competition.
Q
Quit- To stop “showing” before the judging of the class is finished.
R
Racy- Long-legged, and of comparatively slight built.
Rangy- Long-bodied, usually lacking depth in chest.
Rat tail- Tail thick at the root, tapering to a fine point, the tip devoid of hair.
Reach of front- The length of forward stride taken by the forelegs without excessive or
wasted motion. Not to be confused with hackneying.
Ring steward- The judge’s factotum, responsible for organizing the competitors for the judge and giving out arm bands.
Ring tail- Tail carried up and around, almost in circle.
Roach back- Convex curvature of back toward loin.
Roan- Fine mixture of colored hair with white hair.
Rocking horse- Both the front and rear legs extended out from the body after the
fashion of an old-time rocking horse.
Rolling gait- Swaying, ambling action of the hind quarters while moving.
Roman nose- High bridge forming slightly convex line from the forehead to nose tip.
Rose ear- A small drop ear, folding over and back to reveal the burr.
Running sheet- Judging schedule.
S
Saber tail- Tail carried low and curving slightly at the end.
Sable- Lacing of black hair in or over lighter base color.
Saddle- Black marking over back.
Scapula- Shoulder blade.
Scissors bite- Upper teeth slightly projecting beyond lower teeth, fitting tightly like
scissors.
Screw tail- Short tail naturally twisted in spiral formation.
Skully- Thick and coarse thru skull.
Second thigh- Hindquarters from stifle to hock.
Self-color- One color or whole color except for lighter shadings.
Semi-prick ears- Erect ears folded at the tip.
Set up- A dog that has been stacked.
Shelly- Narrow chest lacking in depth and substance.
Shown free- Refers to a dog being handled on a loose lead.
Sickle tail- Tail carried out and up in semi-circle.
Sidewheeling- Moving diagonally, with the feet out of line; also referred to as
“crabbing”.
Slab-sided- Flat-ribbed.
Snipey- Weak, pointed muzzle.
Soundness- The state of the dog’s mental and physical condition.
Sparring- Allowing two dogs to face up to each other, to test their mettle. Usually
favored by terrier judges.
Spayed- Female whose ovaries have been removed surgically.
Spectacles- Shadings or dark markings over or around eyes, or from eyes to ears.
Spinner- A dog that continually spins around in a tight circle.
Spring of ribs- Degree of rib roundness.
Square- Height at withers equal of the length from withers to rump.
Squirrel tail- Tail carried curving forward over the back.
Stacking- Posing the dog in such a way as to improve his/her appearance.
Stifle- Joint of hind leg between thigh and second thigh; the knee portion of the rear
leg.
Stilted- Choppy up-and-down gait associated with steep shoulder and straight stifles.
Stop- Step-up from the nose to skull, or indentation between eyes where nasal bone
and skull meet.
Straight-hocked- Little or no angulation at the hock joints; straight behind.
Straight in pastern- Little or no bend between joint and foot.
Straight in shoulder- Insufficient angulation between shoulder and upper arm.
Strung up- A dog hel on an abnormally tight leash, either while moving or in a
stationary position.
Substance- Bone throughout.
Swayback- Back sagging in the middle; a weak back.
T
Team- Four of a kind in same breed.
Throatiness- Excess loose skin under throat.
Thumb-marks- Black spots on pasterns.
Ticked- Comparatively small isolated areas of black or colored hair on white ground.
Timber- Bone, especially of legs.
Topline- The back, from the withers to the tail.
To get up- To prepare for exhibition.
To pass over- TO ignore.
To put up- To award first place to usually Best of Breed or Best in Show competition.
To show- To give a eye-catching performance during judging.
Trace- Dark stripe down back.
Tricolor- Three-color, white, black and tan.
Trim- To remove surplus hair to improve the appearance.
Tuck-up- Belly tucked up under loins; small waisted.
Typey- Displaying the essential distinguishing qualities of any given breed as
relating to the Standard of that breed.
U
Undershot- Front teeth of the lower jaw overlapping or projecting beyond front teeth of
upper jaw when mouth is closed.
W
Walleye- Blue eye.
Weedy- Lacking sufficient amount of bone.
Weight to the rear- A method of improving the appearance of a dog’s action by
keeping the leash so taut that the front feet barley touch the ground. When done
correctly, the dog appears to have good reach of front and drive behind.
Well let down- Having short hocks.
Wet neck- Loose and superfluous skin; with dewlap.
Whiskers- Long hairs on chin and muzzle.
Withers- Peak of first dorsal vertebrae; highest part of body just behind the neck.
Wrinkles- Loose, folding skin on forehead and /or foreface.
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times since 2001.
