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Kennel Club Toy Group
Long Coat/Short Coat
Chihuahua Breed Standard
Last Updated - January 2009 under review
until Jun 2009
General Appearance
Small, dainty, compact.
Characteristics
Alert little dog; swift-moving with brisk, forceful action and saucy
expression.
Temperament
Gay, spirited and intelligent, neither snappy nor withdrawn.
Head and Skull
Well rounded ‘apple dome’ skull, cheeks and jaws lean, muzzle moderately
short, slightly pointed. Definite stop.
Eyes
Large, round, but not protruding; set well apart; centre of eye is on a
plane with lowest point of ear and base of stop; dark or ruby. Light
eyes in light colours permissible.
Ears
Large, flaring, set on at an angle of approximately 45 degrees; giving
breadth between ears. Tipped or broken down highly undesirable.
Mouth
Jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e.
upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Neck
Slightly arched, medium length.
Forequarters
Shoulders well laid; lean, sloping into slightly broadening support
above straight forelegs, set well under chest giving freedom of movement
without looseness.
Body
Level back. Body, from point of shoulder to rear point of croup,
slightly longer than height at withers. Well sprung ribs, deep brisket.
Hindquarters
Muscular; hocks well let down, with good turn of stifle, well apart,
turning neither in nor out.
Feet
Small and dainty, turning neither in nor out; toes well divided but not
spread, pads cushioned, fine, strong, flexible pasterns. Neither hare-
nor cat-like, nails moderately short.
Tail
Medium length, set high, carried up and over back (sickle tail). When
moving never tucked under or curled below the topline. Furry, flattish
in appearance, broadening slightly in centre and tapering to point.
Gait/Movement
Brisk, forceful action, neither high-stepping nor hackney; good reach
without slackness in forequarters, good drive in hindquarters. Viewed
from front and behind legs should move neither too close nor too wide,
with no turning in or out of feet or pasterns. Topline should remain
firm and level when moving.
Coat
Long Coat: soft texture (never coarse or harsh to touch) either
flat or slightly wavy. Never tight and curly. Feathering on ears, feet
and legs, pants on hindquarters, large ruff on neck desirable. Tail long
and full as a plume.
Smooth Coat: smooth, of soft texture, close and glossy, with
undercoat and ruff permissible.
Colour
Any colour or mixture of colours - but never merle (dapple).
Size
Weight: up to 2.7 kgs (6 lbs), with 1.8 - 2.7 kgs (4 - 6 lbs) preferred.
[Delete - If two dogs are equally good in type, the more diminutive
preferred].
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.
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Fédération Cynologique
Internationale
Companion & Toy Group
Chihuahua Breed Standard
March 24, 2004 Effective
September 2004
History
The Chihuahua is regarded as the smallest pedigree dog in the
world and carries the name of the largest state of the Mexican
Republic (Chihuahua). One assumes that these dogs used to live in
the wild and, at the time of the Toltec civilization, were captured
and domesticated by the natives. Representations of a Toy dog called
« Techichi » which lived in Tula, were used as decorations on town
architecture. These statues are very similar to the present day
Chihuahua.
GENERAL APPEARANCE: This dog has a compact body. Of great
importance is the fact that his skull is apple-shaped and that he
carries his moderately long tail very high, either curved or forming
the shape of a semicircle with the tip pointing towards the loin
region.
IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: Length of body slightly greater than
height at withers. Desired, however, is an almost square body,
especially in males. In bitches, because of the function of
reproduction, a slightly longer body is permitted.
BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT: Quick, alert, lively and very
courageous.
HEAD
CRANIAL REGION: Skull: Well rounded apple head ( a
characteristic of the breed) preferably without a fontanel although
a small one is allowed. Stop: Well marked, deep and
broad as the forehead is bulging over the set-on of muzzle.
FACIAL REGION:
Nose: Any colour permitted. Moderately short, pointing
slightly upwards. Muzzle: Short, straight seen from
side, broad at set-on, tapering towards the tip. Lips:
Lean and close fitting. Cheeks: Only slightly
developed, very clean. Jaws/Teeth: Scissor or pincer
bite. Overshot, undershot, as well as any other anomaly in position
of upper or lower jaw must be strictly penalized. Eyes:
Large, roundish in shape, very expressive, not protruding, perfectly
dark. Light eyes permissible, but not desired. Ears:
Large, upright, widely open, broad at set-on, gradually tapering
towards their slightly rounded point. In repose inclined laterally
forming an angle of 45°.
NECK: Upper profile slightly arched. Length:
Medium length. Shape: Thicker in dogs than in bitches.
Skin: Without dewlap. In the long-haired variety, the
presence of a neck-ruff with longer hair is highly desirable.
BODY: Compact and well built. Topline: Level.
Withers: Only slightly marked. Back: Short and
firm. Loin: Strongly muscled. Croup: Broad
and strong; almost flat or slightly sloping. Chest:
Ribcage broad and deep, ribs well sprung. Seen from front, roomy but
not exaggerated. Seen from side, reaching to elbows. Not barrel
shaped. Lower Line: Formed by a clearly tucked up
belly. Slack belly is permitted but not desired.
TAIL: Set on high, flat in appearance, of moderate length;
broad at root, tapering gradually towards the tip. Tail carriage is
an important characteristic of the breed : when the dog is moving it
is carried either high in a curve or in a semicircle with tip
towards the loin region, which gives balance to the body, it should
never be carried between the hindlegs nor curled below the backline.
The hair on the tail depends on the variety and is in harmony with
the body coat. In the long haired variety, the tail coat forms a
plume. Tail is pendant in repose and forms a slight hook.
LIMBS - FOREQUARTERS: Forelegs straight and of good length;
seen from the front, they form a straight line with the elbows. Seen
from the side, they are upright. Shoulders: Clean and
moderately muscled. Good angulation between shoulder-blade and upper
arm. Elbows: Firm and fitting close to body which
ensures free movement. Pasterns: Slightly sloping,
strong and flexible.
HINDQUARTERS: Hindlegs well muscled with long bones, vertical
and parallel to each other with good angulation at hip, knee and
hock joints, in harmony with angulation of forequarters.
Hocks: Short with well developed Achilles’ tendons; seen from
rear, they are well apart straight and vertical.
FEET: Very small and oval with toes well apart but not
splayed (neither hare- nor cat-foot). Nails particularly well arched
and moderately long. Pads well developed and very elastic. Dewclaws
must be removed except in countries where this practice is forbidden
by law.
GAIT / MOVEMENT: Steps are long, springy, energetic and
active with good reach and drive. Seen from rear, hind legs should
move almost parallel to each other, so that the foot prints of the
hind feet fit directly into those of the front feet. With increasing
speed, the limbs show a tendency to converge towards the centre
point of gravity (single track). Movement remains free and springy
without visible effort, head raised and back firm.
SKIN: Smooth and elastic all over body.
COAT - HAIR: In this breed there are two varieties of coat.
Smooth-haired: Coat is short, lying close all over body. If
there is an undercoat, the hair is somewhat longer; sparse coat on
throat and belly permissible; slightly longer on neck and tail,
short on face and ears. Coat is glossy and its texture is soft.
Hairless dogs are not tolerated.
Longed-haired: Coat should be fine and silky, smooth or
slightly wavy. Not too thick undercoat desired. Coat is longer,
forming feathering on ears, neck, rear of front and hind legs, on
feet and on tail. Dogs with long billowing coat will not be
accepted.
COLOUR: All colours in all possible shades and combinations
are admitted.
WEIGHT: In this breed only the weight is taken into
consideration, not the height.
Ideal weight : between 1.5 and 3 kg.
However, dogs between 500 gr and 1.5 kg are accepted.
Subjects weighing more than 3 kg shall be disqualified.
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.
Missing teeth. “Double teeth” (persistence of temporary teeth).
Deformed jaws. Pointed ears. Short neck. Long
body. Roach or hollow back (Lordosis or Kyphosis). Steep
croup. Narrow chest, flat ribcage. Tail : incorrect
set-on, short or twisted. Short limbs. Out at elbow.
Too close behind.
SEVERE FAULTS: Narrow skull. Eyes small, deep set or
protruding. Long muzzle. Under or overshot mouth.
Patella luxation.
ELIMINATING FAULTS: Aggressive or overly shy. Deer type
dogs (dogs with an atypical or extremely stylized structure: refined
head, long neck, slender body, long limbs). Dogs with a
large fontanel. Drop ear or short ear. Extremely long
body. Absence of tail.
Long-
haired variety: Dogs with very long, fine and billowing coat.
Smooth-haired variety : Bald patch (alopecia).
Weight over 3 kg.
Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall
be disqualified.
N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles
fully descended into the scrotum.
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