Canine Terminology

wolf Action - Movement

Anal Glands - Sacs located on each side of the rectum

Apron - Longer hair on the chest below the neck

Back - Arched over the loins - a level back which then arches over the loins

Level back - height at the withers is the same as height at the loins

Long back - Distance from withers to rump is much longer than height of dog to the withers (e.g. Dachshund)

Roach back - slight arch over the loin

Sloping back - height at withers is greater than height at the loins (e.g. German Shepherd Dog)

Straight back - no dip between withers and loins (e.g. English Toy Terrier)

Wheel back - continuous arch from withers to tail (e.g. Bedlington)

Bay - Cry of a hunting dog, in particular the hound.

Beard - Long hair under jaw and on muzzle

Belton - Coloured hair mingled with white

Bitch - female dog

Blenheim - Particular chestnut and white colour of King Charles and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels

Bi-coloured - Two colours in coat

Blaze - White strip running down the centre of the face

Bowed front - forelegs curving out from elbows then in to wrist (e.g. Pekingese)

Brindle - Fine strips of black hair evenly dispersed on lighter colour on coat

Canines - long, stabbing teeth placed either side of the incisors

Castration - neutering of male dog (removal of testicles)

Cat feet - round, compact feet with well arched and tightly bunched toes. Deeply cushioned, thick skinned pads.

Cobby - a dog which is strong but compact (e.g. Pug)

Couple - two hounds

Crooked front - forelegs inclining inwards and slightly curved (e.g. Basset hound)

Cross breeding - Breeding bitch of one breed with male dog of another breed

Dam - mother dog

Dew Claws - Fifth digits, found on the inside of the leg - often removed from puppies

Dewlap - Loose skin under throat

Dock - amputation of whole or part of the tail

Domino - a reverse facial mask.

Double coat - Weather-resistant outer coat with softer, insulating undercoat.

Ears Bat ears - fully erect, wide, forward facing and broad at base (e.g. Cardigan Corgi)

Blunt tipped ears - Round tipped as opposed to pointed ears (e.g. Chow Chow)

Button ears - Semi erect, folded ears

Candle flame ears - large, wide, erect and pointed ears specific to the English Toy Terrier

Cocked ears - Semi erect, similar to button ears but with just the tip folded

Cropped ears - surgical removal of part of the ear, practiced in the USA but, thankfully, forbidden in the UK

Drop ears - ears which hand down from the junction with the head

Filbert shaped ears - particularly used to describe the unusual shape of the Bedlington Terrier's ears

Flying ears - ears which stick out from the side of the head

Folded ears - pendant ears which hang in downward folds rather than lying flat (i.e Bloodhound)

Heart shaped ears - (e.g. Pekingese)

High set ears - ears set high to the top of the skull

Hooded ears - small ears with both edges curving forward (e.g. basenji)

Lobe shaped ears - (e.g. cocker spaniel)

Low set ears - ears set low on the skull (e.g. bloodhound)

Prick ears - Stiff, erect ears either with rounded or pointed tips

Rolled ears - long, pendant and folding ears with lower tip and edge curling in

Rose ears - Small, drop ears which fold over and back exposing inside of ear canal

Triangular ears - ears which form an equilateral triangle, pricked or dropped (e.g. Siberian Husky)

Tulip ears - Rose or semi-drop ears which are erect.

V shaped ears - long, triangular ears, usually dropped (e.g. Hungarian Vizla)

Eyes Almond eyes - oval and bluntly pointed at both corners (e.g. Borzoi)

Deep set eyes - (e.g. Chow Chow)

Globular eyes - round and prominant but not bulging in profile

Haw eyes - eyes where the inner of the lower eyelid is visible (e.g. bloodhound)

Obliquely placed eyes - where the outer corners are situated higher than the inner corners (e.g. Bull Terrier)

Oval eyes - (e.g. Dachshund)

Round eyes - circular in shape (e.g. French Bulldog)

Triangular eyes - more angular than oval (e.g. Afghan Hound)

Wall eye - incomplete flecked or spotted melanin markings on a blue iris (often found in merle coated dogs)

Feathering - Long hair on ears and/or body, legs and tail.

Femur - Thigh bone

Flecking - coat ticked with another colour

Floating ribs - unattached thirteenth and last rib

Gait - movement at various speed

Game - Wild animals and birds hunted by dogs

Gestation - period between conception and birth - average 63 days.

Giving tongue - baying of a hound pack

Guard hairs - Longer, thicker hairs which grow through the undercoat.

Gun barrel front - forelegs and pasterns straight, parallel and vertical to the ground

Hare foot - elongated foot

Harlequin - Black on white or blue on white patched or pied coat.

Head - Apple head - skull is rounded and domed (e.g. Chihuahua)

Arched skull - a skull which arches from side to side or sometimes lengthways

Balanced head - the skull and foreface are equal in length (e.g. Gordon Setter)

Brick shaped head - the skull and muzzle are equal in width (e.g. Wire Haired Fox Terrier)

Broad skull - wide between the ears in relation to the length (e.g. Golden Retriever)

Clean head - free from wrinkles and bony or muscled lumps

Cone shaped head - triangular in outline (e.g. dachshund)

Egg shaped head - the head tapers towards the nose (e.g. Bull Terrier)

Flat skull - flat from ear to ear and stop to occiput (e.g. Pointer)

Fox like head - Triangular and elongated head with fine foreface (e.g. Spitz)

Otter head - (e.g. Border Terrier)

Oval skull - gentle, curved contours from ear to ear

Pear shaped head - (e.g. Bedlington Terrier)

Long Head - a long, narrow head which tapers (e.g. Borzoi)

Ram's head - convex profile (e.g. Bull Terrier and Bedlington Terrier)

Round Head - broad, square or round, short skull

Squared off head - a square muzzle or lip shape (e.g. Pointer)

Wedge shaped head - triangular profile

Heat - Seasonal fertility of bitch

Horseshoe front - straight forelegs wider apart at the chest (e.g. Bedlington Terrier)

Humerus - largest bone in front legs

Incisors - Usually six, top and bottom, front teeth

Lachrymal glands - tear producing glands in inner corner of eye

Landseer - Black & white colouring relating to Newfoundlands

Lion clip - Traditional show clip of poodle and some other breeds.

Mask - Dark shading on face

Merle - Blue-grey colouring often flecked with black.

Molars - Back teeth (two each side in the top jaw and three each side in the bottom jaw)

Mottled - Bi-coloured coat consisting of dark patches on lighter background

Moult - shedding of coat

Muzzle - foreface in front of eyes

Nose - Butterfly nose - broken pigmentation to nose colour

Flared nostrils - wide, open nostrils (Bouvier des Flandres)

Flesh coloured nose - an even but light coloured nose (e.g. Pharaoh Hound)

Liver nose - brown pigment to nose

Pinched nostrils - narrow, closed nostrils (a fault in any breed)

Ram's Nose - straight and aquiline in profile (e.g. Deerhound)

Roman nose - convex in profile (e.g. Bull Terrier)

Self coloured nose - pigment colour the same as the coat

Winter nose - a normally black nose which in winter takes on a pinkish hue

Occiput - top point or peak of skull

Oval feet - similar to cat feet but with the two centre toes slightly longer.

Pack - number of hounds which run together

Pads - Thick skin on underside of feet

Pedigree - Proven history of dog's breeding

Pigment - colour of skin

Pips - Spots above the eyes (often referred to as eyebrows) usually found in black & tan breeds.

Plume - long hair hanging from underside of tail

Premolars - teeth between molars and canines

Pure breed - a dog with parentage of same breeds

Ridge - Strip of hair which grows in the opposite direction to the main coat

Roan - Fine mix of white hairs alternating with coloured ones

Runt - Weakest, smallest puppy of litter (often the last born)

Sable - Black-tipped hairs over different colour main coat

Saddle - Coat of different texture or colour over the back

Self coloured - coat of one basic colour

Smooth haired - short, close-lying coat

Socks/stockings - white hair covering feet (socks) or leg (stockings)

Soft mouth - a gentle grip without "teething"

Spayed - neutering of a bitch (uterus & ovaries removed)

Spectacles - lighter, circular colouring around eyes of some breeds

Sternum - Central chest bone

Stop - depression between the eyes

Racy - a dog which is streamlined and elegant in appearance (e.g. Greyhound)

Tail - Bee sting tail - a strong, straight tail which tapers to a point

Bob tail - a dog born without a tail or one which has been docked close to the connection to the body.

Brush tail - long, thick erect hair on tail (e.g. Siberian Husky)

Carrot shaped tail - (e.g. Scottish terrier)

Cocked up tail - raised at right angles (e.g. Cocker spaniel)

Crank tail - the tail is arched out from the root then hangs down and angles out at the end

Curled tail - can be a single or double curl

Docked tail - surgical removal of end of tail (now illegal if not done by a vet)

Flagpole tail - long and carried erect (e.g. Beagle)

Gay tail - carried higher than horizontal

Hook tail - hangs down with an upward curl at the tip

Horizontal tail - (e.g. Bull Terrier)

Kinked tail - a tail with a sharp bend somewhere along it's length

Low set tail - a tail which begins lower than the topline or from a sloping croup

Otter tail - strong, thick and tapering at tip

Plumed tail - long haired tail carried over the back (e.g. Pomeranian)

Pot hook tail - held over the back in an arc (e.g. Shih Tzu)

Rat tail - sparse or hairless tail (e.g. Irish Water Spaniel)

Ring tail - a long tail, all or part forming a ring

Sabre tail - carried upwards or downwards, it has a gentle curve

Scimitar tail - as the sabre tail but with a more pronounced curve

Screw tail - a short tail with a twist or spiral

Sickle tail - loosely carried over the back

Snap tail - carried over the back with the tip making contact

Squirrel tail - long and sharply angled forward but without making contact with the back

Stumpy tail - short

Sword tail - hanging straight down

Tapering tail - long, shorthaired and tapering at tip

Tufted tail - long or short with a plume or tuft at the end

Whip tail - pointed and carried out stiffly in line with back

Third eyelid - protective membrane at the inner corner of the eye which acts like a windscreen-wiper. Can be seen in sleeping dogs.

Top knot - Long hair on top of head

Tri coloured - Three coat colours together (black, tan & white)

Undercoat - Soft, thick shorter hair concealed by top coat.

Webbed feet - strong webbing between toes often found in breeds which retrieve from water

Wheaten - Fawn to pale yellow colour

Whelps - pups which are unweaned.

Wide front - wider than normal distance of chest between front legs

Wire haired - Crisp, harsh and wiry textured coat.