[Guest]

I posted this on one other board as well

I thought this would be a nice thread for newbies to the conformation world like myself. I think I've caught on to a lot of the lingo used, but I know I'm still scratching my head sometimes at some of the terms used.

Feel free to post answers/explanations or post other terms that you can think of that might be puzzling. Some of these are probably obvious, but I know when I very first started out, it all seemed foreign to me. Some of these have obvious meanings, but perhaps those of you who are excellent conformation people can explain what a judge is looking for in reference to the term (make sense??)

Head planes -

Topline-

Tail set...good, high, low -

Clean through the throat-

Straight in the forearm-

Short in the forearm-

Tied in at the elbows-

Shoulder lay-back-

Good width of chest-

Well developed/under developed keel/prosternum-

well let-down hocks-

Good rear angles/poor rear angles-

Well developed/under developed Hind thigh/second thigh-

Wide nostriled nose-

Short coupled-

Arched loin-

Correct coat-

Blown coat/out of coat-

Long in the stifle-

Stop-

Flat feet-

Well knuckled feet-

Turned in hock-

Cowhocked-

Easty Westy-

Well-sprung body-

Ewe neck-

Sloping croup-

Well, that's a lot, so a big thanks for anyone who takes the time to answer any of them! I'm a total novice, so sorry if any of them are dumb

 

[ZRL]

Topline = running from the dog's shoulders to rump...their back.
Clean through the throat - I think that means the dog doesn't have excessive skin and jowls around there

Umm...

Stop - the spot in front of the eyes where the head transitions to the muzzle.
Cowhocked - hocks turn inward
Easty westy - front feet point outwards instead of straight ahead
Ewe neck - when the neck dips in the middle...like how a jump-rope hangs (only obviously not QUITE to that extent, lol).


As you probably know, I'm not a conformation person....so take my words with a grain (or two) of salt.

 

[Tatyana]

Great thread/idea. I think a lot of these terms are talked about in books like K-9 Structure & Terminology, The Dog in Action, the books by Mary Roslin Williams. But here is my crack at decyphering the terms (please, correct me if I'm wrong):

Head planes - First plane runs on the top of the muzzle and second plane is the front half of the skull. These planes in a Labradors need to be parallel (as opposed to a Pointer -- converging at the nose, and a Flat Coat -- diverging from the nose).

Topline- usually from the low point of withers to the tail.

Tail set...good, high, low - For a Labrador, a good tail set is a continuation of the topline. Often low tail set accompanies sloping croup.

Clean through the throat- The silhouette line shows no curves in the throat, it goes straight from under the lower jaw into the sternum.

Straight in the forearm- Forearm, as far as I know, is a reference to radius and ulna bones. I think what you're talking about is straight humerus, maybe some call it straight forearm. This means the angle formed by the line from the shoulder-humerus joint to the top of the ulna (ie, point of elbow). The angle in Labrador and most other breeds should be 90 degrees. Certain terriers require about 120-degree angle (straight upperarm) because the goal is to shorten the humerus to allow for digging (eg, Fox Terrier).

Short in the forearm- (again, I think this is supposed to be short in the upper arm) Same as short humerus, by making it shorter the angle between the shoulder blade and the upper arm expands making for a less efficient movement.

Tied in at the elbows- Often happens to the dogs when shoulder blades are not positioned perpendicular to the ground, elbows are really close to the body, causing inefficient movement.

Shoulder lay-back- The angle of the shoulder blade to the ground. The most efficient movement is achieved when the angle is 45 degrees.

Good width of chest- Labradors need wide strong chest to help them part the ground cover and water when working. It should not be as wide as a Bulldog but should be wider than racing breeds.

Well developed/under developed keel/prosternum- When you look at a dog from the side, you should be able to see the "keel." I personally think people go for overpronounced keel nowadays.

well let-down hocks-

Good rear angles/poor rear angles-

Well developed/under developed Hind thigh/second thigh-

Wide nostriled nose- I posted that one. Labs need wide nostrils since they cool down by panting and when there is a bird in their mouths, they need to be able to intake most of their air through the nose.

Short coupled-

Arched loin-

Correct coat-

Blown coat/out of coat-

Long in the stifle-

Stop-

Flat feet-

Well knuckled feet-

Turned in hock-

Cowhocked-

Easty Westy-

Well-sprung body-

Ewe neck-

Sloping croup-

Sorry, I have to run to the Gala. I'll try to finish it later.

 

[Fallriver]

I have all of this in pictures from a judge's seminar given by Carol Coode.
I will try to find the time to post picture examples of many of these terms.

 

[WeHeartLabs]

Fall River that would be GREAT if you could do that...Thanks!