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Saint Bernard General Discussions / Re: Difference between AKC and FCI standard?
« on: February 14, 2007, 02:54:48 pm »
Ok, I contacted one of the information folks at the Saint Club of America and this is what she wrote me:
Basically, the FCI standard requires that the dogs get their height from their legs; in other words they do not want big bodied dogs on short legs. Our standard calls for a 50/50 relationship between body depth and leg length while theirs is more 45/55. We all like our Saints to have good leg length and there are many dogs in this country that fail to meet even the 50/50 ratio and that is just not right. It was put quite well once when someone said a Saint should remind you or a horse, not a cow! So, any dog with a body depth (measured from the top of the wither, right behind where the neck blends into the back, to the bottom of the chest wall) that equals the leg length (measured from the elbow to the bottom of the foot while standing) is in good proportion for the AKC standard and will appear to be a tall dog. The problem that we see with many FCI dogs is that they are so leggy that they have lost the “powerful and imposing” look and take on the characteristic s of a Great Dane instead. Also, a good Saint should be “square”, in other words, he should be as tall from the withers to the ground as he is long from the front of his chest to the last boney projection of his rump. Too many of our dogs, both AKC and FCI are too long and it throws off the proper proportions. One of the other differences deals with eye color, we call for dark brown only and they allow lighter brown. This is no big deal as it is not something that will affect the soundness and health of the dog. I haven’t had the two standards side-by-side for comparison for some time, but don’t really remember anything else that significantly changes the dogs. Many US dogs are imported to Europe and South America because they found they need the bulkiness they have lost in their long pursuit of height. As this trend continues, the two styles of Saint will come even closer. To sum it up: AKC dogs need more leg length and shorter bodies; FCI dogs need more bulk and soundness. When I see the European Saints, I think of a 7-year old girl walking in her mother’s high heeled shoes; too many of them are spindly, lack power and have poor movement
So I am content. I've got a bit of context in language that I can understand!! Very nice folks there at that club.
Basically, the FCI standard requires that the dogs get their height from their legs; in other words they do not want big bodied dogs on short legs. Our standard calls for a 50/50 relationship between body depth and leg length while theirs is more 45/55. We all like our Saints to have good leg length and there are many dogs in this country that fail to meet even the 50/50 ratio and that is just not right. It was put quite well once when someone said a Saint should remind you or a horse, not a cow! So, any dog with a body depth (measured from the top of the wither, right behind where the neck blends into the back, to the bottom of the chest wall) that equals the leg length (measured from the elbow to the bottom of the foot while standing) is in good proportion for the AKC standard and will appear to be a tall dog. The problem that we see with many FCI dogs is that they are so leggy that they have lost the “powerful and imposing” look and take on the characteristic s of a Great Dane instead. Also, a good Saint should be “square”, in other words, he should be as tall from the withers to the ground as he is long from the front of his chest to the last boney projection of his rump. Too many of our dogs, both AKC and FCI are too long and it throws off the proper proportions. One of the other differences deals with eye color, we call for dark brown only and they allow lighter brown. This is no big deal as it is not something that will affect the soundness and health of the dog. I haven’t had the two standards side-by-side for comparison for some time, but don’t really remember anything else that significantly changes the dogs. Many US dogs are imported to Europe and South America because they found they need the bulkiness they have lost in their long pursuit of height. As this trend continues, the two styles of Saint will come even closer. To sum it up: AKC dogs need more leg length and shorter bodies; FCI dogs need more bulk and soundness. When I see the European Saints, I think of a 7-year old girl walking in her mother’s high heeled shoes; too many of them are spindly, lack power and have poor movement
So I am content. I've got a bit of context in language that I can understand!! Very nice folks there at that club.