German Shorthaired Pointer breed standards compared
Each column is one club's published standard. An empty cell means the club says nothing on that point in our records.
Clubs compared: FCI, AKC, UKC, KC.
Size
| Measure | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Height at the withers, male | 62–66 cm | 58.4–63.5 cmover 66 cmFaultunder 55.9 cmFault | 61–66 cm | 58–64 cm |
| Height at the withers, female | 58–63 cm | 53.3–58.4 cmover 61 cmFaultunder 50.8 cmFault | 58.4–63.5 cm | 53–59 cm |
| Weight, male | No ruling | 25–31.8 kg | 25–31.8 kg | No ruling |
| Weight, female | No ruling | 20.4–27.2 kg | 20.4–27.2 kg | No ruling |
| Skull to muzzle | No ruling | 1 | 1 | No ruling |
| Shoulder angle | No ruling | No ruling | 90° | No ruling |
Conformation
| Form | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BiteScissors bite | Standard (“a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite”) | Standard (“The bite is a true scissors bite”) | Standard (“teeth meeting in a scissors bite”) | Standard (“perfect, regular and complete scissor bite”) |
| BiteLevel bite | No ruling | Fault (“A perfect level bite is not desirable and must be penalized”) | Fault (“Serious Fault: Level bite”) | No ruling |
| BiteOvershot | No ruling | Disqualifying (“Extreme overshot or undershot disqualifies”) | Disqualifying (“Disqualifications: Undershot or overshot bite”) | No ruling |
| BiteUndershot | No ruling | Disqualifying (“Extreme overshot or undershot disqualifies”) | Disqualifying (“Disqualifications: Undershot or overshot bite”) | No ruling |
| BiteWry mouth | No ruling | No ruling | Disqualifying (“Disqualifications: Undershot or overshot bite. Wry Mouth”) | No ruling |
| DentitionFull dentition | Standard (“42 sound teeth, in accordance with the teeth formula”) | No ruling | Standard (“a complete set of evenly spaced, white teeth”) | No ruling |
| StopModerate | Standard (“Stop: Moderately defined”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| StopPronounced | No ruling | Fault (“A definite Pointer stop is a serious fault”) | Fault (“Serious Fault: Pronounced stop”) | Not recognised (“never possessing a definite stop”) |
| Facial profileDished (concave) | Fault (“a concave bridge (dish-face) is a serious fault”) | Fault (“A dish-shaped muzzle is a fault”) | Fault (“Faults: Concave or dished muzzle”) | Fault (“Dish-faced and snipy muzzle undesirable”) |
| Facial profileRoman (convex) | Alternate (“from a nobly constructed ram's nose to a slight rise above the straight line”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Facial profileStraight | Alternate (“A totally straight nasal bridge, although still acceptable, is less attractive”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Muzzle shapeSnipy | No ruling | No ruling | Fault (“Faults: ... snipey muzzle”) | Fault (“Dish-faced and snipy muzzle undesirable”) |
| Ear setHigh | Standard (“EARS: Moderately long, set on high”) | Standard (“The ears are broad and set fairly high”) | No ruling | Standard (“Broad and set high”) |
| Ear carriageDrop (pendant) | Standard (“hanging down close to the head”) | Standard (“lie flat and never hang away from the head”) | Standard (“The ears are pendent ... hanging close to the head”) | Standard (“hung close to head, no pronounced fold”) |
| Ear carriageFolded | No ruling | No ruling | Fault (“Faults: ... ears permanently folded”) | No ruling |
| Ear tipRounded | Standard (“bluntly rounded at the tip”) | No ruling | Standard (“rounded at the tips”) | Standard (“rounded at tip”) |
| Eye shapeAlmond | No ruling | Standard (“The eye is almond shaped”) | Standard (“They are medium sized and almond-shaped”) | No ruling |
| Eye shapeRound | No ruling | Fault (“almond shaped, not circular”) | No ruling | No ruling |
| Eye sizeMedium | Standard (“EYES: OF medium size”) | Standard (“The eyes are of medium size”) | Standard (“They are medium sized”) | Standard (“Medium size, soft and intelligent”) |
| Eye setProminent | Fault (“neither protruding nor deep set”) | Fault (“neither protruding nor sunken”) | No ruling | Fault (“neither protruding nor too deep set”) |
| Eye setDeep-set | Fault (“neither protruding nor deep set”) | Fault (“neither protruding nor sunken”) | No ruling | Fault (“neither protruding nor too deep set”) |
| Eye setClose-set | No ruling | Fault (“Closely set eyes are to be faulted”) | No ruling | No ruling |
| Eye setWide-set | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“set in to the skull, but not too deep, and wide apart”) | No ruling |
| Neck shapeArched | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“moderately long, slightly arched”) | Standard (“Moderately long, muscular and slightly arched”) |
| DewlapNone (clean throat) | Standard (“Tight fitting skin of throat”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| DewlapSlight | No ruling | Alternate (“Moderate throatiness is permitted”) | No ruling | No ruling |
| ToplineSloping to the rear | Standard (“Topline: Straight and slightly sloping”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| ChestDeep | Standard (“Somewhat deeper than broad”) | Standard (“impression of depth rather than breadth”) | Standard (“curving down and inward to form a deep body”) | Standard (“Chest must appear deep rather than wide”) |
| ChestBarrel | Fault (“Ribs well sprung, neither flat nor barrel-shaped”) | No ruling | No ruling | Not recognised (“never barrel shaped nor flat”) |
| CroupSlightly sloping | Standard (“not abruptly slanting, but slightly slanting towards the tail”) | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“sloping gradually towards tail”) |
| Tail setHigh | Standard (“TAIL: Set high”) | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“Docked: Starts high and thick”) |
| Tail lengthMedium | Standard (“of medium length”) | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“customarily docked to medium length”) |
| Tail carriageLevel | Standard (“in movement horizontal”) | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“when moving, horizontally”) |
| Tail carriageRaised (gay) | Fault (“neither carried too high above the backline nor extremely bent”) | No ruling | No ruling | Not recognised (“Never held high over back or bent”) |
| Tail carriageSabre | Alternate (“natural ... carried straight or slightly sabre tail fashion”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| HocksStraight and parallel | Standard (“Hocks: Strong, vertical”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Rear angulationWell angulated | Standard (“Good angulations in stifles and hocks”) | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“Stifles well bent”) |
| Front angulationWell laid back | Standard (“Shoulder blades well laid back”) | No ruling | Standard (“The shoulder blades are long and well laid back”) | No ruling |
| PasternsSlightly sloping | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“Pasterns are strong, short, slightly sloping”) | Standard (“Pasterns slightly sloping”) |
Markings
| Marking | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tan points | Alternate (“Yellow tan markings are permissible”) | Disqualifying (“A dog with any area of red, orange, lemon or tan”) | Alternate (“Tan markings are permissible”) | No ruling |
| Blaze | Alternate (“Blaze, fleck and speckled flews are permissible”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Flecking | Alternate (“Blaze, fleck and speckled flews are permissible”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
Cropping, docking and other procedures
| Procedure | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tail docking | Standard (“About halfway docked for hunting purposes”) | No ruling | No ruling | Alternate (“Previously customarily docked. Docked ... Undocked”) |
The law on these procedures differs by country. A listing here says nothing about whether one is legal where you live.
German Shorthaired Pointer colors and patterns
What each club's breed standard says about every German Shorthaired Pointer color and pattern. Point at a ruling to see the club's own wording.
Breed standards describe the German Shorthaired Pointer in Black, White, Liver and Tan. Standard patterns: Solid, Bicolour, Roan, Spotted and Tan point.
| Color or pattern | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC | KUSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | Standard (“Black colour in the same nuances as the brown”) | Standard (“Black”) | Standard (“solid black”) | Standard (“solid black”) | Standard (“Solid black”) |
| White | Standard (“White with brown head markings, brown patches or specks”) | Standard (“Liver & White”) | Standard (“any combination of liver and white”) | Standard (“liver and white spotted”) | Standard (“liver and white spotted”) |
| Liver | Standard (“Solid brown, without markings”) | Standard (“Liver”) | Standard (“solid liver”) | Standard (“Solid liver”) | Standard (“Solid liver”) |
| Tan | Standard (“Yellow tan markings are permissible”) | Disqualifying (“A dog with any area of red, orange, lemon or tan”) | Standard (“Tan markings are permissible”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Albino | Not recognised | Disqualifying | Disqualifying (“Albinism”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Red | Not recognised | Disqualifying (“A dog with any area of red, orange, lemon or tan”) | Disqualifying (“Any red, orange, or lemon color”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Orange | Not recognised | Disqualifying (“A dog with any area of red, orange, lemon or tan”) | Disqualifying (“Any red, orange, or lemon color”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Lemon | Not recognised | Disqualifying (“A dog with any area of red, orange, lemon or tan”) | Disqualifying (“Any red, orange, or lemon color”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Patterns | |||||
| Solid | Standard (“Solid brown, without markings”) | Standard (“solid liver”) | Standard (“solid liver”) | Standard (“Solid liver”) | Standard (“Solid liver”) |
| Bicolour | Standard (“White with brown head markings”) | Standard (“a combination of liver and white”) | Standard (“any combination of liver and white”) | Standard (“black and white same variations”) | Standard (“black and white, same variations”) |
| Roan | Standard (“Dark brown roan”) | Standard (“Liver Roan”) | Standard (“liver and white ticked”) | Standard (“liver and white ticked”) | Standard (“liver and white ticked”) |
| Spotted | Standard (“brown patches or specks”) | Standard (“Patched”) | Standard (“liver spotted and white ticked”) | Standard (“liver and white spotted”) | Standard (“liver and white spotted”) |
| Tan point | Standard (“Yellow tan markings are permissible”) | Disqualifying | Standard (“Tan markings are permissible”) | Not recognised | Not recognised |
| Tricolour | No ruling | Disqualifying | No ruling | Not recognised (“not tricolour”) | Not recognised (“Not tri-colour”) |
| Color or pattern | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC | KUSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown | No ruling | No ruling | Standard (“Eye color is brown”) | Standard (“Varying in shades of brown to tone with coat”) | Standard (“Varying in shades of brown to tone with coat”) |
| Dark brown | Standard (“The ideal colour is dark brown”) | Standard (“The preferred color is dark brown”) | Standard (“Darker brown is preferred”) | No ruling | No ruling |
| Light brown | Fault (“Eyes too light”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Yellow | Fault (“Yellowish « bird of prey » eyes”) | Fault (“Light yellow eyes are not desirable and are a fault”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Blue | No ruling | Disqualifying (“China or wall eyes are to be disqualified”) | No ruling | No ruling | No ruling |
| Color or pattern | FCI | AKC | UKC | KC | KUSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | Standard (“black in black or black roan dogs”) | Standard (“black on a black dog”) | Standard (“black in black-colored dogs”) | Standard (“Nose solid brown or black depending on coat colour”) | Standard (“Nose solid brown or black depending on coat colour”) |
| Liver | Standard (“Basically brown”) | Standard (“brown on a liver dog”) | Standard (“solid brown in liver-colored dogs”) | Standard (“Nose solid brown or black depending on coat colour”) | Standard (“Nose solid brown or black depending on coat colour”) |
| Pink | Standard (“A flesh-coloured or spotted nose is only permissible in dogs with white as basic colour”) | Disqualifying (“A flesh colored nose disqualifies”) | Disqualifying (“Flesh-colored nose”) | No ruling | No ruling |
| Patterns | |||||
| Butterfly nose | Standard (“A flesh-coloured or spotted nose is only permissible in dogs with white as basic colour”) | Fault (“A spotted nose is not desirable”) | Fault (“Spotted nose”) | No ruling | No ruling |
What the rulings mean
- Standard
- Described by the club's breed standard.
- Fault
- Named by the club's breed standard as a fault: the animal can be shown but is penalised.
- Disqualifying
- The club's breed standard disqualifies an animal of this colour or pattern.
- Not recognised
- The club does not accept this colour or pattern for the breed.
Color changes
How a German Shorthaired Pointer's colors can change over its life.
Blackchanges toRust
Coat · With body condition · can change back
Blackchanges toGrey
Coat · Progressive
Blackchanges toBrown
Coat · In the sun · can change back
Whitechanges toRoan
Coat · With age · from 2 weeks
Tan pointchanges toSaddle
Coat · With age · from 6 to 156 weeks
Blackchanges toSnow nose
Nose · With the season · can change back
Blackchanges toPink
Nose · With the season · can change back
Sources
Each ruling comes from the club's published breed standard or color list.