What does each club give for Height at the withers in the Borzoi?

FCI, Male: 75–85 cm; AKC, Male: over 71.1 cm; UKC, Male: over 71.1 cm; KC, Male: over 74 cm; CKC, Male: 71–81.3 cm; FCI, Female: 68–78 cm; AKC, Female: over 66 cm; UKC, Female: over 66 cm; KC, Female: over 68 cm; CKC, Female: 68.5–76.3 cm.

Borzoi 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, CKC.

Size

Size
Measure	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	CKC
Height at the withers, male	75–85 cm	over 71.1 cmunder 71.1 cmFault	over 71.1 cmunder 71.1 cmFault	over 74 cm	71–81.3 cm
Height at the withers, female	68–78 cm	over 66 cmunder 66 cmFault	over 66 cmunder 66 cmFault	over 68 cm	68.5–76.3 cm
Weight, male	No ruling	34–47.6 kg	34–47.6 kg	No ruling	No ruling

Conformation

Conformation
Form	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	CKC
BiteScissors bite	Standard (“Scissor bite”)	Standard (“either an even or a scissors bite”)	Standard (“meet in a scissors or level bite”)	Standard (“perfect, regular and complete scissor bite”)	Standard (“Scissors bite preferred”)
BiteLevel bite	Alternate (“Level bite is permitted but not desirable”)	Alternate (“either an even or a scissors bite”)	Alternate (“meet in a scissors or level bite”)	No ruling	Alternate (“level bite acceptable”)
BiteOvershot	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“Serious Fault: Missing teeth or overshot or undershot bite”)	No ruling	No ruling
BiteUndershot	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“Serious Fault: Missing teeth or overshot or undershot bite”)	No ruling	No ruling
DentitionFull dentition	Standard (“Complete dental formula”)	No ruling	Standard (“A full complement of large, strong, white teeth”)	Standard (“Full, strong dentition desirable”)	Standard (“Full dentition preferred”)
DentitionMissing teeth	No ruling	Fault (“Missing teeth should be penalized”)	Fault (“Serious Fault: Missing teeth”)	No ruling	No ruling
Ear setHigh	Standard (“Set on above the eye level”)	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“Set high but not too far apart”)	Standard (“Set high, not too far apart”)
Eye shapeAlmond	Standard (“Large, almond-shaped, dark brown to brown”)	No ruling	Standard (“The rather large, almond shaped eyes”)	Standard (“Almond shaped, set obliquely”)	Standard (“slightly almond-shaped”)
Eye shapeRound	No ruling	Not recognized (“never round, full nor staring”)	Fault (“Serious Faults: Round, full or staring eyes”)	Not recognized (“Eyes not light, round, bulbous or staring”)	No ruling
StopSlight	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“The stop is only very slightly marked”)	No ruling	No ruling
StopNone	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“stop imperceptible”)	No ruling
Neck lengthLong	Standard (“NECK: Long, dry, muscled, slightly arched”)	No ruling	Standard (“Long, clean and flattened on the sides”)	No ruling	No ruling
Neck shapeArched	Standard (“Long, dry, muscled, slightly arched”)	Standard (“slightly arched, very powerful and well set on”)	Standard (“the neck is slightly arched and never carried high”)	Standard (“Slightly arched; reasonably long and well muscled”)	Standard (“slightly arched, well muscled, flat on the sides”)
ChestDeep	Standard (“Oval in cross-section, deep, not narrow”)	Standard (“Rather narrow, with great depth of brisket”)	Standard (“The chest is deep and oval in shape”)	Standard (“great depth of brisket reaching to elbows”)	Standard (“great depth of brisket to the level of the elbows”)
Tuck-upPronounced	Standard (“Abruptly tucked up towards the flanks”)	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“abdomen very tucked up”)	Standard (“The abdomen is well tucked up”)
FeetHare foot	Standard (“elongated oval shape (called harefeet)”)	Standard (“Feet: Hare-shaped, with well-arched knuckles”)	Standard (“The hare-shaped feet have well-arched knuckles”)	Standard (“Hind feet hare like”)	Standard (“Feet: Hare-foot, well padded, never flat”)
FeetOval	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“Front feet oval, toes close together”)	No ruling
Tail lengthLong	Standard (“thin, long, with dense and abundant feather”)	Standard (“Tail: Long, set on and carried low”)	Standard (“The tail is low set, long and thin”)	Standard (“Long, rather low set”)	Standard (“Long, rather low set”)
Tail setLow	No ruling	Standard (“set on and carried low in a graceful curve”)	Standard (“The tail is low set, long and thin”)	Standard (“Long, rather low set”)	Standard (“Long, rather low set”)
Tail carriageLow (hanging)	No ruling	Standard (“set on and carried low in a graceful curve”)	No ruling	Standard (“carried low in a graceful curve”)	Standard (“carried low in a graceful curve”)
Tail carriageSickle	Standard (“Sickle- or sabre-shaped”)	No ruling	Standard (“It is sickle or saber shaped”)	Standard (“may be sabre or slightly sickle shaped”)	Alternate (“the tail may be sickle-shaped but not ringed”)
Tail carriageSabre	Standard (“Sickle- or sabre-shaped”)	No ruling	Standard (“It is sickle or saber shaped”)	Standard (“may be sabre or slightly sickle shaped”)	No ruling
Tail carriageRing	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Not recognized (“but not ringed”)	Not recognized (“sickle-shaped but not ringed”)

Cropping, docking and other procedures

Cropping, docking and other procedures
Procedure	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	CKC
Dewclaw removal	No ruling	Alternate (“Dewclaws, if any, on the hind legs are generally removed”)	No ruling	No ruling	Alternate (“Removal of dewclaws optional”)

The law on these procedures differs by country. A listing here says nothing about whether one is legal where you live.

Borzoi colors and patterns

What each club's breed standard says about every Borzoi color and pattern. Point at a ruling to see the club's own wording.

Breed standards describe the Borzoi in Black, White, Gray, Blue, Silver, Brown, Tan, Mahogany, Red, Gold, Lemon, Cream, Fawn, Apricot, and Isabella. Standard patterns: Solid, Tricolor, Brindle, Piebald, Roan, Sable, Agouti, Spotted, Tan point, and Reverse brindle.

Coat: rulings by club
Color or pattern	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	KUSA
Black	Standard (“black”)	Standard (“Black”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Self Black”)	Standard (“Black”)
White	Standard (“White”)	Standard (“White”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“White”)	Standard (“White”)
Gray	Standard (“grey (from ashy to yellowish-grey)”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Grey”)	Standard (“Grey (from ashy to yellowish-grey)”)
Blue	Disqualifying (“blue”)	Standard (“Blue”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Blue”)	Disqualifying (“blue”)
Silver	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Silver”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Silver”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Brown	Disqualifying (“brown (including cocoa, coffee, chocolate)”)	Standard (“Brown”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Disqualifying (“brown (including cocoa, coffee, chocolate)”)
Tan	Standard (“with tans”)	Standard (“Black & Tan”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Tricolour”)	Standard (“with tans”)
Mahogany	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Mahogany Red”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Mahogany”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Red	Standard (“red”)	Standard (“Red”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Self Red”)	Standard (“Red”)
Gold	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Gold”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Self Gold”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Lemon	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Lemon”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Cream	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Cream”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Cream”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Fawn	Standard (“pale of different shadings (red-fawn, grey-fawn, silver-fawn)”)	Standard (“Fawn”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Self Fawn”)	Standard (“Pale, of different shadings (red-fawn, grey-fawn, silver-fawn)”)
Apricot	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Apricot”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Isabella	Disqualifying (“isabella (lilac)”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Disqualifying (“isabella (lilac)”)
Patterns
Solid	Standard (“All the colours may be solid”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Self Black”)	Standard (“All the colours may be solid”)
Tricolor	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Tricolour”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Brindle	Standard (“brindle: pale, or red, or grey main colour with dark stripes”)	Standard (“Brindle”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Brindle”)	Standard (“Brindle: pale, or red, or grey main colour with dark stripes”)
Piebald	Standard (“All the colours may be ... pied”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Standard (“All the colours may be ... pied”)
Roan	Fault (“Abundant flecks on the body of the same shade as the base colour”)	Standard (“Spotted On White, Ticked”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Fault (“Abundant flecks on the body of the same shade as the base colour”)
Sable	Standard (“red with black overlay hair often combined with dark muzzle (sable)”)	Standard (“Sable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Sable”)	Standard (“Red with black overlay, hair often combined with dark muzzle (sable)”)
Agouti	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color, or combination of colors, is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Wolf Sable”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Spotted	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)	Standard (“Spotted On White”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Standard (“Any colours from white to black in any combination are acceptable”)
Tan point	Standard (“with tans”)	Standard (“Black & Tan”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Any colour, except merle”)	Standard (“with tans”)
Reverse brindle	Standard (“brindle: pale, or red, or grey main colour with dark stripes”)	Standard (“Brindle”)	Standard (“Any color or combination of colors is acceptable”)	Standard (“Brindle”)	Standard (“Brindle: pale, or red, or grey main colour with dark stripes”)
Merle	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Not recognized (“merle which is unacceptable”)	No ruling
Double merle	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling

Eyes: rulings by club
Color or pattern	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	KUSA
Brown	Standard (“dark brown to brown”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Standard (“dark brown to brown”)
Dark brown	Standard (“dark brown to brown”)	Standard (“dark in color”)	Standard (“dark In color”)	Standard (“Dark”)	Standard (“dark brown to brown”)
Light brown	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“Light-colored eyes”)	No ruling	No ruling
Hazel	Fault (“light (all shades of hazelnut)”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“light (all shades of hazelnut)”)
Yellow	Fault (“Eyes small; yellow”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“Eyes small; yellow”)
Gray	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)
Blue	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)
Green	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Disqualifying (“of all shades of grey, green, blue”)
Patterns
Odd-eyed	Disqualifying (“eyes of different colours”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Disqualifying (“eyes of different colours”)

Nose: rulings by club
Color or pattern	FCI	AKC	UKC	KC	KUSA
Black	Standard (“always black in any coat colour”)	Standard (“Nose large and black”)	Standard (“The black nose”)	Standard (“nose large and black”)	Standard (“always black in any coat colour”)
Pink	Disqualifying (“Completely depigmented (pink) nose”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Disqualifying (“Completely depigmented (pink) nose”)
Patterns
Butterfly nose	Fault (“Partly depigmented (pink) nose”)	No ruling	No ruling	No ruling	Fault (“Partly depigmented (pink) nose”)

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 penalized.
Disqualifying: The club's breed standard disqualifies an animal of this color or pattern.
Not recognized: The club does not accept this color or pattern for the breed.

Color changes

How a Borzoi's colors can change over its life.

Blackchanges toRust
Coat · With body condition · can change back
Blackchanges toGray
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.

Published standards

Back to the Borzoi guide Grooming styles for the Borzoi