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Examples of Conformation

29K views 118 replies 24 participants last post by  Liesje 
#1 · (Edited)
Hey guys!!! I've been looking at Linda's confirmation breakdowns (posted on someone else's thread), as well as reading carefully through the standard. I also visit the dogs at the GSDCA (specifically the Atlanta/Woodstock location) and keeping an eye on their confirmation. That's helped me a bit to spot dogs that adhere to American standard. And I'm pretty darn good with movement for a total newb! xD
For those of you who remember, I even asked for a critique on Koda so that I could learn a bit more about it (through her faults, and her single trait that was complimented :p). I have also gone through/watched other peoples' critique threads to get an idea.

Now I was wondering... What does a dog with GREAT confirmation look like? What does a poorly built dog look like?
I was hoping some of the more knowledgeable members, or others learning to critique, could post a picture of a dog they really like and explain the strongest points (and weak ones if any). As well as posting a dog that isn't put together well and explaining how you would define the problems, what they are, etc. If it's not ok to put the bad ones up that's ok too... I've so far been finding most of them on google lol.


I mean, so far I've learned to watch the withers fairly well. I can recognize a nice tail. I can also pick out backs with too much slope or roached backs, secondary sex characteristics, and coloring.
 
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#38 ·
That would be great! I missed the one this year due to work :/ But I have already informed my boss that I will need to be able to go next year, and he agreed on the basis that I tell him at least a week in advance (so I will tell him when I find the date out). I was also hoping to attend the Sieger show next year or the year after.

Yuliya is actually one of the breeders I was looking at to buy from, I always keep an eye on the dogs she has, is breeding, her show updates, and her puppies. I will definitely have to email her so I can try and visit (I wanted to anyways), once I'm off full-time work. We had our other kennel tech quit last week, so I'm working 6 days a week for 2 more weeks >.>
 
#39 ·
I actually like Pimg very much, despite her breeding. I like her substance, though she might be a tad on the large (not fat!!) side for me, but I'd like a bitch with more substance than too fine. I like her head and her ear set. I also really like her coat. It reminds me of dogs that live outside and thus have a naturally thick coat. I like the overall length of her body, her proportions, and just the overall picture.

I have a hard time picking random dogs and critiquing them publicly, especially since I have not seen most in person, but I can critique my own dog.....

Size: correct medium size, 70-75lbs

Bone: not excessive but not fine

Wet/dry: he's always been very dry/firm/tight when moving, even as a little puppy he didn't have weak hocks or that gangly stage, he actually beat some Am line puppies in UKC matches when he was bout 5 months old

Color: yes I like black and red but I like that his black is BLACK, there's no bitch stripe and he was basically a blanket black until he turned a year old

Overall proportions: I think he has decent angles without being overdone, could use maybe a tad more in front with a little higher wither, but overall I think he's pretty well balanced and I think he has a good croup

Movement: his movement is not extreme but again is balanced, he opens at the shoulder, and he shows very nice on a loose lead

Coat: I wouldn't mind a tad more plush to his coat but I don't think he's overly tight coated

Eyes: I like the shape and color, could maybe be ever so slightly darker as sometimes they look light (to me) in direct sunlight

Ears: one of my least favorite things, I think the ears are a little too big and set a little too wide, I prefer an earset like Lorie's Gavin, however I do like the shape of Nikon's ears better than his sire.

Expression: one of my favorite things, I think he's quite expressive and doesn't have that scowly look like some GSDs

Feet: I think the feet could be tighter, though not terrible. Part of this is probably due to always living and training on matted surfaces, carpet, grass. He's also still a little east/west in front.

Topline: he does have that dip and I can make it go away with some grooming and good stacking but it's usually there when you see him just being normal

Teeth: His dentition is all there (nothing missing or extra), he does have a slight overbite but has a scissor bite so it's not interfered with showing him







 
#85 ·
Coat: I wouldn't mind a tad more plush to his coat but I don't think he's overly tight coated


Are you kidding? His coat is perfect. Maybe even a bit TOO plush.... look at that brush of a tail! :) I love the way a well-groomed plush coat looks, but in practical terms, a nice tight stock coat is so much easier to care for.

A more recent stack (lost weight, got in shape, appears more alert, and was recently groomed down)

He looks GREAT! Perfect weight, I think.
 
#42 ·
Liesje- I adore your guy. He's one of my favorites on the board to see pics of. I was actually looking at Alta-Tollhaus' site recently and saw a lot of dogs I like the look of. Xbox is one of my favorite sires they have listed right now (doesn't belong to them but I really like him). Anywaysss, that trotting picture looks very nice to me. All four feet off the ground, nice reach (from what my amateur eye can tell lol). Very impressive guy!

Qb- It may be a trek now, but I'm willing to make it. Matt and I are actually talking about moving to Colorado, Texas, Washington, or North Carolina for work. So at least a couple of those are closer if we do move.

Lisa- I definitely don't recognize correct immediately. Right now, I have Linda's structure breakdown on another tab and I am comparing each pic I see to it :p
 
#44 ·
Dang Lies- super nice of you to say!
 
#45 ·
I will try to post a photo of a dog with high withers when I get back. Need to go track.
 
#48 ·
For me there are so many things wrong with how that puppy was set up I can't even begin to comment, not really sure WHAT I'm looking at since one hock is flat and the rear legs look splayed out.
 
#50 ·
Thank you for those examples, Qb.
They're very interesting to compare to these diagrams/breakdowns o-o\

I can't wait to start looking at this kind of thing in person :wub: With dogs OTHER than ASLs :p
 
#51 ·
That puppy had flat withers. The other photos you posted are good withers. Eros', IMO, are the least correct since it is the same height as his back before his topline breaks off and starts to curve down.

High withers. They could flow a hair more smoothly into the back, IMO.



I got tired of going through photos so Klodo will have to do. :) VA1 Bodo also had correct withers as did VA1 Eros Hambachtal, VA Bert Haus Knüfken (who as also very masculine), Lasso di Val Sole.
 
#58 ·
I can try to get in touch with her breeder for one. I never got her pedigree from him, which is why she isn't registered. I know that he's a BYB so probably not anybody special lol. I just remember that every time I met him I noticed that he was a lean, athletic lookin beast.
I'll have a pic within the next few days if the breeder responds to the old email I have (don't know if it is still correct). If not I'll stop by his Ga home (he is usually there during the Summer/Fall) and visit to get a pic. I'm sure he'd appreciate seeing Koda again as well.
 
#59 ·
I do not know much about conformation either, nor do I think my dog is the ideal, but here are some stacked/movement pictures and critiques to help you out. I always enjoy reading critiques and looking back at the dog to try and see what the experts see.




Critique courtesy of qbchottu

Nicely pigmented male with great masculine features. Good solid bone with (what looks to be) dark eyes. Normal withers and ok topline. Croup is steep and there is a slight break with the topline there. Nice front angulation and ok rear angulation. I think he is a bit overstretched in the rear which gives him a slightly hocky look so I would try to minimize that next time. Good muscle, but I like my dogs very thin and ribby so I think his structure/definition would show better with a couple less pounds.
A more recent stack (lost weight, got in shape, appears more alert, and was recently groomed down)



A silly picture, but it shows him from the front and his earset


Gaiting a little too enthusiastically


Courtesy of Christine/BlackthornGSD

He looks still a bit young in the pictures--like he could still mature a bit more, although at 3.5, he should be pretty much done growing. Nevertheless, he is a very nicely put together boy.
From Robin/robinhuerta (the close coat was a result of me going overboard with the undercoat rake ;) )

He has a very nice, balanced body structure.
More coat would even make him look better.......nice dog...congrats!
And Lisa/lhczth

Slightly stretched male with high withers, OK topline, good position of a croup that coule be a little bit longer. Very good angulaton in front with a nice long upper arm and very good angulation in the rear. Good bone, pasterns and feet though he looks like he toes out a bit on the near front. Good color though his tan could be a bit richer. I would like to see stronger secondary sex characteristics. My biggest criticism is that he is long (stretched).

In movement he appears to have tremendous drive off the rear and reach in front. He also looks balanced. He does hunch up a bit during movement which explains, in my mind, what I see in his topline (and why I only gave it an OK).
The connection between his withers and back just looks off to me. Don't know how to describe it. He has a high withers, but then he drops down quite a bit into the topline. When he moves, he moves a bit more like a dog with flat withers. I don't really know how to describe what I am seeing and, of course, what I am seeing is based on a shot in time.
Two additional gaiting pictures from the past - a more easy going, "casual" gait


 
#60 ·
Rei- Thank you for putting both of those together!!! I did keep an eye on the second critique of him (after the weight loss) due to curiousity, but I hadn't seen the first one. Pretty big difference that weight loss made! I think he's very handsome though.
 
#61 · (Edited)
No problem, it helped me a lot as well. I have a lot of appreciation for the experts of this board and the knowledge they share with us.

The pictures are taken a month or two apart, he probably lost 3 to 5 lbs of fat maximum. The difference is not so much the weight loss as it is the weight loss + loss of undercoat + stance/posture combination. In the first (before) picture, we were strolling along the open field and I grabbed him on whim for a stack as a part of our morning routine. He was very relaxed, bored, and accustomed to holding the stack for me. In the second picture, he was stacked and then I pretended there was a cat around (with a "hey kitty!" cue) so he was tensed, alert, and on a look out for a cat.

But spotting that is also a matter of being able to pick out that the individual parts of his structure and conformation and seeing that they have not changed as much as they have become differently presented. Xeph on this board had pointed out that while he lost substance between the first and second stacks (which I good naturedly complained about), he also shows off his high withers better and presents an overall smoother picture once he became more alert.

The fact that his mouth is closed also makes a difference between the two stacks - he does not have as strong of a head as I would like, but when his mouth is open his secondary sex characteristics appear sufficient. When his mouth is closed, he appears, in my opinion, ,to have a bit of a bitch head. Love my dog, though. I do still find him well balanced enough for me, and his structure certainly can keep up with his mental stamina and drive.
 
#62 ·
I wish I could get another critique on Koda, in a better stack and maybe when her posture/expression are more confident. But I only have one recent pic that matches that a bit :rolleyes: And I do see, looking over her stacks, that a couple where she is "smiling" make her head seem more masculine LOL
 
#63 ·
Well, I post critique threads like nobody's business. I think everyone must be sick of them by now ;)

We practice stacking as a part of our routine morning walk. Sometimes I can get a good shot and sometimes I won't. It's been 3 1/2 years of practice and it's still a matter of luck.
 
#64 ·
My two biggest issues: Getting her hock at a 90 degree angle (I always over-extend for some reason), and getting her to look interested as I move away. Usually she gives me an irritated or pitiful face >.>
I got a great stack today when she knew I didn't have my phone or camera :p
 
#65 ·
That's usually how it goes - awesome stack, perfect representation of my dog's structure, reaching for the camera before I miss it and... oh, wait, I don't even have it on hand. Thanks, Dog!

The alert expression is the most difficult for me. I only figured out the "hey, kitty!" trick a little over a month ago. A great on watch expression, but I know he'll hold the stay. It is usually easier if you have a helper to take the picture while you catch the dog's attention (as qbchottu recommended to me before). I know others who have thrown paper bags or toys in front of the dog for their attention. I usually use his Bad Cuz or a Wubba, although treats will work if I am going for a series of pictures (I just continuously chuck hotdog pieces in front of him the moment he loses interest).
 
#68 ·
Best of luck! I try to reel friends in to help out occasionally. They usually wonder what in the world is going on, and just finally decide that I'm flat out crazy.

Absolutely gorgeous. How could I have missed this one?? That weight suits him so much better - I am so happy with his defined waist. He is maturing. It is noticeable. Beautiful!!
Thank you very much, that means a lot to me! I was also just thrilled to have him back in shape again. I have a lot of appreciation for dogs in good physical condition (especially considering the health benefits), so it felt good to flip back to the past pictures and see that. And luckily, it is fairly easy to maintain that once we get him to the point.

It surprises me how much he continues to change in maturity. I thought he was done at 2 years, but the difference in the last year (between ages 2 and 3) was astounding. I have no doubt that he'll continue to change, even at 3 1/2. No complaints here!
 
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