Samoyed

Origins

Northern Russia and Siberia. PATRONAGE Nordic Kennel Union (NKU).

General Appearance

Medium in size, elegant, a white Arctic Spitz. In appearence gives the impression of power, endurance, charm, suppleness, dignity and self-confidence. The expression, the so called « Samoyed Smile », is made up of a combination of eye shape and position, and the slightly curved up corners of the mouth. The sex should be clearly stamped.

Size

Height at withers Ideal height male 57 cm with a tolerance of ± 3 cm and females 53 cm with a tolerance of ± 3 cm.

Coat

HAIR
Profuse, thick, flexible and dense polar coat. The Samoyed is a double coated dog with short, soft and dense undercoat and longer, more harsh and straight outer coat. The coat should form a ruff around the neck and shoulders framing the head, especially in males. On head and on front of legs, hair is short and smooth; on outside of ears short, standing off and smooth. Inside the ears should be well furred. On back of the thighs the hair forms trousers. There should be a protective growth of hair between the toes. The tail should be profusely covered with hair. The coat of the female is often shorter and softer in texture than that of the male. The correct coat texture should always have a special glistening sheen.

COLOUR
Pure white, cream or white with biscuit. (The basic colour to be white with a few biscuit markings.) Should never give the impression of being pale brown.

Behaviour & Temperment

Friendly, open, alert and lively. The hunting instinct is very slight. Never shy nor aggressive. Very social and cannot be used as guard dog.

Important Proportions

The length of the body is approximately 5% more than the height at the withers. The depth of the body is slightly less than the half of the height at the withers. The muzzle is approximately as long as the skull.

Breed Movement

Powerful, free and tireless in appearance with long stride. Good reach in the forequarters and good driving power in the hindquarters.