Perro de Presa Canario / Dogo Canario
- FCI Standard Nr.346/1998* -

* this standard is in the draft form. The FCI Dogo Canario breed standard #346 will be posted when we have the officially translated version.

General Appearance
It is a medium sized molosoid dog, eumetric, straight profile, with black mask. Robust and well proportioned. It is mesomophoric, whose length of body is greater than its shoulder height, a characteristic more clearly seen in the female. The head is large, square and wide skulled. The upper lips loosely cover the lower lips. The mouth lining is black in color. The strong teeth are widely set and well set in. The eyes are chestnut in color and widely set. Medium sized ears. A cylindrical, muscular neck covered with a thick layer of loose, elastic skin and with a little dewlap. Straight back. Wide tail base. Chest deep and wide. Belly slightly updrawn. Forequarters well balanced, loose and strong boned. Round footed, with thick toes. Muscular hindquarters and moderately angled stifles, the feet being slightly longer than the front feet. Thick elastic skin. Short, slightly rough hair, with no undercoat. Coat can be various shades of fawn or brindled.

Character and Temperament
A rather offl-putting appearance with a severe expression. Especially suited to guard-dog and protection duties and traditionally used for herding cattle. Of impetuous temperament and has great self confidence. Low, deep bark. Obedient and docile with family members but is wary of/unfriendly towards strangers.

Movement
On the move, should cover a lot of ground, be agile and flexible. Long gait, the limbs should move diagonally, i.e. front-left - hind-right, front-right -hind- left. The tail hangs low and is barely raised above the level of the back.

Expression
Confident, docile and a little distant. Alert, the stance is firm and there is a hard look to the eyes.

Head
The head is massive, brachycephalic and solid in appearance, is covered with loose hanging skin, and has an elongated cubic shape. Skull-face proportion is 60%-40%.

Skull
Convex in anteposterior and transversal direction: frontal bones tend to be flat. Pronounced zigomatic arch, with well developed cheek and jaw muscles, but without projections. The occipital crest is unappreciable.

Frontal Stop
The stop is definite, but not brusque. The furrow between the frontal lobes is well defined and is about two-thirds the size of the skull. The crainal-facial lines are straight and slightly converging.

Muzzle
Shorter than the skull. Normally about 40% of the total of the head, i.e. about 10 cm. Very wide base, narrowing slightly towards the snout. Bridge of the nose is flat and shows a straight profile without ridges. The upper flews are pendulous, although not excessively, and seen from the front, form an inverted "V" where they join. The inner lips are dark.

Nose
Wide, very dark in color. In line with the nose bone. The front is slightly set back in relation to the front edges of the nostrils. The orrifices are large to facilitate breathing.

Eyes
Breveline type. Slightly oval in shape, from medium to large in size, well separated, but neither sunken nor protruding. Eyelids are very dark in color and are tight, never sagging. The color varies from mid to dark brown, depending on the color of the coat. They should never be light.

Ears
Medium sized, with short fine hair. The fall easily to each side of the head. If folded, they do so in the shape of a rose, hugging the sides of the head. The base stands upright, slightly above the outer edge of the eye. Ears set to high on the head are considered unusual and crowd the top of the head. If cropped, they stand straight.

Teeth
Wide, well set in, large molars, small incisors, well developed canines which interlock in pairs. Normal or inverted scissor-bite. Pincer bite not acceptable. Slightly undershot is acceptable, but not more than 3 mm. The canines should be well spaced.

Neck
Shorter in length than the whole head, about 20 or more centimeters. Skin on the underside is loose, contributing the slight dewlap. Solid, straight, it tends to be cylindrical and muscular.

Topline
Straight and level, muscular, but not overloaded. Rising slightly from the withers to the loins, with a difference of about 1 cm. Saddle or roach backs are unacceptable.

Loins
Medium length, wide and rounded. Should not be too long or the loins would drop: not too high nor too low as this would limit the movement. The females is usually wider.

Body
Wide and deep. Longer than the height at the shoulder by about 18-20%, this being more apparent in the female.

Thorax/Brisket
Chest has great capacity with well defined pectoral muscles. Its depth should, at least, reach to the elbow, seen both from the front and in the profile. Thoracic perimeter/girth is usually the same as shoulder height plus 45%, being more apparent in the female. Well arched ribcage.

Flanks
Unpronounced, shorter and narrower than the thorax.

Underside
Rising, slightly tucked up, but never sagging.

Forequarters
Sloping shoulders. Well angles arms, forearms well balanced, wide boned and well muscled. Elbows loose, i.e. neither too close to the ribs nor sticking out. The length of the forearm should be 50% of the animal’s height for males and a little less for females. Pasterns should be solid and slightly sloping.

Feet
Cat feet with rounded toes, not too close together. Thick, dark pads. Nails are dark, white nails should be avoided, although this does depend on the coat.

Hindquarters
Strong and parallel, without curvature. Long thighs, well muscled. Angles should not be excessive, but neither should they be insufficient. Hocks should always be low.

Hind feet
Slightly longer than the front feet.

Tail
Thick base, tapering to f fine point at the hocks, but no longer. In action it is raised like a saber, but without curling nor leaning towards the back.

Height
At shoulder
Males: from 60 to 64 cm. (23.6 to 25.2 in)
Females: from 56 to 60 cm. (22 to 23.6 in) Weight

Weight
Males: 50 kg minimum (110 lb)
Females: 40 kg minimum ( 88 lb)

Color
All varieties of brindled, from warm dark brown to very light or blond neutral grey. All shades of fawn to sandy. White marks are acceptable on the chest, at the base of the neck, back of the feet and toes, but these should be kept to a minimum. The mask is always dark (black) and can be as high as the eyes, but not more so.

Skin
Thick and elastic. Loose on and around the neck. Alert, there are symmetrical wrinkles fanning out from the furrow between the frontal lobes.

Hair
Short, coarse, with no undercoat, sometimes rough. Very short and fine in the ears, slightly longer on the withers and the loins.

General Faults
Monorchid, cryptorchid and castrated/spayed specimens. Failure to meet the standard.

Disqualification
Unpigmented snout or mouth lining.
Absence of mask.
Unacceptable white markings.
Overshot mouth.
Loins lower than withers.
Excessive reserve or fear.
Excessively aggressive, unbalanced character.
Lack of chest capacity or concave chest, without depth.
Light blue eyes or unmatched in color.

Very Serious Faults
Square profile.
Triangular head, narrow (not cube shaped).
Lack or excess in angles.
Slight in appearance.
Curled tail, equally thick throughout it’s length: amputated or deformed.
Under sized specimens (60 cm in males and 56 cm in females).
Excessively large.
Saddle or roached back.
Sagging loins.
Underside falling.
Small breastbone.
Insufficiently arched ribcage.
Lack of wrinkles on the facial-cranial area (taut, but not elastic).
Light eyes (yellow), sunken or protruding.
Undershot mouth, exceeding 4 mm.
Missing teeth (except P1).
Ears set too high.

Serious Faults
Incorrect head-face proportions, 60%-40%.
Extremely convergent facial-cranial lines (over pronounced stop).
Extremely divergent facial-cranial lines.
Poor mask.
Excessive mask (higher than level of the eyes).
Feet and toes facing outwards or inwards (knock kneed or bow legged).
Excessively pendulous, small or prominent flews
Loins and wither of the same height.
Too large a dewlap.
Sagging eyelids.
Very close eyes, without space between them. Mediumlinges or longlines.
Ridged nose bone.
Apathetic character.
Slight Faults
Too many facial-cranial wrinkles, impairing the expression.
Specimens of more than 1 cm above the maximum.
Pincer bite.
Anything outwith the established standard.
Reproductory Organs
The male should be completely developed and both testicles perfect.

Copyright © 2000 [Dogo Canario Club of America]. All rights reserved.
Revised: August 19, 2001
I got this text from www.presa-canario.de.vu Thank you :-)!

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