The "new illustrated standard"

"Better Puppies Through Mass Production"

April 1, 1996

Dear Entrepreneur,

Allow me to introduce myself; I am Herr Doktor Schweinskopf. Over many years I have produced thousands of puppies for Americans everywhere, true Schweinskopf-Hunds! You too can become a success, as I have, by following in my footsteps. I have enclosed a copy of a new illustrated standard for my main breed, the Saint Bernard Dog. The clique of professional breeders and show handlers always interprets the Saint Bernard standard to suit the way their dogs look anyway, then they can justify winning shows (it's all politics!). I have enclosed my interpretation ! I have also enclosed a paper detailing many of the practices that led to my success. You too can sell many, many puppies for up to $2,000 and more! Do not let those news reports of ridiculous extremes labeled "puppy mills" discourage you. Hundreds of producing bitches can be owned by you personally in conditions that frequently meet the minimum federal standards.

Sincerely,

Dr. Raoul Schweinskopf Lawrence, Kansas




Revised Illustrated Standard For the Saint Bernard Dog



Complete Profile, Standard Type Mantle Coated Saint Bernard Dog

General: Powerful, big, tall, strong, big, muscular, big, tall, with a big head, and most intelligent expression. In dogs with a dark mask the expression appears more stern, but still big. He should never appear ill-natured, but he should always appear big.



HEAD: Two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. Freckles, ticking and mottling are highly desired. The massive skull is narrow and always perfectly marked. The occiput is moderately developed, compared to that of the development of the occiput of an elephant.

The supra-orbital ridge is of absolutely no value, along with the furrow.



The skin of the forehead, above the eyes, forms rather noticeable huge, gapping, drooping, mammoth wrinkles; more or less pronounced, usually more. When the dog is in action, these wrinkles really swing and give the tremendous impression of Permanently Unpressed. Too strongly developed wrinkles are highly desired.

The stop is what keeps the muzzle and the top skull from being one, neat little package, so it is best, in the interest of neatness, not to have a stop at all.

The muzzle is long, narrow, and pointed so he can sniff the ground without putting his head down. It is most important that on the muzzle there be one black nose and a variety of freckles.

The flews of the upper and lower jaw are strongly developed, loose, and baggy, and turn into a beautiful droopy sag at the lower edge.



The eyes should be brown, or any variation thereof, and positioned in the head so they can see around or over the muzzle.

Bite:- the teeth should be white. This is the only part of the body where freckles are not allowed. The undershot bite is the most desirable, thus enabling him to show the judge his teeth without opening his mouth.

There should be a roof to the mouth. The color will probably remain a mystery throughout his life.

The nose should be black and located somewhere on or about the end of the muzzle.

There should be two ears that are dark in color and lay flat against the head. Ears that stand erect are a bit unusual, but not a fault. White on the ear is a 9.9 on the Richter Scale and the most serious of faults.



This is type. The ideal longhaired Saint Bernard Dog

The coat, whether it be long or short, should be so curly that the front hairs stand up and wave at the back. When a longhaired dog is out of coat, it is perfectly permissible to show him in the short-haired classes. Longhaired and long-legged go hand in hand, as does short-haired and short legged. The only acceptable colors are fire-engine-red and burnt-toast-brown. Yellow and purple are disqualifications. One distinguishes between male and female dogs.

The height at the shoulder of the dog has to be 40 inches minimum for a bitch; 46 inches minimum for a male. Proportionately tall figure is anything over 49 inches at the elbow.

Disqualifications: Considered as disqualifications are all deviations from this standard, as for instance; upward hair growing in the space between the eyes; out at the earset; too strongly developed nostrils; not enough angle to the dewclaw, cowhocked flews, disproportionately long second thigh.



Forearm: The forearm should be long and together with the shoulder blade, form a perfect 87 degree angle. The angle at the turn of stiffle should be 93 degrees Fahrenheit. The angle of the croup should be 37 degrees on cold days, 56 degrees on warm days. These degrees are measured with a thermometer and the highest score wins a Cupie Doll. It is important that you do not confuse these degrees with those given by Universities.

Feet: The toes should be long, with absolutely no knuckle, and spread as wide apart as possible. The feet should be able to move, some of the time, without stepping on each other. Many freckles on the feet are important so he can leave a good trail in the snow.



Hindquarters: There should be two back legs, and by working together with the two front legs, they should be able to propel the body in the general direction of forward. The hocks touch so that when he sits down in the snow he makes an "X". Weak hocks are not a fault, merely a weakness.

Dewclaws are a must, as they give more girth to the lower hockular section of the rear assembly.

The action of the pastern, elbow, and shoulder; the hock, stiffle, and hip are of absolutely no importance at all. Single tracking, smingle tracking, it's all in the wrist.



Front view, standard type Saint Bernard Dog

The neck is set high, is very long and always carried erect, thus the importance of a very long muzzle. The dewlap of the throat is over developed and pendulous to give the impression of a well developed chest.

The shoulders are set well under the neck. Long muscles run the entire length of the back, from the shoulders to the thigh, thus enabling the front legs and the back legs to move somewhat harmoniously. When these muscles contract the front legs move back and the rear legs move forward. Viewed from the side, this is called "Single Tracking."

The chest reaches well below the elbows to keep him from sinking too deep in the snow.

The tail, when pulled up over the back, should reach the 16th of the spine. The tail should remain curled at all times, even while the dog is sleeping. The tail should be carried over the back and closely resembles that of a Samoyed; which, as we all know, was involved in the breeding program that produced long-haired Saint Bernards.

originally written by Sherry Ann Allen and illustrated by Phil Best. It was originally published in The Monk's Guide and The Big Dog in 1975.

OMG, whats my Heidi doing on her pmsl!!