Understanding a dog's construction: looking beneath the coat!

Construction is the organisation of the dog's body: its proportions, its skeleton and the way its different parts fit together. Musculature completes this picture, which is observed standing and then moving.

To learn, imagine a house: you look first at its architecture, then at the details. With a dog, start with the outline before concentrating on a foot or a shoulder!

Beginner — Spotting the main parts

1. Look at the whole before the details

Stand your dog on level ground in a natural position and look at it from the side.

Does its body look more square or more elongated? What place do the limbs take in relation to the trunk? Does the head seem in proportion to the whole?

The outline sought depends on the breed. The German Shepherd Dog, for example, is described in its standard as slightly longer than tall. [1, p. 3]

Your exercise: describe the outline in three neutral sentences, without using “beautiful” or “bad”. You are training your eye to observe before judging.

2. Learn to recognise the forehand and the hindquarters

The forehand includes, among other things, the shoulders and the forelegs. The hindquarters include, among other things, the pelvis and the hind legs.

To start with, find the shoulder, the elbow, the thigh, the stifle — the joint corresponding to the knee — and the hock, located lower down on the hind leg.

Your exercise: find these regions on an anatomical diagram, then on your dog, with gentle movements. You don't need to know every bone to get started!

3. Look at your dog from several angles

The side view shows the proportions. The front and rear views let you see how the limbs are set.

Soundness refers to their alignment and orientation. A single side-on photograph therefore doesn't let you assess the whole construction.

Your exercise: take three photos: from the side, front and rear, at the dog's level. Avoid shots from above, which distort the proportions.

Intermediate — Understanding how the parts relate

1. Break down the topline

The topline is not just the back. Find in turn the withers, the back, the loin and the croup:

The withers are at the top of the shoulders.
The loin is the region between the last ribs and the pelvis.
The croup is the upper region of the pelvis, before the tail begins.

Your exercise: follow these regions with your eye, then consult the descriptions in your breed's standard. Don't apply the same topline shape to all dogs.

2. Understand what an angulation is

An angulation describes the angle formed between two anatomical segments. At the front, the interest is in, among other things, the relationship between the shoulder blade and the upper arm; at the rear, that between the thigh and the second thigh.

The German Shepherd Dog standard gives indications on these angles and on the lengths of the segments concerned. [1, p. 6]

Your exercise: find the segments on a diagram before looking for them on your dog. A photograph can help you understand, but does not let you precisely measure an angle hidden under muscle and coat.

3. Distinguish construction from presentation position

A dog that puts a foot forward, turns its body or shifts its weight can give a different impression a few seconds later.

Your exercise: watch it in a natural position, then in its show position. Compare the two views and do it again after a few steps.

This will help you recognise what keeps coming back and what seems linked to a momentary posture.

Advanced — Linking construction to movement

1. Look for balance between front and rear

Seeing a lovely hindquarters isn't enough: look at how it works with the forehand.

In the German Shepherd Dog, the standard links the balance of the angulations and limb lengths to a far-reaching gait that looks effortless. [1, p. 6–7]

Your exercise: film your dog from the side at a trot, at a comfortable speed. Watch how the limbs move forward and how the body accompanies their movement. Then go back to the “Limbs” and “Gait” sections of its standard.

2. Beware of the “more is better” reflex

A spectacular feature is not automatically a quality.

The German Shepherd Dog standard states, for example, that excessive angulation of the hindquarters is detrimental to endurance and working ability. [1, p. 7]

Your exercise: for each feature you like, look up the exact nuance in the standard: moderate, slight, sufficiently developed… The aim is to understand the balance sought for that breed.

3. Make observations before drawing conclusions

“Its hind foot turns outwards on several runs” is an observation. “It must have a pelvis defect” is already an interpretation.

Your exercise: note what you see, in what conditions and whether it repeats. Then present these points to a judge or a breed instructor to refine your analysis.

Observation at a show does not, on its own, allow a health diagnosis to be made.

The reflex to keep

Outline, body regions, movement: proceed in that order.

Choose a single point to observe per session. With practice, the words of the standard will take shape before your eyes, and the judge's comments will become much easier to understand.