Some questions for breeders or exhibitors about AKC standards...?

Question

I'm reading up on the AKC standards for beagles just to find out a little more about them. There are some phrases that I don't understand:

"swayed or roached back"
"Stifles strong and well let down"
"Lips free from flews"
"Pasterns short and straight."
"Rat tail with absence of brush." (as a defect)

What are stifles, flews, pasterns and rat tails? And what do they mean when they say the dog's back is "roached" or "swayed"? What is chest depth?

I'm not intending to breed or show my dogs, I am reading for interest only.

Thanks.

I live in Southeast Asia, so the AKC does not play a big role in breed standards here. I'm reading this off the AKC website. Her litter was inspected by our national canine organisation, but I was not aware of any disqualifying faults informed because I was just a child when we got the dog. I'm really reading up more for my interest in the breed in general, rather than to inspect my own dog.

Answer 1

http://clubs.akc.org/NBC/beagle_standard.htm
There are many things in a standard, all of which are designed to describe the perfect specimen of that breed.
swayed or roached back simply implies that the dogs top line should be flat and not roached up or swayed down.
Free of flews means that the mouth should not have fleshy lips hanging down.
Stifles and pasterns are portions of the rear and front legs. These two portions of the leg are used because if they are correct the legs will be correct, if they are not then the entire leg can not be correct.
The term rat tail is very descriptive of the flaw because the tail does not have the proper amount of hair on it.

This is "Bravo" at the Eukanuba National
http://www.hunt101.com/img/445322.jpg

Notice that his back from the neck to the tail is flat like an ironing board.
The bottom portion of the front leg is strait and short.
The upper lips follow exactly along the bottom jaw line.
And so on,,,,,,,
There are also many little often overlooked things in a breeds standard.
For example one of the first things I do when looking at a Beagle is snap my fingers and watch the reaction of their ears. A Beagle should have no erectile tissue what so ever and lack the ability to perk up it's ears.

Answer 2

Gosh - a lot of questions, but I am encouraged by your interest in your dog and its breed.
Standards are "adopted" by the AKC as submitted by the "parent club" (Afghan Hound Club of America, Collie Club of America, etc.)

If the breeder/seller of your furbaby did not steer you to these, I am sorry. You could purchase a book about your breed. There are books available about general dog anatomy, also.

Here is the best i can do on short notice:
sway back = dip in back
roach back = elevated bump area in back
stifle = knee joint
flews + that "dewlappy thing that hangs down" (I wish I
could show you - my description is pathetic)
pasterns: the part of the foot that is just above the toes
and pads ( the ankle)
rat tail: very thin tail and with little or no hair/feathering

Answer 3

Sway back
A back that sags or is concave to some degree along its entire length or topline.

Roach back
A back arched or convex to some degree along the topline.

Stifle
(stifle joint, knee joint): The joint of the hind leg where the upper and lower thighs meet; the dog's knee.

Well Let Down: Not sure about stifles, in Bassets we refer to Hocks as "well let down" which means they are short.

Flews
The inner corners of the upper lips, which hang down somewhat. Basset Hounds should have flews, Beagles should not

Pasterns
The leg bone directly above the foot in the front legs. This is the area from the "wrist" where the pad is on the back of the legs, to the "foot".

A rat tail would be a thin tail. The beagle's tail should be thick and have a somewhat bushy underside.

Answer 4

I am both a dog breeder and show exhibitor.

"swayed or roached back"

You want a nice 'topline' this refers to the condition and skeletal makeup of the spine. Swayed is dipped down and roached is where it's humped upward. Both signify a weak back.

"Stifles strong and well let down"

Stifles are the knees of a dog on the REAR legs; where they jut out backwards and then go straight down towards the paw. They must be strong both in muscling and in solid bone structure to properly support the dog. They must be 'well let down' so that they allow the proper angle of going towards the paw. If this area is not 'well let down' it throws off the entire back end of the dog from the spin to the position of the paw in relation to the pastern. (bottom part of the leg)

"Lips free from flews"

Flews are the flappy lips some dogs have. Notably those breeds which drool. Some classify those who lack flews as 'tight lipped'.

"Pasterns short and straight."

Pasterns are the bottom leg bone of the dog, the straight one from the bottom of the thigh to the top of the paw. Too long and the dog will be classified as 'too leggy'.

"Rat tail with absence of brush."

Rat tail refers to a lack of hair on the tail.. or appearance of a serious lack of hair (not necessarily bald). You want a nice brush on a beagle which means they don't want owners to shave that bushy part that hangs downward from the tail.

Chest depth is the measurement from shoulder down to where the bottom of the chest would hit as viewing the dog from the side. Many breeds want this measurement to be equal to that of the elbow to the floor for appropriate proportions.

Answer 5

If you are reading it in the AKC's Official Publication "The Complete Dog Book," then there is a glossary in the back which explains these terms ... some are illustrated.

If I may, did the Breeder not explain the standard to you when she sold you the pup? Most breeders I know would have done this AND pointed out minor, major, and disqualifying faults - as well as the pup's attributes. My big concern would be that if the breeder did not do this exercise with/for you, then maybe she didn't present the parent club's health screening suggestions either. If that's the case, your pup's problems may be deeper seeded than his conformation.

Tony A-

Answer 6

Guessing:

Swayed back is like a sway backed horse (arched, opposite of a cat)

Roached back would be like a hunched back.

Flew lips would be hanging or jowled.

Stifles are on the hind legs, the knee joints.

Pasterns are (I think) the bone right above the forepaw. It would be the bone between the paw and the "wrist" (???)

I'd really be guessing if I tried to answer what a rat tail was.

Answer 7

Here's a site that'll help with pasterns, flews, and stifles!

roach backs are humped backs, and sway backs are the opposite.. they are sunken after the withers/shoulders.

Answer 8

The best person to answer these questions for you would be Tom I.
He is the beagle person here in YA dogs.
I'll star the question for you so he may see and answer it for you OK.