The Standard
For the most part, the ideal breed type is defined in the breed standard, a written list of attributes that defines the breed and separates the breed from other breeds based on the same ancestral type. The standard leaves room for interpretation; breeders may choose to select for emphasis some aspects of breed type over others, and, if conformation judges agree with that selection, the breed will change over time.
Each element of the standard is considered both independently and part of the whole of breed type. In writing about the Borzoi, Jon Titus Steel says, "The neck is a key element of breed type", affecting a dog's outline, balance, movement, and function.
Read more about this topic: Breed Type (dog)
Famous quotes containing the word standard:
“We don’t want bores in the theatre. We don’t want standardised acting, standard actors with standard-shaped legs. Acting needs everybody, cripples, dwarfs and people with noses so long. Give us something that is different.”
—Dame Sybil Thorndike (1882–1976)
“Liberty requires opportunity to make a living—a living decent according to the standard of the time, a living which gives a man not only enough to live by, but something to live for.”
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)