Gurkan wrote on May 3rd, 2009 at 11:48pm:Shane wrote on May 3rd, 2009 at 12:48am:"...not have so much coat as to impede activity or cause distress in hot weather." - Well I guess the Smooth Chows will take over the breed ring.
Not really... But there are definitely roughcoats out there with too big coats. However, I am not sure those coats will cause more distress in hot weather than chows with shorter coat, since distress in hot weather mainly is caused by breathing problems...
When roughcoated chows need to be trimmed, scissored and overall sculptured, they have too much and long coats. The same goes for smooths.
I know that Smooth Chows would not suddenly take over the ring, because there are other rough coated chows that doesn't have that overly bred in coat. So there would not be a sudden dislike of roughs. However I do not see that relevant to the standard, so to me that being added to the standard made no sense..
There is the Old English Sheepdog and the Pekingnese, they both have very long coats. The coat of an O.E.S. makes that of a Chow pale in comparison, and it doesn't impedes on its movement. The Peke's structure dictates it movements because of how it is built. I have even had groomed and shaved Pekes off completely, even afterwards they still hjad an ambling roll. Ps also a O.E.S. structure toltally differs from that of a German Shepherd Dog, so even when shaved you wouldn't have that movement.
A chow should be scissored (thinning shears) only for the purpose for neatness because "
obvious trimming or shaping is
undesirable". The only point to me is that if I am going to breed a Chow with an overly bred coat why should I have to trim it off.
Shane wrote on May 3rd, 2009 at 12:48am:Eyes "oval shaped", "A matching coloured eye permissible in blues and fawns" - I thought the the breeds was asked to have an almond shaped eye and the eyes should be a dark brown to black..
A lighter eye has always been ok in the dilutes, just as the nose pigment never is black in those colours. [/quote]
I realized this later that night I posted it. I did not noticed that the Kennel Club goes by the FCI standard. I had no idea .So it differs from the A.K.C. which asks for "eyes dark brown, deep set and placed wide apart and obliquely, of moderate size, almond in shape", it doesn't gives allowance due to coat color.
Shane