Northern Inuit Breed Standard

GENERAL APPEARANCE
A dog of medium build, athletic but never racy.

HEAD
Not too broad, skull slightly domed. Muzzle equal in length to skull, strong and gently tapering. Cheeks flat. Nose preferably black but a ‘snow nose’ is permitted. Nostrils large. Slight stop. Lips close fitting and black. Perfect scissor bite.

EARS
Fairly wide apart but not low set. Not too large, carried erect.

EYES
Oval and set at a slightly oblique angle. any Colour permitted.

NECK
Strong and muscular with a well defined nape.

FOREQUARTERS
Shoulders flat. Moderately angulated upper arm but shoulder blades well laid back. Elbows fitting close to the chest which must not be too broad ( approx 4 finger width between front legs ) or drop below the elbow. Distance from ground to elbow slightly greater than that from elbow to withers. Oval bone, neither too heavy or too light, pasterns upright but flexible. Feet oval and toes open and well knuckled. Pads black and well cushioned with hair.

BODY
Topline level, Ribs long to give overall proportions of height to length as 10 – 9, well sprung from the spine but flattening on the sides to allow the elbows to move freely. Loin short and deep with no exaggerated tuck up. Croup broad and fairly short but not steep. The tail is a smooth continuation of the croup and must reach no further than the point of the hock. May be lifted when excited and carried upright or sickle in movement.

HINDQUARTERS
Well angulated with broad, muscular thighs, the strength being carried through to the second thigh. Hocks short and perpendicular to the ground. Upright when viewed from the rear. Feet oval, can have five rear toes. Removal of dewclaws optional.

COAT
Dense, waterproof double coat, slightly coarse in texture. Body coat 3 – 5 cm. Longer on ruff and breechings. Tail bushy.

GAIT
Far reaching, covering the ground with an easy stride.

SIZE
Height:
Bitches-Minimum 23” (59 cm) Maximum -28” (71 cm)
Dogs- Minimum 25” (64 cm.) Maximum 30” (76 cm)

Overall balance more important than size.

COLOUR
Pure white or any Colour Sable from Grey or Apricot through to pure black. White faces permitted on any Colour. Masklike or cap like markings permitted on the faces of any Colour other than whites. Where white appears on the legs and feet the Colour change must be gradual.

TEMPERAMENT
Friendly, placid and out going

NOTE
Males should have two apparently normal testicles descended into the scrotum.

FAULTS
Curly tails, long or single coats, Ink Marked, black and tan colours. Cow or sickle hocks. Any departure from the standard should be considered a fault; the seriousness with which the fault is regarded should be in proportion to its degree.

[Image used under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic license:
Author: Ben | Date: 8 August 2009 | url: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wherearethedoors/3799889839/]

- http://www.nisociety.com/breedstandard.htm