HEAD:
| The head should be in proportion to the rest of the body with clean, well
defined lines and no looseness of skin anywhere on the face or lips. The head should
show length without exaggeration, and strength without any bulkiness or cheekiness.
The length of muzzle should appear equal to the length of the skull behind the stop.
The jaws should be flat and the muzzle should be clean and well chiseled, yet show
strength. The underjaw should give the entire muzzle a finished, rather blunt look
and not recede. |
 Plate
#20male (photo by Fischer) |
 Plate #21female |
| While the stop is clearly defined it
should not be long and slanting, or deep. The plane of the top of the muzzle should run on
a line parallel to the plane of the forehead. A hook or roman nose is not desired. |
| Plate #22 below |
Mask, frosting and pigment:
The "mask" in the Tervuren refers to a black muzzle and is a
distinguishing feature of the breed. There are specimens whose black muzzle does not quite
reach up to the eye, and those with a lighter colored "V" coming part way down
from the stop toward the nose in an otherwise black muzzle. A judge should only be
concerned with dogs that are noticeably lacking a black muzzle, or that have a
"reverse mask" as would be seen on an Alaskan Malamute, both of which are faulty
masks. Some dogs have predominately dark color encompassing both the mask and head
and that is not considered faulty unless the entire head and neck picture together is so
black that the headpiece looks like a (black) Belgian Sheepdog.
White frosting about the chin is acceptable and considered
normal, as dogs are usually born with frost on the chin. We discuss this more fully under
the Color section.
The lips should be well pigmented and should be entirely
black as seen from the outside when the mouth is closed. Likewise the nose and eye rims
should be black. |
 #23 above, Good Mask and Expression, male
Plate #24 right |
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EYES:
| Correct eyes and ears give a good Tervuren head its
attractiveness and are considered essential to good breed type. The eyes should be
slightly almond shaped, dark brown in color, with an alert, intelligent and kind
look. A judge should never get the impression of fear of viciousness, although a
certain vigilance may be observed. The Tervuren has a direct, forward, intense gaze. The
eyes should not be widely placed, but should not be so close-set or so small as to
lose the look of intelligence. Protruding, round, or light colored eyes can destroy the
look of a good head. A dark eye is preferred, and other shades of brown are very
acceptable as long as they are harmonious within an acceptable face coloration. It is
better for a judge to be more lenient on a dog with an eye that is a little light in color
as compared to a very round eye, since the rounder eye is a result of the bone structure
and would be harder to correct in a breeding program. |
Plate #25
EARS:
| High set ears are the crowning glory of a most elegant head. It is
generally accepted and approved by breeders that the higher set the better. The base of
the ear should not be lower than the center line of the eye. The ears should be well
cupped and well furred in front. They should be in proportion to the head, triangular in
shape and pointed at the tip. A taller ear is less of a fault than a low, wide-set or
large heavy ear. Correct ears give the Tervuren head its unique beauty and distinguish it
from other breeds having naturally erect ears. The ears should be very firm and not soft
or floppy when the dog is in motion. The structure of the head, combined with correct
eyes and ears, should make the Tervuren head easily distinguishable from other breeds. |
TEETH:
| For generations the Tervuren was bred primarily for
function and the bite most desired for the herding dog is a pinching level bite. From this
beginning, it is no surprise that the breed has had its share of underbites and wry bites,
and breeders today are generally more comfortable using for breeding stock dogs having a
scissors bite, although either scissors or level is equally acceptable in the ring.
An ideal bite is full dentition of strong white teeth, evenly placed, meeting in either a
scissors or level bite. The standard faults undershot and
overshot teeth, and disqualifies undershot teeth such that there is a
complete loss of contact by all the incisors.
Judges should check for missing teeth. Missing teeth are a fault, and four or more missing teeth are considered a
serious fault. We ask that judges check the teeth gently from the side
rather than by attempting to pry the mouth open. Please, do not pry
open the mouth in the manner seen for Doberman Pinschers and Rottweilers. |
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| This is a scissors bite |
This is a level bite, which is
acceptable in the ring |
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| This is a level bite
with dropped incisors............................................ |
The dog is young. As
the dog ages, the incisors will gradually tip outward. Such dropped incisors
are not a disqualification. |
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NEXT:
Neck and Body
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