Sunday, February 5, 2017

Coat texture at dog shows -- US and Europe

The top two photos are of Kuvasz show dogs in Europe; the bottom two photos are American show dogs with their curls/waves brushed out.
The Kuvasz Club of America, the parent club for Kuvasz in the American Kennel Club, writes,"The texture of the coat is medium coarse. The coat ranges from quite wavy to straight."  The standard says nothing about either showing the dog in a natural state or that the dog must be brushed out.

In all other countries, Kuvasz are shown at dog shows in their natural coat, which is curly or wavy or whorled. 

But in the US, Kuvasz who are show dogs are seemingly required to have their fur brushed out, in spite of the club description; but of course then the fur is neither wavy nor straight, but rather fuzzy, like a cotton ball or cotton swab. However, some of us think the Kuvasz's thick wavy coat is a beautiful feature of the breed.

Quotes about the coat texture:

“The coat of the Kuvasz is very attractive, and for the sake of the breed great attention must be paid to the coat when judging.” 

“The hair is wavy and thick, a real characteristic of the breed....The coat of the Kuvasz is very attractive.” 

From: Pál Sárkány and Imre Ócsag, Hungarian Dog Breeds,  (Budapest, Hungary: Corvina Kiadó, 1977), 2nd ed. 1986, p. 101, 103, 104.

“The hair should be neither excessively curly nor straight, but should...have waves and swirls.  In 1924, the official term was fluctuosus, ‘wavy,’ which was replaced in 1935 by undulans, ‘undulating.’


From: Dr. Tibor Buzády, Dogs of Hungary, trans. Bernard Adams (Budapest, Hungary: Nóra Kiadó, 2002), p. 100.