By Camille Lambert (Sturtmoor)
Traits of the Breed Norwegian Buhunds were bred as an all purpose farm dog and are very adaptable to most situations due to this. This makes them a very independent breed, able to work under their own initiative, which does not always agree with their owners views (often being called stubborn!). Being an excellent watchdog can mean they may be noisy as they don t miss anything and must tell their owners about it, however with training, this can be controlled. Important traits of the Buhund: Medium sized, agile, biddable temperament Family orientated, great with children Medium care double coat (which moults) Easily adaptable to different situations
The Breed Standard (UK Kennel Club) General Appearance Lightly built, square outline with a compact body, fairly smooth-lying coat, erect pointed ears, curled tail carried over back. Characteristics 17 mth adult male Well balanced, medium size, free from exaggeration, and capable of arduous work. Temperament Fearless, brave and energetic. 4 week old bitch puppy
Head and Skull Head lean, light, rather broad between ears, wedgeshaped, narrowing towards point of nose. Skull and back of head almost flat; marked but not sharp stop; muzzle medium length, tapering evenly from above and side, straight bridge, lips tightly closed. Nose black. A snipey head A heavy, cumbersome head
Eyes A light eye Not protruding, dark brown, lively with fearless expression. Correct, oval shaped, dark eye. A round, bulbous eye
Ears Placed high, erect, height greater than base; sharply pointed, very mobile. Buhunds should have extremely mobile ears. This means that rather than keeping still they will twist around while listening to noises. This should not be penalised in the show ring as it is correct for the breed. Correct ears, front and side view Incorrect Ears Hooded ears (Shiba Inu) Ears set too wide (10 to 2)
Mouth Figure 1 shows the correct bite for the Buhund. Jaws strong with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws. Complete dentition. Neck Medium length, lean without loose skin, moderately arched. A short neck which contributions to a thick, stocky look and also a swan neck are incorrect.
Forequarters Legs lean, straight and strong, elbows tightly placed. Correct, moderately angulated forequarters showing good forechest, which balance with the moderately angulated rear. (you can see in the picture above that the head is being held too high, which alters the correct line of the neck).
Body Hindquarters Legs strong and moderately angulated, straight when viewed from behind. Strong, short, but light, chest deep with good ribs; straight line of back, level topline, firm loins, short couplings, slightly drawn up. The example on the far left is correct. Correct, moderate angulation Incorrect, sickle hock
Feet Rather small, oval in shape, toes tightly closed. Small oval feet that are well padded Incorrect - Splayed feet (long nails will splay otherwise good feet!) Incorrect Flat feet
L - Correct single curl and well set. R Correctly centred set of tail with double curl. (Only the actual curl should be either central, or can fall on either side of the central line) Ideal tail - Correct double curl and well set on. Incorrect tail Good curl, but too low set Incorrect tail - Loose Curl & Low Set Tail Set on high, short, thick, and hair longer on underside, tightly curled and carried over back. Incorrect tail Good curl, but not set centrally Incorrect tail Well set but no curl
Gait/Movement Without exaggeration, straight coming and going. From side; light active, with good stride. Single-Tracking The picture on the left shows how a Buhund will single track when gaiting. The legs converge together toward a single, central line when speed increases. The pictures above and below show balanced movement.
Coat Outer coat close, harsh, but smooth; undercoat soft and woolly. On head and front legs, short, close and smooth; longer on chest, neck and shoulders, back of legs and underside of tail. In half coat In Full Coat Out of Coat
Colour Wheaten Black Wheaten, black, red, (red not too dark), wolf-sable. Selfcoloured but small symmetrical markings e.g. white on chest and legs, blaze on head and narrow ring on neck. Black mask and ears and black tips to tail permissible. Shaded wheaten Wolf Sable
Size Ideal height: dogs: 45 cms (18 ins); bitches somewhat less. Weight in proportion to size. Faults Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog and on the dog s ability to perform its traditional work. Note Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum. Please be aware that the height standard in Buhunds states the IDEAL size. In reality there is a much wider range of heights within the breed due to the nature of their work. Different sized dogs would be used for different jobs on the farm. My own personal view, when judging, is that I will allow a tolerance of 1 inch either side of the ideal. Therefore I would look for the following: Males: 17-19 inches Females: I would expect a bitch to be approximately one inch smaller than the ideal for males, making their range 16-18 inches. One thing to always remember QUALITY should NOT be sacrificed for SIZE and females can be bigger than males!
Buhunds are a reasonably healthy breed. We currently have three health issues that are listed as being required for testing by the Kennel Club, two of which have a very low occurrence rate. The most prevalent in our breed is Hereditary Cataracts, which is tested by the Kennel Club/British Veterinary Association (KC/BVA) by responsible breeders on all breeding stock prior to any mating. We also have another cataract known as Buhund Cataract, which is the most common in our breed although checked for and often noted on eye Certificates it is not certified separately on an eye certification from KC/BVA (a Buhund with this condition would not be shown as affected ). This cataract does not make the Buhund blind, and those that are affected have lived perfectly happy, normal lives. However, this is still an issue in the breed and should be taken into serious consideration as a when breeding. Another test that is required by KC/BVA is for Hip Displaysia. Although a required test, we have had very few instances of high results in Buhunds over the years. Again, this does not stop us testing for issues as without the test you do not know how good or bad a dogs hips are. Thanks to the Animal Health Trust we now have a new DNA test for Buhunds. This has come about from the DNA samples taken from breeders and owners in the search for a DNA test to determine the cataract issues. This DNA test is for Cerebellar Ataxia which is a debilitating disease and often results in the death of the dog. A few Buhunds suffered with this 15-20 years ago, but thankfully the occurrences have not been seen for some time. Acute cerebellar ataxia (ACA) is a disorder that occurs when the cerebellum becomes inflamed or damaged. The cerebellum is the area of the brain responsible for controlling gait and muscle coordination. The term ataxia refers to a lack of fine control of voluntary movements. Thankfully as we already have a DNA test for this condition, breeders and owners are able to make certain of the status of their pets for this condition. HEALTH All Kennel Club required tests for the breed should be carried out on both parents, prior to any mating taking place, for planned litters. This is a requirement for all Kennel Club Assured Breeder Scheme members (ABS) and is also required by the Norwegian Buhund Club of the UK. Please ensure your puppy s parents have been tested for all three conditions (Cataracts, Hip Displaysia and Cerebellar Ataxia) and that you have viewed the relevant results certificates before purchasing your puppy. https://www.bva.co.uk/canine- Health-Schemes/Eye-scheme/ https://www.bva.co.uk/canine- Health-Schemes/Hip-Scheme/ http://www.aht.org.uk/cmsxmodnewsrss_detail/new_dna_ test_norwegian_buhunds.html
Grooming a Buhund is quite easy, as long as you start getting them used to it from puppyhood - this is the same for all dogs! A Buhund should be thoroughly groomed once a week to keep on top of any shedding hair, more regularly during the main moulting seasons. Buhunds will moult at least once but often twice a year. The best way to ensure your pet is thoroughly groomed on a regular basis would be to take it to a professional groomer. A bath, blow dry and nail trim should be all that is required. The blow drying with a forceful dryer is also the easiest way to remove any dead coat (particularly during the moult). If you prefer to do this yourself, I would highly recommend the grooming tools shown on the right. For dental care you may want to brush your dogs teeth on a regular basis. If you prefer not to, a good supply of dental chews, proper bones and ragger toys is a great way to help keep teeth clean! Line-grooming is the method we use for grooming most breeds. This is where you hold a section of the coat up with one hand and groom it down, bit by bit, with the other. This needs to be done all over the body, ensuring you get right down to the skin. A coat that is kept well groomed on a regular basis takes far less time to keep up with. The breeder of your Buhund should be able to give you advice on how to groom your dog when you visit them, different breeders groom in different ways, so please bear this in mind. GROOMING Slicker Brush Rake Nail Clippers Line Grooming