Breed
Standard:
In
Australia the Standard became
FCI (Country of Origin)
by a national vote in
1998.
I have
broken the Standard up into sections and offered my interpretation of each
section and, where possible, used photos I believe demonstrate the points in an
effort to make it more "user friendly" if you like. As a
licensed Gundog
and Specialist Judge, I have given the lecture to trainee Judges for many years.
NOTE: As of 2004 tail docking was
banned in Australia
BREED STANDARD – HUNGARIAN VIZSLA
FCI Standard No 57 dated June 1996
Adopted in Australia from 1/01/2001
Revised May 2001
Country of Origin: Hungary
Translated by:
Mrs. H. Gross-Richardson, Mrs. Ann Mitchell and Mrs. Elke Peper
BRIEF HISTORICAL REVIEW:
The ancestors of the Hungarian Vizsla came
into the Carpathian Basin with the nomadic Hungarian tribes. Written
descriptions and graphic illustrations are found in documents of the 14th
century. From the 18th century, his importance as a hunting dog has been
increasing steadily. As early as the end of the 19th century, competitions for
pointing dogs were organized in Hungary, in which Hungarian Vizslas participated
with great success. In those days, other gundog breeds most likely played an
important part in the development of the breed.
The
specific modern breeding started in 1920, as a result of which, the Hungarian
Vizsla received recognition by the FCI in 1936.
GENERAL APPEARANCE:
He is a medium sized, elegant gundog of
noble appearance with a short russet gold coat. His rather light, dry, lean
structure embodies the harmony of beauty and strength.
"This breed should always be medium
sized, never larger than a GSP or Weimaraner. It should also be moderate
in all aspects and have a definite elegance. The dog should be well
muscled and sleek. Any courseness should be penalized."
CHARACTERISTICS:
The Hungarian Vizsla is a versatile gundog
that must be able to work in field, forest and water and have the following
typical qualities.
He must
have an excellent nose, firmness on the point, be excellent at retrieving and
have the determination to remain on the scent even when swimming, which he
manifestly enjoys. He copes with difficult terrain as well as extreme weather
conditions. As he is intended to be an efficient hunting dog then gun and game
shyness, unwillingness to point and retrieve, as well as a dislike of water are
undesirable. Because of his easy going nature and his adaptability, he can
easily be kept as a companion dog in the house.
"The above characteristics cannot be
really assessed without going out into the field, however the body should be
such that it is well muscled and gives the appearance of a dog able to work all
day."
TEMPERAMENT:
Lively, friendly, even tempered and easily trained. His outstanding willingness
to keep contact with his master while working is one of his essential
qualities. He cannot bear rough treatment and must be neither aggressive or
shy.
"This
again cannot be assessed easily. The temperament seen around the house and
in the show ring should be that of an affectionate, happy, energetic dog more
than willing to please and in fact, eager to be involved in what is happening.
Example: The Vizsla will certainly help you
garden! It is uncharacteristic for a
Vizsla to be aggressive with other dogs or people or to be a timid, frightened
wary dog. Any sign of these undesirable traits should be heavily
penalised."
HEAD
AND SKULL:
The head should be dry, noble and well proportioned. The skull moderately wide
and slightly domed. A slightly pronounced groove runs from the moderately
developed occiput towards the stop. The supercilliary ridges are moderately
developed. The stop is moderate.
His nose
should be well developed and broad with nostrils as wide as possible. The
colour of the nose harmonises in a dark shading with the coat colour. The
muzzle is blunt, not pointed, with strong jaws that are strongly muscled. The
bridge of the nose is straight. The lips are tight fitting with no pendulous
flews. The jaws are powerful and the cheeks are strong and well muscled.
  
"A Vizsla head should be clean, that
means no excess skin in the adult dog. Young puppies frequently have an
excess of skin into which they grow. They may show a wrinkled brow when
looking intently at something but it should be smooth once mature. Above
all, the head should have a noble or aristocratic look and be moderate
throughout. There should be no excesses, no hint of houndiness. If
there is coarseness or houndiness in the head, it will generally follow through
to a coarser, heavier body than required.
The skull and muzzle should blend
together giving an overall harmony. The muzzle should be slightly shorter
than the skull and well squared at the end with a well developed broad nose.
Lips should not be pendulous nor should they be too tight. The nostrils
which are important for scenting, should be as wide as possible. As a
gundog this breed also requires not only a big nose, but strong well muscled
cheeks with strong jaws."
EYES:
The eyes are slightly oval and of medium size with well fitting eyelids. He has
an intelligent and lively expression. The brown eyes harmonise with the coat
colour, as dark as possible preferred.
"The eye should give the impression
of a good natured dog, lively and interested. The eyes should be slightly
oval with tight fitting eyelids. Any looseness of eye is undesirable in a
gundog as sore eyes from dust and grass seeds are definitely not wanted.
The colour should blend with the coat colour. Eye colour can be difficult
to assess in young stock as the eyes can take some years to darken. When
assessing young dogs (and that could be even up to 2 years old), look for a
darker edge to the iris. If it is there, the eye will normally darken.
A clear yellow eye could be a problem. Not only the colour should blend
with the head but also the shape. If the eyes stand out in the head, look
for the reason. It could be colour. It could also be shape or
placement."
EARS:
The ears are set on at medium height, a little backwards. He has fine leathers,
which hang closely to the cheeks and end in a rounded V shape. The length is
about three-quarters of the length of the head.
"Vizsla" ears can vary greatly.
When bored they may simply hang down and appear to be slightly low set.
When attracted by something in the distance they can raise the ears which makes
them appear higher set. However, they should never stand out of the head
but hang close to the cheeks whether relaxed or alert. Baby puppies can
have quite long ears into which they grow."
MOUTH:
He has a regular and complete scissor bite with the upper teeth closely
overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws with 42 healthy teeth
according to dentition formula.
"Bad mouths are not common in this
breed and should not be tolerated."
NECK:
Of medium length, harmonizing with the overall appearance. The nape very
muscular and slightly arched. Tightly fitting skin (no dewlap) at the throat.
"This standard does not call for a
long neck. It should be long and strong enough to allow the dog to collect
and carry game. The neck should not be thick or coarse, short or stuffy as
this will detract from the refined elegant look of this breed. The neck
should also be clean with no loose skin for an injured animal to grasp. The
neck should have a slight arch and flow smoothly into the withers."
FOREQUARTERS:
Viewed from the front they should be straight and parallel. Viewed from the
side the legs are vertical and placed well under the body. Good bones and
strongly muscled. The shoulders are long, sloping and flat with well attached
shoulder blades. Flexible with strong dry muscles. Well angulated between the
shoulder blade and upper arm. The upper arm is as long as possible and well
muscled. The elbows fit close to the body, not tied in and turning neither in
nor out and are well angulated between the upper arm and forearm. The forearm
is long, straight and sufficiently muscled with strong but not coarse bone. The
pastern joint is short and tight. The pastern is short and only very slightly
sloping.
"The shoulders should be well laid
back with good angulation between the shoulder blade and the upper arm which
should be reasonably long and well muscled. The elbows should be close to
the body but not tight nor turning out. the legs should have good bone
with short pasterns which are very slightly sloping to allow quartering in the
field."
BODY:
The withers are pronounced and muscular. The back is solid, strong, well
muscled, taut and straight. The muscles should hide the vertebral spines. The
loin is short, broad, tight, muscular, straight or slightly arched. The portion
from back to loin is well coupled. The croup is broad and of sufficient length,
not to cut off short. It slopes slightly to the tail and is well muscled. The
chest is deep and broad with a well developed, well muscled, moderately arched
forechest. The sternum should extend as far back as possible. The sternum and
the elbow should be at the same level. The ribs are moderately arched with the
last ribs carried well back. The underline is elegant, tight, arching towards
the rear and slightly tucked up.
"The topline of the dog should flow
from the slight crest at the top of the neck to the high set withers and along
the level back to a slightly low set tail. The high set withers are
important in this breed for without them you will not have the correct flow from
head to tail nor will there be correct layback of shoulder. Any angle
forming between the neck and the back should be checked for the cause.
Also important is the prosternum which should be evident but not exaggerated.
The withers and prosternum should be evident even in a youngster. If not
there, they never will be. The depth of chest however, may disappear
during rapid growth and reappear when the youngster stops growing upward and
begins to fill out. Baby puppies and even youngsters may often have a
skirt or flank which also disappears as they grow. As they lose this
excess skin they may also appear to have too much tuck-up. The chest
should come to the elbow and should have a well developed forechest without
being exaggerated. The sternum should extend well back from the elbow
giving the dog in profile a well ribbed body with plenty of heart and lung space.
The loin should be short and strong."
HINDQUARTERS:
Viewed from behind they should be straight and parallel. Well angulated and
with strong bone. The upper thigh is long and muscular with good angulation
between the pelvis and upper thigh. The stifle is well angulated. The lower
thigh is long, well muscled and sinewy. Its length is almost equal to that of
the upper thigh. Good angulation between the lower thigh and the metatarsus.
The hock joint is strong, dry and sinewy and rather well let down. The
metatarsus is vertical, short and dry.
"The
hindquarters should be well angulated so that the dog has strong drive and can
cover plenty of ground on the move. The hocks should be well let down,
short and vertical. the bone should be strong but not coarse and the legs
parallel from behind. Some handlers will stack the dog with hind legs too
far apart. Watch the dog standing naturally or move the legs to better
assess the hindquarters. The topline might then also need re-checking."
FEET:
The forefeet are slightly oval, with well knit, sufficiently arched, strong
toes. The nails are strong and brown in colour. He has tough, resistant, slate
grey pads. The feet are parallel when standing or moving. The hind feet are
similar to the forefeet.
"Good
feet should be a must in gundogs which are expected to do a days work over rough
terrain. The pads should be thick to cope with any ground cover.
Toes should be tight and well arched with the two middle toes slightly longer
giving a slightly oval foot. Flat feet with thin pads and open spread toes
are unacceptable. The nails should be strong and brown, short but not too
short as the Vizsla will use his nails in climbing river banks and keeping his
footing on slippery wet ground".
TAIL:
Set on slightly low, strong at the base, then tapering. In countries where tail
docking is not prohibited by law, the tail may be shortened by one quarter to
avoid hunting hazards. If tail docking is prohibited, the tail reaches down to
the hock joint and carried straight or slightly sabre like. On the move, it is
raised up to the horizontal. It is well covered by dense coat.
"The
tail should be slightly low set and is a barometer of the temperament.
Whilst standing around doing nothing, the tail can hang down. As the dog
begins walking he should raise his tail and on the move it should be at least
horizontal. Excited dogs or strong males will often raise their tail
higher. Until recently tails were docked as the last portion of the tail
is easily damaged when the dog wags it enthusiastically whether at home against
the walls or, in the field against bushes. The undocked tail can be
extremely long with a very thin whip end".
GAIT
/ MOVEMENT:
The typical gait is an animated, light-footed trot, elegant and far-reaching,
with much drive and corresponding reach. Not exhausting gallop when working in
the field. The back is firm and the topline remains level. Good, upright
carriage. Pacing undesirable.
 "The Vizsla should have an effortless smooth
ground covering trot. It should have plenty of reach and drive. Short busy
steps are incorrect as is the lifting of the front feet. Coming and going the
dog should show no sign of loose elbows. At speed this breed does tend to
single track. Good upright carriage does not mean that the dog holds his head
high on the move as the head must come forward if the dog is to reach with the
forelegs.
The Vizsla should however move with a proud and noble carriage".
COAT:
Short and dense, should be coarse and hard at the touch. On the head and the
ear leathers, it should be thinner, silkier and shorter. The hair underneath
the tail should be slightly, but not noticeably longer. The coat should cover
all of the body with the underside of the belly being a little lighter coated.
No undercoat.
"Vizslas
who live inside generally have softer smoother coats that can feel very smooth
almost like velvet whilst outdoor and working gundogs may have a courser feel to
the coat. Bathing before a show will make the coat clean and shiny but
also softer. This coat is quite fine and short compared to similar
breeds".
COLOUR:
Various shades of russet gold and dark sandy gold. The ear leathers may be a
little darker, otherwise uniform in colour. Red, brownish or lightened colour
is undesirable. A little white patch on the chest or at the throat, not more
than 5cm in diameter, as well as white markings on the toes are not considered
faulty. The colour of the lips and the eye rims corresponds to the colour of
the nose. The skin is tightly fitting, without folds and well pigmented.
"The
Vizsla colour is unique. It can vary from light to dark but should always
have a golden red tinge. A healthy coat when seen in the sun will have a
reddish metallic gleam to it. The coat should be the same colour all
over except for slightly darker ears and muzzle and the darker stripe down the
back known as the "Esterhazy Saddle" - or King Stripe. These together with
the light areas behind the shoulders are common. Like the eyes, the coat
can take some time to darken and youngsters with a pale coat should not be
penalised. Their eventual colour can usually be seen on the lower legs and
muzzle. Very small areas of white on the chest, throat and toes are
permissible. Roaning on the chest can occur in this breed but the number
of white hairs do not predominate and the roaning is not noticeable unless
looked at very closely. As with the eyes, if the amount of white is
noticeable it is probably too much".
SIZE
/ WEIGHT:
Height at Withers:
Dogs: 58-64 cm
Bitches: 54-60 cm
IMPORTANT
PROPORTIONS:
- The
body length slightly exceeds the height at withers
- The
depth of the brisket is slightly less than half the height at withers
- The
muzzle is slightly shorter than half the length of head
It is
ineffective to increase the height at the withers. A medium size should be
aimed at. Overall balance and symmetry are much more important than the mere
measurable size.
"Do
remember the body length should be slightly longer than the height at the
withers. We are not looking for a short backed dog - that will not aid in
quartering the ground at speed. However, we are looking for a dog that is
long in ribcage with plenty of heart and lung space. Also, with the depth
of brisket being slightly less than half the height at withers, the legs will be
slightly longer than the distance from withers to elbows bringing the Vizsla
slightly higher on leg though not as high as a Weimaraner".
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 the exact
proportion to its degree.
"There is quite a wide variation in height for this breed. Over the years
there have been times when Vizslas have been obviously well over the upper
height limit. It should be remembered that this is one fault and some
allowance could be made for an excellent example of the breed with correct
angulation and overall balance but, not for an over tall Vizsla which loses type
and elegance due to heaviness. Additionally, over the years smaller
bitches which have definitely been within the height range have suffered with
people considering them too small due to the much taller males in the ring.
Do not be fooled into thinking a bitch is too small because of other Vizslas.
There is after all a large difference between 54cm (21") and 64cm (25")".
DISQUALIFYING FAULTS:
Note:
Male animals must have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the
scrotum.
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