The Icelandic Sheepdog is Iceland’s native breed of dog. A descendant of dogs brought to Iceland by the original Viking settlers (AD 870-930). Dogs became indispensable, rounding up livestock and working on farms. Their method of working adapted to local terrain, farming methods and people’s hard struggle for survival over the centuries.
General appearance
A Nordic Herding Spitz, slightly below medium size, sturdy, with erect ears and curled tail. Seen from side, the dog is rectangular. Expression gentle, intelligent and happy. Confident and lively bearing. Two types of coat, short and long, both thick and very weather-resistant. Marked distinction in appearance between sexes.
Important Proportions: Length of body from point of shoulder to point of buttock greater than height at withers. Depth of chest equal to length of leg from elbow to ground. Muzzle slightly shorter than skull.
Temperament
A hardy and agile herding spitz, which barks, making it extremely useful for herding or driving sheep and other livestock. By nature very alert and will announce arrival of visitors without being aggressive. Cheerful, friendly, inquisitive, playful and confident with gentle temperament.
Head
Strongly built with close fitting skin. Wedge shaped when seen from above or side. Skull somewhat domed. Stop clearly defined though not pronounced. Cheeks clean, well-filled. Muzzle well developed and strong, nasal bridge straight, slightly shorter than skull. Tapering evenly towards nose to form a blunt triangle when seen from both above and side. Lips close fitting. Nose and lips black, dark brown on chocolate brown and some cream dogs.
Eyes
Almond-shaped, medium size and dark brown. Can be slightly lighter in chocolate brown and some cream dogs. Eye rims black, or dark brown on chocolate brown and some cream dogs. Showing a mild expression.
Ears
Erect and medium size. Set well apart without being low set. Close to equilateral triangle with firm edges and slightly rounded tips. Very mobile, reacting sensitively to sounds, showing the dog’s mood.
Mouth
Jaws strong with perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to jaws. Complete dentition preferred.
Neck
Moderately long, clean and muscular. Slightly arched.
Forequarters
When seen from front, forelegs straight, parallel and strong. Shoulders oblique and muscular, well laid back. Dew claws may be double.
Body
Strong. Deep chest, ribcage long and well-sprung. Back level, muscular and strong. Loin broad, muscular and fairly short. Underline only a slight tuck up.
Hindquarters
When seen from behind, hindlegs straight, parallel and strong. Croup moderately short and wide, slightly sloping and well-muscled. Moderately angulated, balanced with forequarters. Thigh broad and well-muscled. Well-developed double dew claws desirable.
Feet
Slightly oval, toes well-arched, tight, with well-developed pads.
Tail
High set, curled over touching back.
Gait/movement
Displays agility and endurance with good driving action, covering ground effortlessly.
Coat
Double coat, thick and extremely weather resistant.
There are two variants:
Short-haired: outer coat fairly coarse, with thick, soft undercoat. Hair shorter on face, top of head, ears and front of legs. Longer on neck, chest and back of thighs. Tail bushy, hair length in proportion to coat.
Long-haired: outer coat longer and fairly coarse, with thick, soft undercoat. Hair shorter on face, top of head, ears and front of legs. Longer behind ears, neck, withers, chest and back of thighs with fringes on back of forelegs. Tail very bushy and hair length in proportion to coat.
Colour
Several colours permitted but a single colour should always be predominant. Those colours are various shades of tan, ranging from cream to reddish brown; chocolate brown; grey; black. White always accompanies the predominant colour. Most common white markings, often irregular, are a blaze or part of face, collar, chest, socks of varying lengths and tip of tail. Lighter shading often occurs on underside of dog from throat to tip of tail. On tan and grey dogs, a black mask, black tips to outer hairs and even occasional black hairs often occur. Tri-colour dogs have a black coat, white markings as mentioned above and tan markings in any of various tan on cheeks, over eyes (eyebrows) and on legs. Patches of above colours on a white background (pied) permissible. White should not be totally predominant.
Size
Ideal height at withers: Male: 18 inches (46 cm). Female: 16.5 inches (42 cm).
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