PREAMBLE
Historically the Boerboel developed as a general farm dog for
the pioneers who settled in South Africa since the seventeenth
century. These dogs often were a first line of defense against
predators and were valuable in tracking and holding down wounded
game. Old farmers told many a tale of the strength, agility and
courage of the Boerboel. The dangers and harsh conditions of Southern
Africa allowed only the fittest to survive.
The protective character of the Boerboel is today still evident
and is much sought after, as is the calm, stable and confident
composure of the breed. It remains the guarding breed of choice
amongst current day farmers and is very popular for the same reason
in the urban communities.
The origin and purpose of the Boerboel should be understood in
order to preserve the unique identity and qualities of the breed
as a South African developed mastiff. Type, conformation, functional
efficiency and mentality are equally important in the evaluation
of the Boerboel as a whole. The aim with the Breed Standard is
to provide clear guidelines for breeders and judges to promote
a singular vision of the ideal Boerboel.
BREED STANDARD
1. GENERAL APPEARANCE
The Boerboel is large, with a strong-boned structure and a well-developed
musculature.
The profile of the head and body appears blocky. Has an impressive
demeanor created by the combination of conformation, carriage,
confidence and powerful movement.
Has powerful, buoyant and unencumbered movement, notwithstanding
its size.
Is symmetrical and perfectly balanced within the desired proportions
for the breed.
Has a distinct sexual dimorphism, with the bitch less prominently
developed.
2. TEMPERAMENT AND CHARACTER
The Boerboel Is intelligent, trainable and manageable.
Has a strong protective instinct and is loyal to members of the
family.
Is steadfast and calm, with a balanced and confident nature when
approached.
Is fearless and shows courage when threatened.
Requires training and firm handling from an early age.
3. HEAD
The head is impressive and a distinctive feature of the Boerboel.
It is blocky, broad, deep, fairly short and in proportion to the
body.
It is muscular with well-filled cheeks.
The roof of the cranium (skull) is square, flat and muscular.
The zygomatic arch (cheekbone) is well muscled, but not too prominent.
The stop is definite, but not prominent, gradually sloping and
well filled between the eyes.
It should not be steep, or an almost straight line between the
nose and the occiput.
The muzzle is broad, deep, well attached, filled below the eyes
and narrows slightly towards the nose. The top line is straight
and almost on a parallel plane with the cranial roof.
The muzzle measures slightly more than a third of the total length
of the head (approx. 10cm for the male and 8cm for the female
of ideal height).
The nostrils are large and widely spaced, with the septum (vertical
line) of the nose perpendicular to the lower jaw.
The jaws are strong, deep and wide, and taper slightly to the
front.
The teeth are white, strong, correctly spaced with complete dentition
and a scissors bite (limited undershot discriminated against;
overshot unacceptable) .
The upper lip is loose and fleshy. It just covers the lower lip
and teeth in the front but should not hide the underline of the
lower jaw on the sides.
The lower lip is moderately tight without excessive jowls.
The eyes are medium sized, round, forward facing and widely spaced,
with an intelligent expression.
It is well protected against the environment by firm and black-pigmented
eyelids, showing no structural weaknesses.
The color of the eye is preferably dark brown but all shades of
brown (preferably darker than the pelt) are acceptable.
The ears are set wide and high and are carried close to the head.
They are V-shaped with a broad base tapering to a rounded point
that reaches almost down to a line extending from the mouth.
When the dog is attentive, the top of the ears and the skull,
in between, should form a straight line.
The facial expression should be intelligent, attentive and confident
(not evasive, shy or threatening).
4. THE NECK
The neck is powerful, of medium length, strong muscled and with
a pronounced crest.
(In the female the muscles are less accentuated but should remain
in balance with the head and body).
It is set medium high, flows smoothly into the sloping withers
and forms a unit with the head and shoulders.
The dewlap is noticeable but disappears towards the sternum.
5. THE BODY
The body is approximately 15% longer than the height and is measured
horizontally, from the point of the shoulder to a vertical line
at the rear of the rump.
(The length of the chest, loin and rump is approximately proportioned
2:1:1).
It is blocky, muscular, solid and has good depth and width.
The back is broad and straight, with pronounced muscles that form
an imperceptible arch in the top line over the lumber region.
The brisket reaches down to the point of the elbow, which is approximately
half the total height at the withers.
The transitions between the chest, loin and rump are well filled
and flowing.
6. CHEST
The chest is long, broad and deep, with well-sprung ribs and
strong developed pectoral muscles. It is filled behind the shoulder
blades.
The point of the sternum is level with the point of the shoulder.
The shoulder blades should be well-attached (not loose).
7. THE LUMBER REGION, LOIN
It is short, straight and muscular, and slightly narrower than
the chest and rump.
The flanks are well filled, only moderately tucked up and the
depth is slightly less than the length of the loin.
8. THE RUMP, CROUP
The rump is broad, strong, muscular and in proportion to the
rest of the dog.
Its height should not exceed the height at the withers. The top
line drops slightly towards the tail.
The croup is broad and flat to provide a fulcrum (axel) towards
powerful reach of the hind legs.
The tail is thick and set fairly high. It should be well covered
with hair and without kink.
Tails are traditionally docked but undocked tails are acceptable.
Docking takes place at the 3rd or 4th caudal vertebrae.
The natural tail should reach approximately to the hocks when
the dog is standing.
9. LEGS AND FEET
Weak and malformed limbs jeopardize the physical functionality
that is required of the Boerboel and should be discriminated against.
10. THE FORELIMBS
Are strong boned, with well-defined muscles and sturdy joints.
Should be correctly angulated from the well-sloped shoulder blade
down to the metacarpus (pastern).
Should form a vertical line from the point of the shoulder down
to the paws, with the elbows held close and parallel to the chest
when viewed from the front.
Seen from the side the forearm should be vertical from the elbow
to the carpus. The metacarpus is short, thick and strong and angles
very slightly forward.
The forepaws point straight forward, are large, round, strongly
boned and compact.
The toes are well arched, with curved black toenails and protected
by hair in between. The pads are thick, tough and black.
11. THE HINDLIMBS
Are strong boned, sturdy and muscular.
The joints should be sound, strong and correctly angulated to
support the powerful propulsion from the hindquarters during movement.
The upper thighs are broad, deep and muscular as seen from the
side and the rear.
The lower thighs have well defined muscles and show substance
down to the hocks.
The metatarsus is broad, relatively short and perfectly upright.
The front is in a vertical line with the rear of the rump.
From the rear the profile of the hindquarters should form an inverted
U, with the stifles pointing straight forward and the hocks straight
backwards.
The hind paws point straightforward, are slightly smaller than
the forepaws but have the same quality.
12. MOVEMENT
The movement is strong, purposeful, buoyant and fluent, with
comfortable reach in front and rear.
The legs and body should move in line front to rear. The feet
moves closer to a center line as speed increases, forming a V
shape in the observers mind.
Whilst converging towards the center line of travel, the legs
should never cross.
At all gaits the top line is firm and strong, without swaying,
or dipping in the middle, and without excess body roll.
Weak, unsound or plodding movement should not be tolerated.
13. THE SKIN
The skin is thick and loose but fits smoothly.
A small dewlap is permissible and moderate wrinkles over the forehead
when the dog shows interest.
14. PIGMENTATION
The Boerboel is well pigmented, especially on the lips, palate,
the skin and hair around the eyes, nose bulb, paw pads, toenails,
the anus and the skin and hair around the genitals.
Only dogs with black eumelanin pigmentation are acceptable.
15. THE COAT AND COLOR
The coat is short, dense, smooth and shiny.
The recognized color / color patterns are (with or without a mask):
All shades of Red, Brown and Yellow (fawn). Black.
(I personally disagree with black color boerboels - there are
no such thing as genetic black boerboels)
Brindle : Brindle is a color pattern with irregular vertical
lines of only black hair on Red, Brown or Yellow base.
Piebald : Piebald is permissible to breed with, but should
be discriminated against in the show ring.
Irish Markings :Irish Markings are permissible to breed
with, but should be discriminated against in the show ring.
(I personally disagree with Irish Markings boerboels - there
are no such thing as genetic Irish Markings boerboels)
All these color and color patterns should be accompanied by good
pigmentation.
No other color or color patterns and tan markings are acceptable.
16. SIZE
Is determined by the ideal height at the withers and desirable
ratios between the height and the measurements of the various
parts of the external anatomy.
The ideal height for a dog is 66cm (lower than 60 cm is unacceptable).
The ideal height of a bitch is 61cm (lower than 55 cm is unacceptable).
17. GENITALS
Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully
descended into the scrotum.
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 direct proportion to its degree.
DISQUALIFICATION
1. A dog that is too small (Smaller than the minimum heights
stipulated in the Breed Standard).
2. A dog that is too big and out of balance.
3. An overly aggressive dog.
4. A too small and untypical head.
5. A lack of pigmentation.
6. Excessively undershot bite.
7. Excessively overshot bite.
8. Blue eyes.
9. Pricked ears.
10. Any dog clearly showing any physical or behavioral abnormalities.
