GENERAL APPEARANCE; A dog of medium build, athletic but never racy.

HEAD; Not too broad, skull slightly domed. Muzzle equal in length to skull, strong and gently tapering. Cheeks flat. Nose preferably black but a `snow nose` is permitted. Nostrils large. Slight stop. Lips close fitting and black. Perfect scissor bite.

EYES; Oval and set at a slightly oblique angle. Any colour or colour combination permitted.

EARS; Fairly wide apart but not low set. Not too large, carried erect.

NECK; Strong and muscular with a well-defined nape.

FOREQUARTERS; Shoulders flat. Moderately angulated upper arm but shoulder blades well laid back. Elbows fitting close to the chest which must not be too broad (approx 4 finger width between front legs) or drop below the elbow. Distance from ground to elbow slightly greater than that from elbow to withers. Oval bone, neither too heavy or too light, pasterns upright but flexible. Feet oval and toes open and well knuckled. Pads black and well cushioned with hair.

BODY; Top line level, ribs long to give overall proportions of height to length as 10-9, well sprung from the spine but flattening on the sides to allow the elbows to move freely. Loin short and deep with no exaggerated tuck up. Croup broad and fairly short but not steep. The tail is a smooth continuation of the croup and must reach no further than the point of the hock. May be lifted when excited and carried upright or sickle in movement.

HINDQUARTERS; Well angulated with broad, muscular thighs, the strength being carried through to the second thigh. Hocks short and perpendicular to the ground. Upright when viewed from the rear. Feet oval, can have five rear toes. Removal of dewclaws optional.

COAT; Dense, waterproof double coat, slightly coarse in texture. Body coat 3-5cm.Longer on ruff and breeching, Tail bushy.

GAIT; Far reaching, covering the ground with an easy stride.

SIZE; Bitches –min 23”(59cm)max-28”(71cm) dogs-min 25”(64cm)max-30”(76cm) - overall balance more important than size.

COLOUR; Pure white or any colour Sable, Grey or Apricot through to pure black. White faces permitted on any colour. Masklike or cap like markings permitted on the faces of any colour other than on whites. Where white appears on the leg and feet the colour change must be gradual, ink marked considered a fault.

TEMPERAMENT; Friendly, placid and out going.

All Males should have two apparently normal testicles descended into the scrotum.

FAULTS; Curly tails, long or single coats, ink marked, black and tan colours. Cow or sickle hocks. Any departure from the standard should be considered a fault, the seriousness with which the fault is regarded should be in proportion to its degree.

The Northern Inuit is faithful, friend and placid. Never aggressive or showing any guarding tendencies and will submit when challenged. They mix well with other pets and because of their friendly personalities they love the companionship of other dog as and very rarely argue. They make great family members and like to be included in everything the family does. They love children and are happy to play games for hours.

1) Breeders will properly house, feed, water and exercise all dogs under their care and arrange appropriate veterinary attention if and when required.

2) Breeders will agree without reservation not to perform an operation that alters the natural conformation of any dog.

3) Breeders will not breed from a bitch in any way that is deleterious to the bitch or the breed.

4) A bitch cannot be mated under 14 months of age. (KC say 12 months)

5) A bitch cannot whelp twice in a 12-month period.

6) A bitch cannot whelp after her eighth birthday.

7) A bitch cannot whelp more than six litters.

8) All breeding bitches should be positively identified (microchip, tattoo or genetic profile)

9) Breeders agree only to sell dogs where there is reasonable expectation of a happy and healthy life and will accept a dog back or help with re-homing if the initial circumstances change.

10) Breeders will supply written details of all dietary requirements and give guidance concerning responsible ownership and training when placing dogs in a new home.

11) Breeders will offer ‘after sale’ advice on the telephone to new owners.

12) Breeders will not sell any dog to commercial dog wholesalers, retails pet dealers or directly or indirectly allow dogs to be given as a prize or donation in a competition of any kind.

13) Breeders will not knowingly misrepresent the characteristics of the breed nor falsely advertise dogs nor mislead any person regarding the quality of the dog.

The Northern Inuit Society does NOT allow the crossing of Northern Inuit’s with any other breed of dog-any breeder discovered doing this will be struck off the society and no more litters will be registered to that person/kennel.

All Breeding Dogs & Bitches born after 1 January 2006 are to be hip scored, and a satisfactory score reached before being bred from.

Because Northern Inuit dogs can have sensitive tummies a raw food diet is recommended and they seem to do very well on it. We personally use the barf diet, with chicken & tripe being their favourite, they also like raw chicken and for breakfast John West tuna. We like to use dried tripe sticks and carrots as treats.

Because they are not over active dogs a medium level of exercise is all they require, and if you are lucky enough to own more than one Northern Inuit you will be treated to spectacular bouts of play which can be boisterous at times.

HIGHGROUND NORTHERN INUIT DOGS