The breed

Romanian Raven Shepherd Dog - The standard

ORIGIN:
Romania

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD:

UTILIZATION:
Shepherd dog for sheep and cattle. Excellent guardian.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I.:
Group II Pinscher-Schnauzer, Molossoids breeds, Swiss Mountain and Cattle dogs
Section 2.2 – Mountain type Molossoids
Without working trial

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY:
Romanian Raven Shepherd Dog is a natural breed which was formed in the area of Meridional Carpathian Mountains and in the sub Carpathian regions (Dambovita, Arges, Prahova, and Brasov). In these regions, the breed is highly appreciated and successfully used for defending flocks and as a watchdog for households. This dog has been known for generations and called “Raven” because of his predominantly black coat. Although his habitat is relatively limited, due to his qualities the existing population is numerous.
The national Standard was written in accordance with the model established by the 1978 FCI General Assembly in Jerusalem and it was approved by the A.Ch.R. Directory Council on 14.11.2008 and updated on 19.02.2011.

GENERAL APPEARENCE:
Large sized dog, towering, courageous and proud. Sexual dimorphism is well marked, the males being stronger, larger in size, and more able-bodied than the females. The coat is black or predominantly black, more than 80%, with white marks on the chest and limbs.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS
- The ratio between the length of the muzzle and the length of the skull is slightly under unit, the muzzle being slightly shorter or almost the same length as the skull.
- The length of the body is slightly greater than the height at the withers, rectangular in shape.
- Scapulo-humeral angulations are moderate (about 100-110 degrees).

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT
Balanced, calm with a well developed guardian instinct, perfect
subordinate to his masters. It is diffident towards strangers. Very good guardian for livestock, courageous and fighting against predators (bear, wolf). His bark is loud, profound and can be heard from a great distance.

HEAD
Powerful, massive, with well chiseled forms, never ragged or with a repugnant expression. The head is carried proudly above the top line.

CRANIAL REGION:
Skull: Sufficiently wide, square, the length and the width being approximately equal. The longitudinal axis of the skull and the muzzle are almost parallel. The skull, viewed from the front, is slightly domed; seen from the side, it is almost flat;
skull width: males 16-18 cm, females 15-17 cm. Zygomatic arches are moderately developed. Occipital protuberance is slightly evident.
Stop: Fairly marked.

FACIAL REGION:
Nose: Well developed and broad, black in color
Muzzle: Truncated cone shape, with length slightly less than or equal to that of the skull; well developed, narrowing progressively to its extremity, never pointed; its width and depth are equal.
Lips: Thick, slightly dropped, covering the inferior line of the mandible, strong pigmentation.
Jaws/teeth: Strong jaws; complete dentition with healthy teeth, well set, white; scissor or pincer bite. Reverse scissor bite is allowed.
Cheeks: not prominent
Eyes: Small in relation to the head; almond shape and set obliquely, amber colour from light to dark shade. Eyelids well pigmented.
Ears: Inserted slightly above the level of the eyes, « V » shaped with slightly rounded tip, pendent and carried close to cheeks. When pulled forward, the ears must reach the corner of the lips.
NECK: Medium length, large and strong, with a little dewlap.
BODY: Massive, vigorous.
Top line: Horizontal.
Withers: highly evident.
Back: strong and muscular.
Loin: strong and muscular.
Croup: Muscular and moderately inclined toward base of tail.
Chest: Broad and deep, descending to elbows; well sprung ribs.
Underline and Belly: slightly ascendant.
TAIL: High set-on. At rest, it is pendent, with the extremity slightly curved in its last third. Long, reaching to or lower than the hock; when the dog is alert or in action the tail is raised, surpassing the top line but it never curved on the flanks.
LIMBS: strong bones.

FOREQUARTERS:
General appearance: Seen from the side and from the front, the limbs have good angulations.
Shoulder: Long, strong and oblique, firmly attached to the body, well muscled. Scapular-humeral angle about 100-110°.
Upper Arm: Moderately long, muscular.
Elbow: Close to the body, free movement.
Forearm: Strong, not too long.
Carpus (Wrist): Strong.
Metacarpus (Pastern): Short, seen from the side almost straight.
Forefeet: Rounded (cat-like), compact and strong, black or ashen nails.

HINDQUARTERS:
General appearance: Muscular and strong, normal in stance
CUpper Thigh: Medium length, wide, very muscular.
Stifle: Femoral-tibia angle is aprox. 110°.
Lower Thigh: Moderately long, muscular.
Hock joint: Viewed from the side, wide, moderate. Seen from behind, parallel to median plan of body.
Metatarsus (Rear pastern): Strong and upright. The presence of dewclaws should not be penalized.
Hind feet: Slightly longer than forefeet, compact and strong, black or ashen nails.
GAIT/MOVEMENT: Harmonious, elastic, well coordinated, giving the impression of effortless power. Preferred gait is the trot.
SKIN: Thick, close fitting, dark-ashen pigmentation

COAT:
HAIR: Head and the front part of the legs are covered with short hair. On the body, hair is abundant, long (7-10 cm), flat, straight and rough. Undercoat is shorter and dense. At the neck region, hair is much longer forming a mane; on the back side of the forequarters, the hair forms fringes; on the backside of hindquarters, the hair is longer and forms culottes. The tail is bushy.
COLOUR:
Coat is always black (like a raven) or black on more than 80% of the body, with white marks on the chest and the forequarters. The white marks on the forequarters must not exceed the metacarpal joint level, but could be extended almost to the elbow on the posterior part. Other colours except black are not allowed on the white.
The presence of white on the tip of the toes of the hind feet is not to be penalised. When two dogs are of almost the same value, that with more black will be preferred. A coat with a reddish tinge, due to prolonged exposition to the sun during summer, should not be penalised.

SIZE AND WEIGHT:
Height at withers:
Males: 70-80 cm, ideal 75 cm
Females: 65-75 cm, ideal 70 cm
Weight: In proportion to height.

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 on the health and welfare of the dog.

• Lack of substance or exaggerated molossoid aspect.
• Not sufficient sexual character.
• Multiple teeth absence.
• Overweight or weak subject.
• The dogs with fire points will be removed from reproduction.
• Very short hair, shorter than 6 cm.
• Tail curled, carried in a ring on the flanks.
• Flabby toes, toeing in or out.
• Elbows turning out.
• Heavy gait.

SEVERE FAULTS:

• Untypical expression.
• Round protruding eyes.
• Erect ears.
• Top line sagging or dipping.
• Hair too short (under 6 cm)
• Curly coat or bad texture.
• Yellow eyes with wild expression.
• Different colour of eyes (heterochromatic).
• Cow hocked.

DISQUALIFYING FAULTS:

• Aggressive or overly shy.
• Untypical subject.
• Overshot or undershot bite.
• Absence of incisors or canines.
• White marks covering more than 30% of the body surface.
• Other colours than those described by standard.
• Absent or atrophic tail.
• Height under 65 cm for males.
• Height under 62 cm for females.

Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.
N.B. Males should have two testicles, both normally developed and fully descended into the scrotum.