CKC pre 1994 Previous Standard
General Appearance and Conduct: The Siberian Husky is an alert, gracefully built, medium-sized dog, quick and light on his feet and free and graceful in action. He has a strong moderately compact body; a deep, strong chest; well muscled shoulders and hindquarters; and straight, strong legs with medium bone. His coat is dense and very soft and his brush tail is carried curved over his back when at attention and trailing when in repose. His head presents a finely chiseled and often fox like appearance and his eyes have a keen and friendly expression. His characteristic gait is free, tireless and almost effortless when free or on loose leash, but showing great strength when pulling; the trot is brisk and smooth and quite fast. Bitches are smaller than dogs, averaging up to 2 inches shorter and 10 pounds less in weight. Siberians range in build from moderately compat (but never "cobby") to moderately rangy; in all builds the bone must be medium, the back powerful (never slack from excessive length), and the shoulder height never exceeding 23 1/2 inches. (Any ranginess is merely a matter of proportion, not of actual height).
Head:
1. Skull: of Medium size in proportion to the body; width between ears medium to narrow, gradually tapering to eyes and moderately rounded. Muzzle of medium length. Both skull and muzzle are finely chiseled. Lips dark and close fitting; jaws and teeth strong, meeting with a scissors bite.
1. Skull: of Medium size in proportion to the body; width between ears medium to narrow, gradually tapering to eyes and moderately rounded. Muzzle of medium length. Both skull and muzzle are finely chiseled. Lips dark and close fitting; jaws and teeth strong, meeting with a scissors bite.
2. Ears: of medium size, erect close-fitting, set high on head and well covered with hair on the inside. There is an arch at the back of the ears. Ears are slightly taller than width at base, and moderately rounded at tips. When dog is at attention, ears are usually carried practically parallel on top of head, with inner edges quite close together at base. Faults: Low-set ears; ears too large; `flat`ears; lop ears.
3. Eyes: either brown or ble (`watch`or `china`) in color, one blue and one brown eye permissible but not preferable; set only ever slightly obliquely in skull. Eyes have a keen, friendly and foxlike expression; this expression is distinctly ``interested``, sometimes even mischievous.
4. Nose: black for preference; brown allowed in occasional specimens of reddish coloring; flesh-colored nose and eye rims allowed in white dogs. Some dogs, especially black and white ones have what is often termed a `snow nose`, or `smudge nose`. i.e. a nose normally solid black but acquiring a pink streak in winter. This is permissible but not preferable.
Coat: The Siberian Husky has a thick, soft, double coat consisting of a soft, dense, downy under coat of fur next to the skin and an outer coat of soft, smooth texture giving a smooth, full furred appearance and a clean-cut outline (in contrast to the harsh coarse coat of the Alaskan Malamute or the bear-like Eskimo coat.) The coat is usually medium in length; a longer coat is allowed but the texture must remain the same in any length. Faults: Any harshness (except while actually shedding); rough or shaggy appearance (like Samoyed, Malamute or Eskimo); absence of undercoat (except while shedding).
Tail: A well furred brush carried over back in a sickle curve when running or at attention, and trailing out behind when working or in repose. Tail should not `snap`flat to back. Hair on tail is usually of medium length, varying somewhat with the length of the dog`s coat.
Color: All colors and white are allowed, and all markings. The commonest colors are various shades of wolf and silver greys, tan (a light sable) and black with white points. A large variety of markings, especially head markings, is found in the Siberian, including many striking and unusual ones not found in any other breed. Frequently found are the caplike mask and spectable markings.
Chest, Ribs, Shoulders: Chest should be deep and strong, but not too broad. Ribs should be well arched and deep. Shoulders well developed and powerful. Faults: Chest too broad, (like Malamute); weak or flat chest; weak shoulders.
Back, Loins, Quarters: Back of medium length, not too long nor cobby like the Elkhound, and strongly developed. Loins well muscled and slightly arched and should carry no excess weight or fat. Hindquarters powerful and showing good angulation. Faults: Weak or slack back and weakness of hind-quarters.
Legs: Straight and well muscled with good bone (but never heavy bone like the Eskimo or Alaskan Malamute). Stifles well bent. Dewclaws occasionally appear on the hind legs. They are not a sign of impure breeding but as they interfere with the dog`s work, they should be removed, preferably at birth. Faults: Heavy bones; too light bone; lack of proper angulation in hind legs.
Feet: Oblong in shape and not so broad as the Eskimo or Malamute; well furred between pads which are tough and thickly cushioned; compact, neither too large (like the Malamute) nor too small (like many Samoyeds). The Siberian`s foot, like that of other true Arctic dogs is a `snowshoe foot`, i.e. it is somewhat webbed between the toes, like a retriever`s foot. Good feet are very important and therefore, feet should always be examined in the ring. Faults: Soft or splayed feet; feet too large or clumsy; feet too small or delicate.
Height: Dogs, from 21 to 23 1/2 inches at the shoulder. Bitches from 20 to 22 inches at the shoulder.
NOTE: Not sure of the date for this standard. It was printed in "This is the Siberian Husky, ISHC Book 2nd ed, pg 165 which was published in 1994 so it would have been the CKC standard for the Siberian at that time. Not sure who were the primary writers of this standard.