This is a large, massive, powerful dog, with symmetrical and well knit frame, a combination of grandeur, good nature, courage and docility. The head offers a square appearance when viewed from any point. Great depth is much desired. The skull is broad between the ears, with muscles on the temples and cheeks well developed. There should be a depression up the center of the forehead. The muzzle is short, blunt and square. The eyes are small, wide apart, with stop between the eyes well marked, and of a hazel-brown color, showing no haw. The ears are small, thin, set on high and lay flat to the cheeks. The chest is wide and deep and the back wide and muscular with great depth of flanks. His tail is thick at the root and hangs straight in repose. The coat is short and close laying.
The Mastiff is one of the very oldest breeds known to the British Isles. The Assyrian kings possessed a large dog of decided Mastiff type and used it for lion hunting. Credible authorities point to a similarity, also, between the Mastiff and the fierce Molorsian of the ancient Greeks, and it is claimed by many students that the breed was introduced into Britain in the sixth century B. C. by adventurous Phoenician traders.
WHITE ENGLISH TERRIER
Color: Pure white.
This terrier should resemble the Manchester terrier illustrated on the previous page in every respect excepting in regard to color, which should be a pure white.
OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOG
Color: Any shade of gray, grizzle or blue with or without white markings. Height: 24 in. Weight: 65 lbs.
This is a strong, compact dog, profusely coated, with a characteristic ambling when trotting, and owns a thick-set, muscular short body, liberal bone, and a most intelligent expression. The skull is capacious, squarely formed, and well covered with hair. The eyes vary in color according to the shade of the dog. A “wall” or “China” eye is considered typical. The small ears are carried flat to the side of his head. Many are bred tailless, if otherwise they are docked close. The coat is profuse, of good hard texture, not straight, but shaggy, yet free from curl. He should have plenty of undercoat.
This breed is also of very early origin and has been bred in England for some hundreds of years. He is probably a relic of the early pastoral days when the wolf inhabited the British isles, from which the flocks and herds had to be protected. Some authorities claim, however, that he is a descendant of the Russian Owtchar.