ISSA Breed Standard

Breed Purpose: The Shiloh Shepherd is an excellent family-friendly companion breed, gentle with children and
other animals. The Shiloh can excel as a Therapy or Service dog prospect. Some lines retain working ability
paralleling the purposes of its forebears: as a guardian of home and family; as a breed with scenting aptitude
able to work in demanding disciplines such as search and rescue; and even as a herding dog.

Character and Temperament: The Shiloh should be confident, with an attentive, intelligent air and a majestic
bearing that catches the eye. The temperament may be friendly and outgoing or aloof and self-possessed, but
must never be shy, reactive, or fearful. The ideal Shiloh is human-focused, eager to please, and happy to be
with its people.

Height: The Shiloh male is at least 28 inches (71 cm) in height at the withers. Height of over 30” (76 cm) is
preferred. The Shiloh female is at least 26 inches (66 cm) in height at the withers. Height for females of over
28” (71 cm) is preferred.

The Head, General Impression and Proportions: The head overall is broad and wolfish, with a striking
appearance that commands attention. The skull is as wide as it is long, slightly domed, and is equal in length to the
muzzle, which is predominantly black. The stop should be moderately defined. The lips should be close-fitting, and
the lower jaw should have consistent thickness to the end of the muzzle.

Ears: The ears should be triangular and fully erect, slightly pointed at the tip. They are set high on the head, medium
to small in size, with smaller preferred. The height should be equal to width at the base of the ear. Ears that are not
fully standing at 18 months of age should be considered a fault.

Eyes and Nose: The eyes should be almond-shaped and are shades of dark brown through amber to very light
brown. The nose and eye rims should be black. Protruding eyes are not desired and should be considered a fault.

Muzzle: The nasal bridge should ideally be straight, without bulge or dip. A slight bulge is permitted but a
Roman nose is a fault. The end of the muzzle should appear squared off, with a well-developed chin. Nose and
lip pigmentation should be black.

Bite and Dentition: The adult Shiloh possesses 42 teeth, 21 above and below. The proper bite is a scissors bite, with
the upper front teeth closely overlapping the lowers. Missing teeth are a fault unless due to trauma. Undershot,
overshot, or wry bites are a disqualifying fault in the ring.

Neck: The neck should be moderately long, well-arched and strong. The line of the neck should blend seamlessly
into the withers. When a line is drawn up the front leg, the entire neck should be in front of that line.

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Title: ISSA Breed Standard
Number: BR-003
Version: 2.0
Top Line: The withers should be higher than the back, slope slightly and blend smoothly into the back line. The back
line itself should be strong and ideally level. A slightly sloping back line should not be penalized. Soft or roached
backs are a disqualifying fault.

Chest and Front Assembly: The chest should be broad and well-filled. Viewed from the side, the chest should be
visible in front of the shoulder assembly. The shoulder blade should be well laid back to give the dog the desired
length of reach.

Body, Proportions: The ideal body proportions are slightly longer than tall, a 9:10 height to length ratio. Longer
proportions are permitted but not as desirable.

Body, Build and Bone: The body should be wide and of average depth, with the brisket at the same level as the
elbow joint. The ribs should be well-sprung. The loin should be moderately short to create the desirable 9:10 body
proportions. The ideal bone is medium to heavy and oval. However, the dog should never be so heavy-boned as to
appear ponderous.

Croup, and Rear Assembly: The croup should be long and gently sloping, the natural progression of a level
and stable top line. The ideal angle is somewhere around 25 degrees off the back line, with some variance
acceptable. A steep croup is only a fault if it interferes with the movement of the dog.

The rear thigh should be wide and muscular, with the stifle well-bent at an angle ideally approaching 90
degrees. The hocks are straight and vertical; cow hocks are considered a fault scaling with the severity of the
defect. When the leg is stretched out and the hock is perpendicular to the ground, the hind foot may extend
past the point of the buttock. However, it should not do so extremely, nor should this stance cause the top line
to slope.

Feet and Pasterns: The feet should be tight and oval, with well-sprung toes. Pasterns should be short, strong,
and slightly angled. Soft pasterns are a fault.

Tail, Set, Length, and Carriage: The tail should be set smoothly into the croup, be well-furred, and hang like a
plume at rest, either straight or slightly curved as a saber. The ideal length should be one bone past the hock
joint, with slightly longer or shorter acceptable. Very long tails are not faulty in themselves, but are less
desirable.

In motion the tail should be carried no higher than the line of the back, with lower carriage preferred. A curve
in motion is acceptable but screw, ring, or fishhook-shaped tails are faults. A tail which is consistently carried up
and forward over the back is a disqualifying fault in the ring.

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Title: ISSA Breed Standard
Number: BR-003
Version: 2.0
Movement, General Impression: Correct movement should be considered a top priority in judging the
overall quality of these dogs. The stride should be long and effortless, giving the impression of power and
grace. Despite their size, these dogs should never appear heavy or clumsy. Each stride should cover a great deal
of ground.

The Shiloh shepherd seeks to achieve a moderate, balanced, and stable structure. Extreme movement should
never be sought at the cost of a well-balanced dog.

Gait, Physical Characteristics:

Top line and transmission: The top line should remain stable at speed, without excessive motion, looseness,
sag, roach, or any other instability.

Front movement: As the dog comes toward the observer the legs should converge slightly, moving toward
single tracking in a “V” shape. Pinched elbows or moving out at the elbows are faults.

Side Gait, Front Assembly: At the trot the dog should reach from the shoulder, and the front foot at full
extension should be seen to reach past the nose. The feet should stay close to the ground and a dog that pads,
paddles, or exhibits other wasted motion lacks efficiency in the stride and should be faulted.

Side Gait, Rear Assembly: The rear foot moving forward will reach inside or outside and cross over the front
foot slightly at full extension. The dog should open well at the hock, the drive should be powerful and the rear
foot should stay close to the ground.

Rear movement: Viewed moving away from the observer the rear legs should naturally converge slightly,
moving toward single-tracking in a “V” shape. The observer should be able to see the pads of the rear feet
clearly as the foot leaves the ground. Moving cow-hocked, moving wide, or “egg beater” motion where the
hocks interfere with each other are faults.

Coat Types, Characteristics:

Smooth Coat: The smooth-coated Shiloh possesses a double coat of medium length. The outer coat is harsher
and weather-repellent over the softer undercoat. Hair over the body does not exceed two inches in length, with
longer hair on the ruff of the neck and longer feathering of the tail.

Plush Coat: The plush-coated Shiloh possesses a double-coat with hairs not exceeding four inches in length on
the body and five inches on the neck ruff and tail. Longer hair is also expected on the feathering of the legs.
Like the smooth, the outer coat should be coarser and weather-repellent over the softer undercoat.

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Title: ISSA Breed Standard
Number: BR-003
Version: 2.0
Coat Color, Markings, and Pigmentation: Shilohs may be sable, saddle-marked, or in solid colors. The sables
range from grey through golden to brown, in various shades of light or dark. The saddle-marked duals range
from silver or cream through golden to a reddish-tan. Bi-colored dogs are mostly black in coat with color on
the legs and sometimes the chest or face. Solid colors permitted include white and black. The white may exhibit
buff or apricot markings.

White or cream markings on toes, throat, or chest are permitted. It is preferred that they blend into the rest of
the coat, though this may not be possible in a dark dog. A white tip on the tail is not preferred but should be
considered only a minor fault.

Coat color should be only a small consideration next to the overall quality of the dog.

Faults versus Disqualifications:

Issue Fault Disqualification

Ears not standing at 18 months X
Protruding eyes X
Missing teeth X
Undershot/overshot/wry bites X
Soft or roached back X
Steep croup (if interferes with movement) X
Cow hock X
Soft pasterns X
Screw; ring or fishhook shaped tails X
Tail consistently carried up and forward over the back X
Pinched elbows or moving out at the elbows X
Side Gait, Front Assembly: Movement of paddling or other X
wasted motion lacking efficiency in the stride
Rear movement: cow-hocked, moving wide or “egg beater” X
motion where hocks interfere with each other

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Title: ISSA Breed Standard
Number: BR-003
Version: 2.0