FEDERATION CYNOLOGIQUE INTERNATIONALE (AISBL) SECRETARIAT GENERAL: 13, Place Albert 1er B – 6530 Thuin (Belgique) ______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________ 10.08.2023/EN
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FCI-Standard N° 106

EPAGNEUL BLEU DE PICARDIE
(Blue Picardy Spaniel)

TRANSLATION: Mrs. Peggy Davis.Revision: Iris Borianne and Prof. Claude Guintard.
Official language (FR)

ORIGIN: France.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE OFFICIAL VALID STANDARD: 08/06/2023.

UTILIZATION:Pointing dog.

FCI-CLASSIFICATION: Group 7 Pointing Dogs.
Section 1.2 Continental Pointing Dogs; « Spaniel » type.
With working trial..

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY: In 19th-century Picardy, various authors described, in their writings, some
black or black and white spaniels called “épagneuls du Nord” (“Spaniels of the North”). It was only from the early 20th
century that the Blue Picardy Spaniel started running in a specific category until it became officially recognised as a
breed. When the standard was
officially registered in 1938, the general appearance and abilities of the Blue Picardy Spaniel were described in the
following
terms: “Quite low to the ground dog, well built for the job”. The main difference between the Blue Picardy Spaniel and
the
Spaniel of Picardy (the two PICARDY breeds) is the colour of their coat.

A contact dog for chases within firing range, the Blue Picardy Spaniel adapts to all sorts of small game hunts and is
particularly skilled in woodcock hunting. A daily walk is necessary to keep him fit and help him relax. He will always
find his way to a happy cuddle. Out on a walk, his elegant, characteristic bluish coat will not go unnoticed.

GENERAL APPEARANCE: Dog of medium proportions and a Continental spaniel-type (“Braque” in French) with
flat, slightly wavy hair. The singularity and elegance of the Blue Picardy Spaniel stem from the typical colour of his
coat. Quite low to the ground dog, well built for the job. General appearance on the whole: a true French Spaniel.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: The length between the tip of the shoulder and the ischium exceeds by roughly
1/10th the height at the withers. Chest well developed and let down to the elbows. Length of the muzzle should be equal
to that of the skull.

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT: Flexible and gentle dog with an even temperament, well adapted to family life;
should come out as placid and never aggressive. An athletic dog, the Blue Picardy Spaniel enjoys a daily walk to work
off his energy.

HEAD:
CRANIAL REGION:
The lateral sides should be almost parallel between them. The upper longitudinal axes of the skull and muzzle are
parallel or slightly convergent

Skull: Oval, relatively wide without prominent parietal bones, occipital protuberance slightly visible.

Stop: Well marked.

FACIAL REGION:
Nose: Black, broad, well open nostrils. Colour of nostrils in accordance with coat.

Muzzle: Long and quite broad.

Lips: Wide, thick and pendulous forming a distinctly square muzzle.

Jaws/Teeth: Complete scissor bite.

Cheeks: Not too pronounced, with tight-fitting skin.

EYES: Calm expression; eyes dark, large, well open.

EARS: Must be set approximately at eye level, quite thick, framing the head; beautiful wavy silky hair;
the leather stretched in its length must reach the tip of the muzzle.

NECK: Well set. A slight dewlap is permitted.

BODY:
Topline:Straight, well sustained when dog is in motion or standing still.

Withers: Dry, well pronounced and broad.

Back and loin: Well sustained. The length of the body slightly exceeds the height at the withers.

Croup: Slightly sloping.

Chest: Slightly sprung and descending to elbow level.

Underline and belly: Slightly tucked up.

TAIL: Not extending too much beyond the point of the hock and usually without a hook. Beautiful silky
feathers.

LIMBS
FOREQUARTERS:
General appearance: Forelegs straight; rear side of forelegs is covered in wavy, medium-long feathers above the elbow,
and
distinctly longer feathers on the forearm down to the metacarpus.

Shoulder: Close to the chest and quite oblique (forming a 50° angle to the horizontal line).

Upper arm: Slightly oblique. Forming an angle of approximately 60° to the horizontal line.

Forearm: Strong and well muscled.

Carpus (Wrist): Well defined, dry.

Metacarpus (Pastern): Very slightly oblique when viewed from the side.

Forefeet: Rather round, a little broad but not flat, well furnished with hair in the tightly closed interdigital spaces.
Colour of the pads should be in accordance with coat genetic colours.

HINDQUARTERS:
General appearance: when viewed from behind, the hindquarters are vertical. Legs are strong and muscled from the
upper thigh down to the lower thigh.

Upper Thigh : Broad and rather long, with powerful and quite visible muscles and forming a 65° to 70° angle to the
horizontal
line.

Lower thigh: Long, with visible muscles and furnished with profuse fringes.

Hock/hock joint: Bent without exaggeration and furnished with fringes from the hock to the foot.

Hindfeet: Rather round, a little broad but not flat, well furnished with hair in the tightly closed interdigital spaces.

GAIT/MOVEMENT: Easy, supple, even and strong, yet elegant. Legs should move within the body line,
without inducing
excessive vertical movement in the topline. When galloping, the topline should display a slight tilting movement.

SKIN: Supple and close fitting.

COAT:
Hair: Flat or slightly wavy. Legs and tail well furnished with fringes.

Colour: Silver grey to grey black specled forming a bluish shade, with or without black patches. (“mixed black and white
and/or
black and white speckling” resulting in an overall silver-grey black coat according to the traditional classification
system).

HIGHT:
57 to 62 cm for the males
55 to 60 cm for the females.

A tolerance of ± 2 cm is permitted yet undesirable

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 upon the health and welfare of the dog.

SEVERE FAULTS:
• Skull: too broad or too narrow.
• Ear: too short or triangular.
• Nose: any colour other than black; lack of pigmentation (nose largely flesh-coloured).
• Eye: Light and too small.
• Lack of bone.

DISQUALIFYING FAULTS:
• Aggressive or overly shy dogs.
• Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities.
• Overshot or undershot bite.
• Teeth: one missing canine or 2 missing incisors or more than
2 other missing teeth (PM or M) with the exception of PM1 and M3.
• Size outside the limits of tolerance of the standard.
• Lack of type.
• Atypical coat (white or brown patches)

N.B.:
• Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
• Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs, with breed typical conformation should be used for breeding.

The latest amendments are in bold characters. An illustration of the breed was added to this standard.

SURFACE ANATOMY