The long coat is described in more detail in the standard and starts with stating that the body hair should be moderately long (one to three inches) and straight or slightly wavy. The body hair should be close-lying and not hide the natural outline of the body, so one should still be able to assess the structure and proportions of the dog. The hair on the head and front part of the limbs is close-lying, while there are feathers on the back of the limbs, and the feet have long, silky hair that completely covers the nails. This describes a coat with dis - tinct long and shorter, smooth por - tions where the outline of the body is visible and the body hair is not tousled but rather close-lying. Finally, the standard describes the ears which are to be covered with long, thick hair forming a fringe and should be long enough to completely hide the outer edge and tips of the ears by the time the dog is three years old. While it is not specifically mentioned in the AKC standard, the tail should also have distinct feathering on the long coat dog. While the long coat Rus - sian Toy does require more grooming than the smooth coat, it is still a more low maintenance coat and trimming should not be necessary (and is a DQ in the FCI standard). These dogs will require drying time after a bath, un - like their smooth counterparts, and I have observed that they are more tol - erant of cool temperatures. Personally, I own dogs of both coat varieties and have trained and shown both coats. I enjoy the flowing ear and tail fringe on my long coats, but it is also nice to not have the worry about tangles on the smooth coats as they are quite active little dogs. I enjoy the shiny coat of the smooth variety and how well it shows off the square sil - houette of the breed. I do look forward to seeing more smooth coat Russian Toys in the show ring and hope that the coat varieties will become more equally shown in the United States. Above all, I enjoy the companionship and intelligence of the breed, and the fact that they are good partners in the conformation ring, performance sports, or even just as a pet at home.
48 • T op N otch T oys , J une 2022
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