The Australian War Dog - Breed Standard

The Australian War Dog is a medium to large sized, thickly built, short coated dog with very nicely defined muscle structures. This breed is extremely powerful and athletic. The tail is short and curls over the back. The neck is thick and slightly rounded on the back and slopes easily into the well defined shoulder. From the shoulder, the back slants downwards but should not appear roached. The front legs are shorter and powerful while the back legs are slightly longer, but still powerful. When standing relaxed, the hips should rise slightly above the back, but not quite even with the shoulders. 
The head is flat and smooth and the dogs have a natural slight overbite. 
The ears are naturally erect and short with a point on the tip, looking like a cropped dog.
The Australian War Dog should be on the thicker end of the scale as far as muscle mass, but the muscle mass should not interfere with working ability or daily activities. 

Head
The Australian War Dog's head resembles that of a Bull Terrier, being flat and fairly long. The head should be thick and the dogs should have a slight overbite. The nose should extend slightly beyond the chin of the dog.

TEETH- The Australian War Dog has a complete set of evenly spaced white teeth. The front incisors are slightly longer than the normal dogs but should not bite into the lower lip or gum when the mouth is closed.

NOSE- The nose is large, wide and open. Split nosed dogs are not allowed. The nose color should match the skin color(usually slightly darker than the base coat).

EYES- The eyes are large and almond shaped, set well apart, and slightly higher on the skull. Dark brown or hazel eyes are desired, but lighter shades of brown are accepted. Blue eyes are a serious fault.

EARS- Ears are high set and slightly farther back on the head. The ears should not be altered. The ears are naturally erect and  pointed at the end. Ears should not be extremely tall but rather be short and close to the head. Floppy ears are a serious fault.

Neck
The neck is very thick and strong and should round slightly on the backside. On the front side, the neck should blend easily into the chest. On the back side, the neck should blend into the back easily with a slight slope as it continues to go down.

Forequarters
The shoulders should be high set and well defined. The elbow should be slightly spaced form the body, but not dramatically. The legs should be evenly spaced and well set when viewed form the front. Forequarters should be powerful and thickly built.

Body
The chest is deep and wide and should flow nicely into the mid section. The mid section should have a slight tuck up as well. The back should slope downwards somewhat dramatically when in a traditional show stack. The back should not appeared roached. When relaxed, the back should be fairly straight with the greatest sloping coming off of the shoulders. 

Hindquarters
The hindquarters should be slightly longer than the forequarters. The rump should be muscular and fairly thick but should flow neatly into the legs which thin up slightly but not too much. The back legs should remain powerful and thick with long thighs. The portion of leg from the hock joint down should be shorter.

Feet
The feet should be thick and well developed. When standing, in any way(stack or natural) the feet should not splay outwards but rather be evenly set and facing forward. The paws should be large but still proportionate. Dewclaws may be removed. Paws should be tough.

Tail
The tail is set lower on the rump and should curl over the back. The tail should not be in a tight curl but simply form a loose U over the back of the dog. The tail should not rest on the back.

Coat
The goat should be short and smooth. The coat should not be thick but should not be too thin either. An ideal coat is one that is thin enough to help control body heat but thick enough to where the skin is not easily seen. The coat should be soft yet sturdy to the touch.

Color
Any colors are permitted except for brindle, harlequin, or merle. The most common coat colors are variations of red, ranging from a dark, rich chocolate to a light cream. Solid whites are not quite as common. Blues are rare and should range from a steel grey and lighter. Blacks are extremely uncommon because of the black coats heat containment. 

Gait
The dogs gait should be effortless, smooth, and powerful. The dogs head should be held high and confident with a nice reaching and proportionate gait. Legs should not turn in or out and feet should not cross. The back should remain even and sturdy.