Usage:
A truffle hunting dog

A brief history of the breed:
A very ancient breed of retrievers, water dogs of the lowlands of Comacchio and the marshes of Ravenna. Over the centuries, large marshlands have been drained and converted into arable land. Later, the Lagoto was transformed into a water dog and an excellent dog for searching for truffles in the plains as well as in the hills of Romagna.

General appearance:
General Appearance: Small to medium-sized dog, well proportioned, square, of a rustic appearance, sturdy and robust, with a dense, curly coat of woolly texture.

Important proportions:
The length of the head is 4/10 of the height of the withers. Its length is almost equal to that of the withers. The dog is almost equally long and tall (quarter-shaped). The length of the skull must exceed 50% of the length of the head.
The length of the snout is 2/10 less than the length of the skull (44% vs. 56%). The depth of the chest is less than 50% (about 44%) of the height of the withers.

Behavior/temperament:
The natural gift for searching and its very good nose has made the Lagotto Romagnolo breed a very efficient worker in truffle searching. The former hunting instinct has been eliminated; hence his work is not distracted by the scent of game. The Lagotto is temperate, keen, affectionate, very attached to his owner and easy to train. He is a very good companion and also an excellent warning dog.

Head:
Viewed from above trapezoidal in shape, massive and moderately big; in profile the upper longitudinal axes of the skull and the muzzle should be slightly diverging.

Skull:
Is wide at the zygomatic arch where its length is equal to its width. Viewed from the side, the occiput to stop, the skull should be longer than the muzzle. It is slightly convex and tends to flatten out towards the occipital region. Frontal sinuses well developed, superciliary arches marked, mediofrontal furrow pronounced, occipital chest short and not much developed, supraorbital fossae slightly marked.

Stop:
Is evident but nit very marked.

Nose:
Bulky with very wide open and mobile nostrils. Median groove strongly pronounced. Viewed in profile, the nose continues on the same level as the muzzle and protrudes very slightly from the front face of the lips. The colour ranges from light to dark liver brown, depending on coat colour.

Muzzle:
Fairly broad, decidedly short than the skull (ratio: skull 56%, muzzle 44%), the depth being only slightly less than the length, it is slightly wedge shaped, with a moderately flat anterior face. The nasal bridge has a rectilinear profile.

Lips:
Scarcely developed lips are covered with long and quite bristly hair forming whiskers so that the lower profile of the muzzle is determined by the mandible. Viewed from the face, the lips form a wide semi-circle. The colour of the labial edges ranges from light to dark liver brown.

Jaw/Teeth:
Strong and white rectilinear branches and a relatively large mandibular body.Scissors or pincer bite,with white and well-developed teeth.Tightly undershot mouth acceptable.

Cheecks:
Flat.

Eyes:
Fairly large, rounded, on a level with the skin, set fairly apart. The colour of the iris ranges from ochre to hazel and dark brown depending on the colour of the coat. The close-fitting eyelids, the colour of the eye-rims ranges from light to dark liver brown. Look alert, expression keen and lively.

Ears:
Medium-sized in proportion to the head, triangular with rounded tips; rather large set just above the zygomatic arch. Hanging at rest or slightly raised when the dog is attentive if pulled towards the nose they should reach the muzzle at a ¼ of its length. On the ears, the hair tends to show looser curls, but remains very wavy. No short hair on the ear. The inner part of the ear-flap is covered with hair.

Neck:
Stout muscular, lean, with oval section; well detached from the nape and absolutely free from dewlap. Top line slightly arched. In males, the perimeter of the neck can reach twice its length.

Body:
Compact and strong; almost as long as the height at withers.

Topline:
Rectilinear from the withers to the croup.

Withers:
They rise above the level of the croup; they are not narrow, but quite high set and extended backwards.

Back:
Rectilinear, very muscular. Loin: short coupled, strong, in profile slightly arched. Width is equal or exceeds the length.

Croup:
Long, large, muscular, slightly sloping (cozal inclination ranges from 25-30 degrees).

Chest:
Well developed, reaching down to the elbows. Although fairly narrow in front, from the sixth rib the chest widens backwards.

Underline and Belly:
Long sternal section followed by a short section forming a straight line and by a long line sloping gently towards the abdomen which rises in form of a semicircle; the abdomen is not too tucked up.

Tail:
Neither too high nor too low set, tapering towards the end. When extended, it should slightly touch the hocks. At rest carried scimitar-like; when attentive decidedly raised. When working or excited can be carried over the back, but never curled.

Forequarters:
Perpendicular, seen from the front or in profile. Shoulder: shoulderblades long (30% of the height at withers), well laid back (52-55 degrees), muscular, strong and closely attached to the chest, but giving free movement. The scapula-humeral angle ranges between 110-115 degrees.

Upper Arm:
Muscular, of thin bone structure, as long as the shoulder blades; its inclination on the horizontal line ranges from 58-60 degrees.

Elbows:
Close, but not too tightly to the chest; covered with thin skin; as the uppers parallel to the sagittal plane of the body. The tip of the elbow is located on a vertical line lowered from the caudal angle of the scapula to the ground.

Forearm:
Perfectly straight, long (36% of the height at withers), with compact, strong bones of oval cross-section.

Pastern Joint:
Viewed from the face in vertical line with the forearm; fine, robust and mobile; pisiform markedly protruding.

Pastern:
Rather smaller and thinly boned compared to forearm, elastic, with little subcutaneous tissue. Seen in profile, forms an angle of 75-80 degrees with the ground.

Forefeet:
Blightly rounded, compact, with arched and tight toes. Nails strong and curved. Pads well pigmented, interdigital membranes very well developed.

Hindquarters:
Perpendicular, powerful, well-proportioned to the size of the dog. Vertikalne i paralelne, moćne, dobrih proporcija u odnosu na veličinu psa.

Thigh:
Long (35% of the height at withers), with clearly separated and visible muscles. The axis of the femur has a markedly top/down and back ahead inclination of 80 degrees on the horizontal line. The coxofemoral angle ranges from 105-110 degree. The thigh is parallel to the median plane of the body.

Stifle:
The angle of the stifle joint ranges from 130-150 degrees. Lower Thigh: slightly longer than the thigh (33% of the height at withers), well boned and muscled, with marked muscular groove. Its inclination to the horizontal line ranges from 50-55 degrees.

Hock joint:
Large, thick, lean with clear-cut bone outgrowths; parallel to the medium plane of the body; the tibio-matatarsal angle is ca. 140 degrees.

Hock:
Thin, cylindrical, perpendicular to the ground.

Hindfeet:
Slightly more oval-shaped and toes not as arched at the forefeet.

Gait:
Pace regular, trot resolute and lovely, gallop in short periods.

Skin:
Close fitting all over the body, without wrinkles, thin, with scarce subcutaneous tissue, Pigmentation of mucous membranes and of the carpal, digital and plantar pads ranges from light to dark and very dark brown.

Hair:
Of woolly texture, a little rough in surface, forming very thick, ring-shaped curls with visible undercoat. Curls must be homogeneously distributed all over the body, except on the head, where the curls are more loose, forming abundant eyebrows, whiskers and beard. Even the cheeks are covered with thick hair.

Color:
Dingy white or white solid colour, white with liver-brown or orange markings, liver-brown roan, liver-brown solid colour (in different shades) orange solid colour. Some dogs have a brown or dark brown mask.

Height:
Males 17 – 19 inches (43 – 49 cm) (ideal high; 46 cm)

Heigh:
Females 14 – 16 inches (36 – 46cm)(ideal high: 43 cm)A deviation of ± 1 cm is allowed

Weight:
Males 28 – 35 pounds (13 – 16 kg)

Weigh:
Females 24 – 31 pounds (11 – 14 kg)

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. Axes of the skull and the muzzle converging ; Dish faced ; Pronounced and disturbing undershot mouth ; Butterfly nose ; Bilateral strabismus ; Coat not curled or close shaven Black coat or black markings ; Docked tail ; Oversize or undersize.

Disqualifications:
Aggressive or excessively shy. Completely depigmented nose. Appetizer. Eloquence. The fur hangs in strands.
Any dog clearly exhibiting physical or behavioral abnormalities will be disqualified.

N.B. Males should have two apparently normal testicles that are fully descended into the scrotum.