Ears

Friends of mine are participating in a genetic study at Cornell University part of which involves measuring lots of body parts, like ears, back, tails, muzzle, chest, etc., of Icelandic Sheepdogs.

We have all heard for years that the ears of our dogs should be moderate in size, or words to that effect. I asked several Icelanders years ago to explain what "moderate" sized ears should be like. Ever scientifically-minded, I wanted to know what the ideal sized ear should be like; what should the measurements of an ideal ear be?

They have never been able to clearly iterate what is meant.

Regardless, ears do seem to look moderate or "normal", whatever that means, or "large", which is also also confusing because both terms are relative not scientific.

I have heard several AKC judges argue about breed standard interpretations. To a person they agree that standards should be open to as little personal interpretation as possible. The more clear the language is, the easier it is for judges to, well, actually judge according to a written standard.

As part of their job with Cornell, these friends measured the ears of their dogs.

They were frankly stunned to discover that all three of their Icies had identically sized ears even though they looked very different. That, I believe, is the problem with leaving things open to personal interpretation. Our minds play tricks on all of us.

It may be the size of the head, the amount or length of fur, the color of fur, the overall apparent size of the dog, the age of the dog, etc. that may distort our judgment.

Take a look at these ears. They are all the same size but they do not look like they are when you look at the whole dog.