Let’s look at this part of the AKC standard and see what is says and just as important what it doesn’t say.


“The set of the tail is moderately low, following the contours of the sloping croup and of length to reach the hock. At rest it should hang in a very slight curve. During movement or excitement the tail may be raised, but under no circumstances should any part of the tail be carried past a vertical line drawn through the root. The tail should carry a good brush.” from AKC standard for the australian cattle dog.


Well that seems simple enough...right.? As i have found out this year it’s not seemingly as simple to understand as one would think.


Lets look at the first part it deals with the attachment location of the tail. Basically the standard says the tail should be attached at a point where it appears that the body continues on down, that’s what following the contours of the sloping croup means. The tail shouldn’t look placed on the back or it shouldn’t look as if the angle of the body stops and a new angle of the tail starts. See the drawing below how the croup and tail flow together into one line.


The next item the standard addresses is the length of the tail, not to long or not too short is good right? Yes but it should end just about the hock. Clearly a little above is ok as a little below is ok that’s what approximately means, although remember a tail that is too long is more likely a problem when working than the opposite since it could get stepped on or caught in between something.


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