Showline With Curly Tail - Page 2

a very minor fault.  no big deal at all.

Only becomes a 'big deal'  when you are up against another equally good dog in a class that does not have a curled tip
to its tail !

I looked at your photo and have three comments....
1.  As someone that has seen and lived with many showlines with slight curves at the tail end, this almost always occurs because the tail is too long.  So, when the dog stands, rather than have his tail hit the ground, he curves it either a little up or off to the side.  Sometimes trimming hair can help; sometimes not.  If the pup grows a little taller, it might also alter. 
2. Most showlines with long tails do not curl the tip when seated or lying down since the tail isn't touching the ground.  In a relaxed state, the tail is relaxed and only curls up again when excited or standing, generally speaking.
3.  Take the tail and feel it all the way down.  If when you get to that point in the tail you feel a bony knot of any kind, this is fused vertebrae.  I have an imported puppy that has two of these points in his tail, so his tail is a little wonky shaped.  He can't control his curves in his tail at all because he has multiple vertebrae fused.  It is easy to feel.  Additionally, he can relax it a little but, but it remains curved in all states but is more pronounced when he is excited.  He can't fully uncurve it. 

If you feel the bony knots in the tail, this will not correct.  Hope this helps!
 

Kirah can relax her tail, just most of the time she has the tip curled like pictured. When she is just walking and calm her tail is normal but when she gets attention or is excited it instantly curls.

Ibrahim can you please elaborate on your comment "should not curl past the imaginary vertical line passing through the point where the tail starts from the croup etc." I can't quite visualize what you mean? 

i have a female that has  very long tail  and she is a big girl too she has never curl her tail, she has a correct tail standing or moving so that not true about long tails, like i said before its in the lines and you cant change that.

 Trixx is more correct

 It follows some lines and well known...You can breed to a male or female whose lines have the much better tail set and donot curl.

IT is one fault you can correct with selected breeding..

YR

Curly tails are genetic, and it's a very hard trait to breed out. It's linked in part to the same genes responsible for juveniliation, so, like soft ears, it can be unfortunately easy to aquire, and very hard to eradicate. However, the "fault" picture, I see a lot of dogs put their tail up like that when asserting dominance. I would not consider a pose like that to be faulty. That would be akin to posting a picture of a dog with tail between its legs. A gay-tail, perpetually carried up like a terrier's, now that would be a fault; and look mighty peculiar.

What causes the tail to curl?  Don't tell me that it is just genetics.  What is the cause for it.  One needs to look at the tail in its entirety and how it is formed and how and why a tail moves the way it does.  To say it is genetically caused is like saying a dog is cow-hocked because it is genetically caused.  ecs

Not to say it's not genetic because everything boils down to genetics, but curly tails happen with long tails.  You don't normally see short tails with curls (unless there are bone issues).  Not every single longer tail will curl, but the length is what gives greater likelihood to curling.  A specific pedigree line with long tails has greater odds of being curled.  How much the tail curls varies.  Rarely I have seen a dog literally curl the whole tail up and most just curve off the tip.  Slight curves are just aesthetic.