Coat colour dictionary for the Polish Hunting Spaniel

This article was originally published in the PSM Bulletin and made available here for an international audience.

The Polish Hunting Spaniel is a breed not recognised by the FCI but is recognised as the sixth Polish dog breed by the Polish Kennel Club (ZKwP) and more than 20 national kennel organisations that are members of the FCI. It is still a breed in the process of breeding consolidation. Because of this, in many aspects of both structure and behaviour we are seeing changes—some acceptable, some not. These are shaped by scientific considerations and by the vision of Dr. Eng. Andrzej Krzywiński, the restorer of the modern population of this breed.

The primary task of breeders is careful observation of puppies, appropriate selection, health testing of parents, and thoughtful pairing. In many breeds there is a colloquial term “pet”—used to describe a puppy with a defect that makes it unsuitable for breeding or showing. Such a dog is still purebred and can be a wonderful family companion and often still able to work, for example alongside a hunter.

Until now, because of the small population, such selection was not always widely practiced in our breed. Today, however, we are beginning to see dogs that could negatively affect the breed, and we must carefully consider whether a given individual may cause more harm than good. At the same time, breeders must remember that such a puppy is not a disgrace. Genetics is unpredictable in many respects, and our knowledge is still limited, even though we can already detect and explain many problems in appearance and behaviour in this and other breeds. In such cases, breeders should not be guided by ego, but by the welfare of the breed, withdrawing such dogs from breeding.

The easiest mistakes to notice are those visible to the eye: structure and coat colour. Therefore, the rest of this article focuses on the coat colours of the Polish Hunting Spaniel.

The most important source of information on the coat colours of the Polish Hunting Spaniel (PSM) is the official breed standard.

Based on it, the ZKwP Dog Coat Colour Dictionary accepts three standard colours:

• Chocolate with roaning – the most common. The dog has chocolate colouring of varying shade and intensity, with white patches in the form of roaning and ticking. A white tail tip is characteristic.

• Chocolate and tan with roaning – very rare. As above, but with tan markings. "Tan" means pale markings in specific locations: above the eyes, on the muzzle, chest, underside of the tail, lower parts of the legs, and around the anus. The tan does not appear over large areas—only in those defined locations, not across the entire body.

• White and chocolate – also rare but typical. Chocolate dogs with a predominance of white patches and slight or no roaning. In these dogs, small chocolate markings in the form of “freckles” (ticking or freckling) may appear on the white patches of the muzzle and legs.

Standard colours

As of 16 July 2025, three non-standard coat colours have been added to the ZKwP Coat Colour Dictionary for the Polish Hunting Spaniel. These colours disqualify dogs from breeding, although such dogs remain purebred and can be excellent companions. The addition of these colours to the dictionary is intended to protect the breed from undesirable changes in appearance. The coat colours listed below tend to be genetically dominant over the standard colours and may eventually displace the desired coat types in the breed.

The newly listed non-standard colours are:

• Solid chocolate – coat entirely chocolate, with no visible roaning. Small white marks may appear on the chest, paws, or as a blaze on the head. These are known as “Irish markings” and are not considered roaning.

• Chocolate and tan without white – similar to the above, but with tan markings. There is no white roaning, though small Irish markings may appear.

• Chocolate sable with roaning – at first glance this resembles the standard chocolate and tan roaning pattern. However, the areas with tan are significantly larger, sometimes extending across the head, back, and other parts of the body. The tan shade can vary in intensity and clearly differs from the classic spaniel tan. These dogs may have bi-coloured hair: chocolate at the base, tan at the top.

Examples of non-standard colours

This article was written to help breeders, puppy buyers, and judges to verify coat colours. In case of any uncertainty, genetic testing should be performed, and the ZKwP Polish Hunting Spaniel Club/Commission should be consulted. The overriding goal of breeding this restored breed is to preserve both the exterior type and the working characteristics of the Polish Hunting Spaniel.

Marta Zygmunt-Kisielewska