When Andria was home for Christmas she commented on how Xara's coat was rough and wirey feeling, and her sisters coat was soft and silky. She couldn't get over the difference between their coats when Bailey and Xara are littermates and both females.

Is there a "correct" feel to the coat they should have, or are there differences like these?

Here is what the standard says:

The hair is short and thick and feels tough to the hand; it is somewhat longer on the underside of the tail and the back edges of the haunches. The hair is softer, thinner and shorter on the ears and the head. Any dog with long hair in the body coat is to be severely penalized.

I have had several judges tell me they are happy to see a shorthair with the proper coat when they go over Halo.  So, going by that and the standard I would say the head and ears are velvety soft, but the rest of the coat should be much coarser and rough to the touch.  If you think about it it does make sense as the coat has to protect the dog when hunting and too soft or fine of coat would not do that as well as a coarser and rougher coat. 

Cooper is soft all over, but Penny is coarse on her torso and legs.  Her head and ears are like velvet.  They have the same parents.

Jasper has a glossy but slightly harsh coat with soft head, as did my  late lamented Peppy.  Pep's sister, Clio, had a probably nonstandard coat, or at least pushing it--longer and very very soft.   Chelsea, with her possible EP cross, has a very short, sleek coat. 

This is Georgina Byrne's observations on coat based on the various standards and her work on her book, Der Durtsch-Kurzhaar.  I thought it was interesting and worth sharing.

"...Only the British Standard fails to mention that the GSP coat should be thick. This should be more so in winter than in summer, and is generally more pronounced in kennel-dogs than in house-dogs, and amongst those living in cold climates rather than hot ones.

A thick coat with a dense, furry undercoat is of great importance in protecting dogs from injury in heavy cover, and from cold when working in water, or in the field in cold weather. A hairy belly is highly desireable, although not mentioned in any standard. The ideal GSP coat should be extremely water-repellant.  Anyone who has tried to wet a GSP with the ideal coat-type, will appreciate this quality.

Sad to say, it appears that dogs living in hot climates, such as are found in much of Australia, tend to develop thinner coats, both in the individual and in succeeding generations.  This must be watched, for thinly coated dogs have a tendency to dislike working in water, even in a warm climate.  That is a serious behaviour fault in the breed.

Solid-coloured dogs tend to have slightly finer thinner, coats than do ticked ones (the white hairs tend to be longer and thicker than the heavily pigmented ones), so some allowance must be made for that.  In addition, a recent bath will soften the coat slightly.  Show judges should keep this in mind.  I prefer to handle clean dogs when judging, so am always ready to make some allowance for the effects of a recent shampooing! I know that most "how to show" manuals advise bathing a dog several days before a show, but those of us who own GSPs and allow them access to a natural environment know how difficult it is to keep them clean for that length of time!

The most desirable GSP coat is thick, coarse and slightly oily, i.e., rather like an otter's coat.  It is more important that the coat be dense and water repellant than that it be coarse in texture."

(quoted from Der Deutsch-Kurzhaar, by Georgina Byrne, pg 54)

Hope all goes well today.  Keep us posted.

Maria