Breed type Breed type Breed type is the whole of the characteristics that are typical of a breed of domesticated animals. Breed type may include details of form or color that are not directly related to the economic value of the animal, and are usually defined in breed standards. "Examples [of "breed type"] include the shape of horns and the color pattern in cattle, the shape of ear in swine, and the color of the face and shape of the ear in sheep" and are "in a sense, a trademark". "Breed type" in this sense means "qualities (as of bodily contour and
Breed registry conformation shows. For the breed to move to the Miscellaneous class and then to fully recognized status, the breed's stud book must be closed. A closed stud book allows the breed to stay very pure to its type, but limits its ability to be improved. This may put a breed at a disadvantage, especially in performance disciplines, where an animal is worth more if it is successful in competition even if it is not pure. It also limits the gene pool, which may make certain undesirable characteristics become accentuated in the breed, such as a poor conformational fault or a