Characteristics Some loose fitting skin over body and head permitted, not to be excessive. [Delete ‘with a double dewlap’].
Head and Skull Head fairly large with broad short skull, broad across cheeks. Head proportion: skull length two thirds, to muzzle one third. Skull flat and parallel to topline of muzzle. [Delete ‘Well pronounced’] Definite stop, nose should not protrude beyond vertical line of muzzle. Nose large with well open nostrils. Lips fleshy and thick. The upper lips form an inverted ‘v’ when viewed from the front. Muzzle deep and square when viewed from the front. [Delete ‘with deep flews’] Loose skin on head permitted, [delete ‘forming wrinkles and folds’] but without excess.
Eyes Clean eyes, set forward, well apart, rather rounded. Rims [delete ‘fairly’] tight without [delete ‘excessive’] haw. Rim pigmentation to tone with nose colour. Free from obvious eye problems.
Neck Fairly short, stocky, very muscular. [Delete ‘dewlap from lower jaw reaching mid-point of neck’]
Body Longer than height at withers. Broad, well muscled chest, ribcage reaching at least to elbow. Ribs long and well sprung. Topline straight, sloping slightly from the withers, line of belly parallel to topline.
Hindquarters Broad loin, well let into backline, slightly rounded with well developed muscle. Croup broad, muscular, with slight slope. Thighs long, broad, moderate stifle, powerful hocks. [Delete ‘Dewclaws (single or double) removed’].
[No change to General Appearance, Temperament, Ears, Mouth Forequarters, Feet, Tail, Gait/Movement, Coat, Colour, Size, Faults and Note].
Full working group revisions here.
See also Are Neapolitan mastiffs healthy?
A KC revision here would not change how they operate internationally, because the Neo, unlike the Lab, is not a native British breed.
Some fifteen years ago I saw a Neo at a rare breed show. It did not have anywhere near the loose skin the dogs have now. I was actually shocked at seeing Neos on televised dog shows a couple of years ago, because they were soooo much more extreme than the dog I remembered. Really, all dog breeders should have ‘more is not better’ tattooed on their forehead and be forced to look it the mirror several times a day.
The breed hasn’t been standardized for long. It only appeared in the US sometime in the 1970’s, where it was sold as the Italian bulldog.
The breed was derived from dogs that Italian-speaking Swiss author and journalist Piero Scanziani found around Naples. He thought they were similar to dogs on Ancient Roman murals and to even dogs that were found depicted on walls in Ancient Mesopotamia.
Basically, they all bred the dogs to resemble those dogs, which may have been slightly embellished in the art from the actual dogs. Unfortunately, one can mold a dog to an artistic depiction rather easily.
The original farm mastiff that Scanziani found looked a lot like a Cane Corso, although of different strain.
Way back in the early ’70’s I met an Italian immigrant (in the Taylor St Little Italy neighborhood of Chicago) who had a female Neapolitan. I don’t recall any excessive skin. She was also lively, energetic and had strong prey drive. Also completely under control of her owner.
The Italians even used these dogs for police.
For small farmers and merchants in Southern Italy, these dogs were perfect guardians.
I would love to see them come back around to something a little healthier.