Appearance
The Spinone is a strong boned, well muscled dog with a square build, meaning the length of the body is approximately equal to the height at the withers. Brown and white Spinone are often confused with German Wirehaired Pointers. The long head and pronounced occipital are unique to the breed. Spinones have an expression that shows intelligence and understanding and is often described as having human like eyes.
The tail of the Spinone is customarily docked at half its length, approximately six to eight inches (14 to 20 centimeters) from the base of the tail, and it has dewclaws on all four feet, giving its hind legs a substantial appearance. Even as adults, Spinone Italianos retain disproportionate, puppy like, webbed paws which make them powerful swimmers.
Size
Males Spinone Italianos stand 23 to 28 inches high at the shoulders while females stand 22 to 26 inches. Their weight should be in the correct proportion to size and structure, with males weighing in between 70 and 80 pounds and females weighing 60 to 75 pounds.
Coat and Color
The coat is tough, slightly wiry, and close fitting. The preferred length is 1.5 to 2.5 inches on the body. However, the ears, muzzle, head, parts of the legs and feet are covered with shorter hair. Eyebrows have longer and stiffer hair. Longer but softer hair covers cheeks and muzzle, creating a profuse mustache and beard.
The Spinone should not have an undercoat. A long, soft or silky coat is undesired and is a sign of excessive grooming. Acceptable color variants in the United Kingdom and United States are solid white, white with orange markings, orange roan with or without orange markings, white with brown markings, and brown roan with or without brown markings. Pigment of skin, nose, lips, and the pads on their feet should be a fleshy red-orange in white dogs, slightly darker in orange and brown roan dogs. The white and orange coloration is unique amongst the wire haired gun dogs.