Curly Coated Retriever: close curls, without undercoat
The Curly Coated Retriever has a strong, upright outline, with a body slightly longer than its height. Its close, crisp curls give it a very different appearance from a feathered Golden or Flat Coated Retriever. The FCI standard describes no undercoat beneath those curls.
Where the curls and smooth hair meet
The curled coat covers the body from the back of the head to the tail tip and lies close to the skin. The hair is smooth elsewhere. This is not a loose, shaggy coat: the contrast between the curled body and smoother areas is part of the description.
An undercoat is the layer beneath the outer hair. The Chesapeake has a fine, woolly one and the Golden has a dense, water-resistant one, making them useful comparisons with the Curly.
Allow for more than appearance
The earlier UK guide lists grooming more than once a week and more than two hours of daily exercise. It also lists a large house and large garden, with town or country in the location category. These older guide entries offer a starting point for thinking about available time and space.
A taller height ideal
The FCI ideals are 69 cm for males and 64 cm for females, higher than the corresponding figures for the other five retrievers here. They are ideals, not minimum heights for every Curly.
The standard gives no numeric weight. DogTime’s separate descriptions below have different ranges in different sections. For a closer look at the coat contrast, open the Flat Coated or Chesapeake profile alongside this one.
Sources and further reading
Retriever (Curly Coated) at a glance
These earlier UK breed guides are starting points for comparison. Details may have changed, and individual dogs vary.
- Breed group
- Gundog
- Size
- Large
- Daily exercise
- More than 2 hours per day
- Grooming frequency
- More than once a week
- Coat length
- Medium
- Sheds
- Yes
- Suggested home size
- Large house
- Town or country
- Town or country
- Garden recommendation
- Large garden
- Lifespan
- Over 10 years
FCI breed standard
Standard guidance describes the breed ideal; individual dogs vary.
- Origin
- Great Britain
- Group
- 8 - Retrievers, Flushing Dogs,Water Dogs
- Section
- 1 - Retrievers
- Height
- Males: Ideal: 69 cm; Females: Ideal: 64 cm
- Weight
- Not specified in this standard
Official FCI standard (PDF)
Standard effective from 2026-09-08; checked 2026-10-15
DogTime description
Different DogTime sections are shown separately. Read 15 October 2026; later page updates may not be reflected. These descriptions are not breed-standard limits or guarantees for individual dogs.
- Weight
- Quick facts: 60–85 lb; Size: Males: 80–100 lb; Size: Females: 65–85 lb; Statistics: 65–100 lb
