In a post below, someone noted that a judge was "measuring coupling". Can someone clarify this? I assume it just means while going down the back of the dog, the judge stopped her hands at the end of the ribs to feel how much distance was between them and the hip joint. I'm thinking maybe there were some long cast dogs and the judge was making a point by stopping the exam in that area?

How far off am I?

Per the standard Labradors should be short coupled. I check the coupling on every dog I go over as do most breeder judges I have shown to. Some just eyeball it though. Mabye it was a deciding factor between a few of the dogs, but I doubt it was to make a point.
Traci

So if you actually were to measure--how many inches would make for a "short coupled" dog?

It'd depend on the rest of the dog, wouldn't it?

As a rule, the "flank", point between end of ribcage and hindquarters, should approximately equal the width of the palm of a hand, fingers together. This is what I have been taught in regards to "coupling" on a dog. I have found it quite effective.