| PACE | A gait; two right feet on the ground and two left feet in the air followed by two left feet on the ground and two right feet in the air; in some breeds the ‘pace’ is acceptable. |
| PADDING | Flapping; the front feet flap up (opposite of hackney action where the toe points downward); more common in short legged breeds, such as Dachshunds. Also hitting the pad on the ground prior to the normal full forward swing of the front leg. |
| PADDLING | Moving the front legs like a canoe paddle motion; a rotary motion; when the front feet move forward they have a somewhat circular motion. |
| PADS | Tough soft material on underside of dog’s feet; pads absorb shock. |
| PARTI-COLOUR | A coat with patches of two or more colours; three colours are usually designated as tricoloured. |
| PASTERN | The region between the wrist and toes on forelegs; pastern joint is at the wrist (carpus); down in pasterns is an excessive forward sloping pastern for the breed; knuckled over occurs when pastern joint bends forwards and the pastern slopes backwards. |
| PATELLA | Kneecap. |
| PEAR-SHAPED | Shaped like a pear; body of a Bulldog is pear shaped. |
| PELVIS | Bone fused to spinal column at rear of dog; used to support hind legs. |
| PENCILING | In Manchester Terriers the black line dividing the tan on the toes. |
| PENDULOUS | Long and hanging as pendulous ears; like the pendulum (hanging); usually wide at bottom |
| PIED | Piebald; parti-colored; large patches of two or more colours |
| PIGEON-BREASTED | A short protruding breast bone. |
| PIGEON-TOED | Toes turned in; toes pointing towards one another; toes turned in from the line of progress. |
| PIGMENTATION | Dark pigmentation of nose and eyelids; ‘lacking pigment’ indicates light colour. |
| PINCER BITE | Level bite; upper and lower incisors (front teeth) meet level; not a scissors bite. |
| PLUME | Hair on tail as on Setters; a long fringe of hair hanging from tail; also applied to Pomeranian and Pekingese tails; a heavy coated tail carried over back. |
| POMPOM | Pertains to Poodles; a round tuft of hair on the end of the tail produced by trimming. |
| POUNDING | Feet (front) hitting the ground too hard |
| PRICK EAR | An erect ear; usually pointed and erect. |
| PROFESSIONAL HANDLER | A dog handler who shows other people’s dogs for a fee at dog shows. |
| PUPPY | A dog under one year of age |
| PUT DOWN | A dog put down (prepared) for the show ring, usually by trimming, combing, grooming and beautifying. A slang expression describing an unplaced dog; a dog is put down when it does not win a competition. |
| QUALITY | A dog has quality; a refinement of appearance for the breed; not coarse. |
| QUARTERS | Usually used as hindquarters or forequarters. |