Kennel
Club, London 1994 F.C.I. Standard No 12 GENERAL
APPEARANCE Active
and lively, bone and strength in small compass, never cloddy nor coarse.
Neither leggy nor too short in the leg, standing like a well made, short backed
hunter, covering a lot of ground. CHARACTERISTICS
Alert, quick of movement, keen of expression, on tiptoe of expectation. TEMPERAMENT
Friendly, forthcoming and fearless. HEAD AND SKULL
Skull flat, moderately narrow, gradually decreasing in width to
eyes. A little 'stop' apparent, cheeks never full, jaws, upper and lower,
strong and muscular, falling away only slightly below eyes. This portion
of foreface moderately chiselled out, so as not to go down in a straight line
like a wedge. Nose black. EYES Dark,
small and rather deeply set, as near as possible circular in shape. Expression
bright and intelligent. EARS Small,
V-shaped and dropping forward close to cheek, not hanging by side of head.
Fold of ear above level of skull. Leather of moderate thickness. MOUTH
Jaws strong with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e.
upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws. NECK
Clean and muscular, without throatiness, of fair length and gradually
widening to shoulders. FOREQUARTERS Shoulders
long and sloping, well laid back, fine at points, cleanly cut at withers.
Legs from any angle must be straight showing little or no appearance of an ankle
in front. They should be strong in bone throughout. BODY
Chest deep, not broad. Back short, level and strong without
slackness. Loin powerful, very slightly arched. Fore-ribs moderately
sprung, back ribs deep. HINDQUARTERS
Strong and muscular, quite free from droop or crouch; thighs
long and powerful, hocks well let down, good turn of stifle. FEET
Small, round and compact. Soles hard and tough, toes moderately
arched, and turning neither in nor out. TAIL
Preferably docked. Set on rather high and carried gaily, but
not over back, nor curled. Of good strength. GAIT/MOVEMENT
Fore and hind legs carried straight forward and parallel.
Elbows move perpendicular to body, working free of sides, stifles neither turning
in nor out and hocks not close. Good drive coming from well flexing hindquarters. COAT
Straight, flat, smooth, hard, dense and abundant. Belly and
underside of thighs not bare. COLOUR
White should predominate, all white, white with tan, black
and tan or black markings. Brindle, red or liver markings highly undesirable. SIZE
Weight: Dogs 7.3-8.2 kg (16-18 lbs) Bitches: 6.8-7.7
kg (15-17 lbs). FAULTS Any
departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness
with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree. NOTE Male
animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum |
AKC (American
Kennel Club) Breed Standard General Appearance
The dog must present a
generally gay, lively and active appearance; bone and strength in a small compass
are essentials; but this must not be taken to mean that a Fox Terrier should be
cloddy, or in any way coarse--speed and endurance must be looked to as well as
power, and the symmetry of the Foxhound taken as a model. The Terrier, like the
Hound, must on no account be leggy, nor must he be too short in the leg. He should
stand like a cleverly made hunter, covering a lot of ground, yet with a short
back, as stated below. He will then attain the highest degree of propelling power,
together with the greatest length of stride that is compatible with the length
of his body. Weight is not a certain criterion of a Terrier's fitness for his
work-general shape, size and contour are the main points; and if a dog can gallop
and stay, and follow his fox up a drain, it matters little what his weight is
to a pound or so. N.B. Old scars or injuries, the result of work or
accident, should not be allowed to prejudice a Terrier's chance in the show ring,
unless they interfere with its movement or with its utility for work or stud. Size,
Proportion, Substance According to present-day
requirements, a full-sized, well balanced dog should not exceed 15½ inches
at the withers--the bitch being proportionately lower--nor should the length of
back from withers to root of tail exceed 12 inches, while to maintain the relative
proportions, the head should not exceed 7¼ inches or be less than 7 inches.
A dog with these measurements should scale 18 pounds in show condition - a bitch
weighing some two pounds less-with a margin of one pound either way. Balance.
This may be defined as the correct proportions of a certain point, or points,
when considered in relation to a certain other point or points. It is the keystone
of the Terrier's anatomy. The chief points for consideration are the relative
proportions of skull and foreface; head and back; height at withers and length
of body from shoulder point to buttock-the ideal of proportion being reached when
the last two measurements are the same. It should be added that, although the
head measurements can be taken with absolute accuracy, the height at withers and
length of back and coat are approximate, and are inserted for the information
of breeders and exhibitors rather than as a hard-and-fast rule. Head
Eyes and rims
should be dark in color, moderately small and rather deep set, full of fire, life
and intelligence and as nearly possible circular in shape. Anything approaching
a yellow eye is most objectionable. Ears should be V-shaped and small,
of moderate thickness, and dropping forward close to the cheek, not hanging by
the side of the head like a Foxhound. The topline of the folded ear should be
well above the level of the skull. Disqualifications - Ears prick,
tulip or rose. The skull should be flat and moderately narrow, gradually
decreasing in width to the eyes. Not much "stop" should be apparent, but there
should be more dip in the profile between the forehead and the top jaw than is
seen in the case of a Greyhound. It should be noticed that although the foreface
should gradually taper from eye to muzzle and should tip slightly at its junction
with the forehead, it should not "dish" or fall away quickly below the eyes, where
it should be full and well made up, but relieved from "wedginess" by a little
delicate chiseling. There should be apparent little difference in length between
the skull and foreface of a well balanced head. Cheeks must not be full.
Jaws, upper and lower, should be strong and muscular and of fair punishing
strength, but not so as in any way to resemble the Greyhound or modern English
Terrier. There should not be much falling away below the eyes. This part of the
head should, however, be moderately chiseled out, so as not to go down in a straight
slope like a wedge. The nose, toward which the muzzle must gradually taper,
should be black. Disqualifications - Nose white, cherry or spotted
to a considerable extent with either of these colors. The teeth should
be as nearly as possible together, i.e., the points of the upper (incisors) teeth
on the outside of or slightly overlapping the lower teeth. Disqualifications
- Much undershot, or much overshot. Neck, Topline,
Body Neck should be clean
and muscular, without throatiness, of fair length, and gradually widening to the
shoulders. Back should be short, straight (i.e., level), and strong, with
no appearance of slackness. Chest deep and not broad. Brisket should be deep,
yet not exaggerated. The foreribs should be moderately arched, the back ribs deep
and well sprung, and the dog should be well ribbed up. Loin should be very powerful,
muscular and very slightly arched. Stern should be set on rather high,
and carried gaily, but not over the back or curled. It should be of good strength,
anything approaching a "Pipestopper" tail being especially objectionable. Forequarters
Shoulders should
be long and sloping, well laid back, fine at the points, and clearly cut at the
withers. The elbows should hang perpendicular to the body, working free of the
sides. The forelegs viewed from any direction must be straight with bone strong
right down to the feet, showing little or no appearance of ankle in front, and
being short and straight in pastern. Both fore and hind legs should be carried
straight forward in traveling. Feet should be round, compact, and not
large; the soles hard and tough; the toes moderately arched, and turned neither
in nor out. Hindquarters Should be strong and muscular,
quite free from droop or crouch; the thighs long and powerful, stifles well curved
and turned neither in nor out; hocks well bent and near the ground should be perfectly
upright and parallel each with the other when viewed from behind, the dog standing
well up on them like a Foxhound, and not straight in the stifle. The worst possible
form of hindquarters consists of a short second thigh and a straight stifle. Both
fore and hind legs should be carried straight forward in traveling, the stifles
not turning outward. Feet as in front. Coat Should be smooth, flat,
but hard, dense and abundant. The belly and underside of the thighs should not
be bare. Color White should predominate;
brindle, red or liver markings are objectionable. Otherwise this point is of little
or no importance. Gait Movement, or action, is
the crucial test of conformation. The Terrier's legs should be carried straight
forward while traveling, the forelegs hanging perpendicular and swinging parallel
with the sides, like the pendulum of a clock. The principal propulsive power is
furnished by the hind legs, perfection of action being found in the Terrier possessing
long thighs and muscular second thighs well bent at the stifles, which admit of
a strong forward thrust or "snatch" of the hocks. When approaching, the forelegs
should form a continuation of the straight line of the front, the feet being the
same distance apart as the elbows. When stationary it is often difficult to determine
whether a dog is slightly out at shoulder, but, directly he moves, the defect--if
it exists--becomes more apparent, the forefeet having a tendency to cross, "weave,"
or "dish." When, on the contrary, the dog is tied at the shoulder, the tendency
of the feet is to move wider apart, with a sort of paddling action. When the hocks
are turned in-cow-hocks-the stifles and feet are turned outwards, resulting in
a serious loss of propulsive power. When the hocks are turned outward the tendency
of the hind feet is to cross, resulting in an ungainly waddle. Temperament
The dog must present a
generally gay, lively and active appearance. Disqualifications
Ears prick, tulip or rose. Nose
white, cherry or spotted to a considerable extent with either of these colors. Mouth
much undershot, or much overshot. |