Welsh Terrier
GENERAL APPEARANCE : Lively, skilled, well balanced and compact.
Personality: cheerful, obedient and affectionate.
Energy Level : Very Active. This dog is active and energetic, and needs daily exercise.
Good with children: Yes.
Good with other dogs: With supervision.
Grooming: Seasonal.
Life Expectancy : 13-16 years old.
Bark level: Moderate.
HISTORICAL SUMMARY
The Welsh Terrier is a breed with a truly working experience, he is perhaps a little less exuberant than some of the other members of his group. Like so many of its cousins, it was originally used in hunting fox, badger, and even otter. The Welsh and Lakeland terriers, which bear great resemblance, may well have had a common origin, predating the Roman invasion of Britain, when their 'Celtic' owners hid in the mountains of Wales and the 'Lake District'. He is an elegant, exquisite dog with a close “wire” coat, usually black and brown.
Country of Origin: Great Britain.
BEHAVIOR AND TEMPERAMENT: Affectionate, obedient and easily controlled. Cheerful and volatile, rarely shy. Brave and fearless, but definitely non-aggressive, despite always being able to face any situation when necessary.
HEAD:
CRANIAL REGION
Skull: Flat, of moderate width between the ears.
Stop: Not very defined.
FACIAL REGION
Truffle: Black.
Muzzle: Average length from stop to tip of nose.
Jaws and Teeth: Jaws powerful, well defined, deep and punishing; strong with a perfect and regular scissor bite, ie the upper teeth overlap the lower teeth and are set square to the jaws.
Eyes: Relatively small, well set, dark, expression indicative of temperament. Round, full eyes are undesirable.
Ears: V-shaped, small, not too thin, set on relatively high, carried forward and close to the cheeks.
NECK: Of moderate length and thickness, slightly arched and gracefully sloping towards the shoulders.
TRUNK
Back: Short.
Loin: Strong.
Chest: Of good depth and moderately broad; ribs well sprung.
TAIL: Well set. Carried erect, but not very cheerful. In perfect balance with the rest of the dog.
MEMBERS
PREVIOUS
Shoulders: Long, sloping and well set back.
Elbows: Perpendicular to the torso, working freely on the sides.
Forearms: Legs straight and muscular, with broad bones.
Pasterns: Perpendicular and powerful.
Feet: Small, round and like "cat's feet".
HINDQUARTERS
General appearance: Strong.
Thighs: Muscular and of good length.
Metatarsals: Hocks well angulated, well let down and broadly boned.
Feet: Small, round and like "cat's feet".
GAIT/MOVEMENT: Forequarters and hindquarters move straight and parallel. The elbows move perpendicular to the body, working freely on the sides. Knees turning neither in nor out.
COAT
Hair: Wiry, hard, very close and abundant. Single coat (no undercoat) is undesirable.
COLOR: Black and brown, preferably, or black and gray with brown, without black strokes on the fingers. Black below the hocks is highly undesirable.
SIZE: Height at the shoulders not exceeding 39 cm.
WEIGHT: From 9 to 9.5 kg
FAULTS
Any deviation from this standard should be considered a fault and penalized in exact proportion to its severity and its effects on the health and well-being of the dog.
DISQUALIFYING FAULTS
• Aggressiveness or excessive shyness.
• Any dog that shows any sign of physical or behavioral anomaly must be disqualified.
• Atypical dogs.