Kennel Club,
London 1994
F.C.I. Standard No 169
GENERAL APPEARANCE
 Active
and lively, bone and strength in small compass, never cloddy
or coarse. Conformation to show perfect balance, in particular
this applies to the relative proportions of skull and foreface,
and similarly height at withers and length of body from shoulder-point
to buttocks appear approximately equal. Standing like a short
backed hunter covering a lot of ground.
CHARACTERISTICS
Alert, quick of movement, keen of expression, on tiptoe
of expectation at slightest provocation.
TEMPERAMENT
Friendly, forthcoming and fearless.
HEAD AND SKULL
Topline of skull almost flat, sloping slightly and gradually
decreasing in width towards eyes. Little difference in length
between skull and foreface. If foreface is noticeably shorter
head looks weak and unfinished. Foreface gradually tapering
from eye to muzzle and dipping slightly at its juncture with
forehead but not dished or falling away quickly below eyes
where it should be full and well made up. Excessive bony
or muscular development of jaws undesirable and unsightly.
Full and rounded contour of cheeks undesirable. Nose black.
EYES
Dark, full of fire and intelligence, moderately small, not
prominent. As near circular in shape as possible. Not too
far apart nor too high in skull nor too near ears. Light
eyes highly undesirable.
EARS
Small, V-shaped, of moderate thickness, flaps neatly folded
over and dropping forward close to cheeks. Top line of folded
ears well above level of skull. Prick, tulip or rose ears
highly undesirable.
MOUTH
Jaws strong with perfect, regular and complete scissor bite,
i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and
set square to the jaws.
NECK
Clean, muscular, of fair length, free from throatiness,
broadening to shoulder, presenting a graceful curve when
viewed from side.
FOREQUARTERS
Seen from front, shoulders slope steeply down from junction
with neck towards points which should be fine; viewed from
side, long and well laid back and sloping obliquely backwards.
Withers always clean cut. Chest deep, not broad. Viewed from
any direction, legs straight, bone strong right down to feet.
Elbows perpendicular to body, working free of sides, carried
straight when moving.
BODY
Back short, level and strong without slackness, loin muscular,
slightly arched. Brisket deep front ribs moderately arched,
rear ribs deep, well sprung. Very short coupled.
HINDQUARTERS
Strong, muscular and free from droop or crouch. Thighs long
and powerful. Stifles well bent, turning neither in nor out.
Hocks well let down, upright and parallel when viewed from
rear. Combination of short second thigh and straight stifle
highly undesirable.
FEET
Round, compact with small, tough and well cushioned pads,
toes moderately arched. Turning neither in nor out.
TAIL
Preferably docked. Set high, carried erect not over back
nor curled. Of good strength and fair length.
GAIT/MOVEMENT
Fore and hind legs move straight forward and parallel. Elbows
move perpendicular to body, working free of sides. Stifles
turning neither in nor out. Good drive coming from well flexing
hindquarters.
COAT
Dense, very wiry texture, in on shoulder to 1 in on withers,
back, ribs and quarters with undercoat of short, softer hair.
Back and quarters harsher than sides. Hair on jaws crisp
and of sufficient length to impart appearance of strength
to foreface. Leg hair dense and crisp.
COLOUR
White predominates with black, black and tan or tan markings.
Brindle, red, liver or slate-blue marking undesirable.
SIZE
Height: Dogs not exceeding 39 cms (15 ins) at withers
Bitches slightly less
Ideal weight Dogs in show condition 8.25 kg (18 lbs); Bitches
slightly less.
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.
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AKC (American
Kennel Club) Breed Standard
General Appearance
 The
Terrier should be alert, quick of movement, keen of expression,
on the tip-toe of expectation at the slightest provocation.
Character is imparted by the expression of the eyes and by
the carriage of ears and tail. Bone and strength in a small
compass are essential, but this must not be taken to mean
that a Terrier should be "cloddy," or in any way
coarse--speed and endurance being requisite as well as power.
The Terrier must on no account be leggy, nor must he be too
short on the leg. He should stand like a cleverly made, short-backed
hunter, covering a lot of ground.
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 15? 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-as mentioned
below-should not exceed 7? 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.
The dog should be balanced and 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 are approximate,
and are inserted for the information of breeders and exhibitors
rather than as a hard-and-fast rule.
Head
The length of the head of a full-grown well developed dog
of correct size--measured with calipers--from the back of
the occipital bone to the nostrils-should be from 7 to 7?
inches, the bitch's head being proportionately shorter. Any
measurement in excess of this usually indicates an oversized
or long-backed specimen, although occasionally--so rarely
as to partake of the nature of a freak--a Terrier of correct
size may boast a head 7? inches in length. In a well balanced
head there should be little apparent difference in length
between skull and foreface. If, however, the foreface is
noticeably shorter, it amounts to a fault, the head looking
weak and "unfinished." On the other hand, when
the eyes are set too high up in the skull and too near the
ears, it also amounts to a fault, the head being said to
have a "foreign appearance." Keen of expression.
Eyes should be dark in color, moderately small, rather deep-set,
not prominent, and full of fire, life, and intelligence;
as nearly as possible circular in shape, and not too far
apart. Anything approaching a yellow eye is most objectionable.
Ears should be small and V-shaped and of moderate thickness,
the flaps neatly folded over and dropping forward close to
the cheeks. The topline of the folded ear should be well
above the level of the skull. A pendulous ear, hanging dead
by the side of the head like a Hound's, is uncharacteristic
of the Terrier, while an ear which is semierect is still
more undesirable. Disqualifications Ears prick, tulip or
rose.
The topline of the skull should be almost flat, sloping slightly
and gradually decreasing in width toward the eyes, and should
not exceed 3? inches in diameter at the widest part--measuring
with the calipers--in the full-grown dog of correct size,
the bitch's skull being proportionately narrower. If this
measurement is exceeded, the skull is termed "coarse,"
while a full-grown dog with a much narrower skull is termed
"bitchy" in head.
Although the foreface should gradually taper from eye to
muzzle and should dip slightly at its juncture 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.
While well developed jaw bones, armed with a set of strong,
white teeth, impart that appearance of strength to the foreface
which is so desirable, an excessive bony or muscular development
of the jaws is both unnecessary and unsightly, as it is partly
responsible for the full and rounded contour of the cheeks
to which the term "cheeky" is applied.
Nose should be black. Disqualifications Nose white, cherry
or spotted to a considerable extent with either of these
colors. Mouth Both upper and lower jaws should be strong
and muscular, the teeth as nearly as possible level and capable
of closing together like a vise the lower canines locking
in front of the upper and the points of the upper incisors
slightly overlapping the lower.
Disqualifications Much undershot, or much overshot.
Neck, Topline, Body
Neck should be clean, muscular, of fair length, free from
throatiness and presenting a graceful curve when viewed from
the side. The back should be short and level with no appearance
of slackness--the loins muscular and very slightly arched.
The term "slackness" is applied both to the portion
of the back immediately behind the withers when it shows
any tendency to dip, and also the flanks when there is too
much space between the back ribs and hipbone. When there
is little space between the ribs and hips, the dog is said
to be "short in couplings," "short-coupled,"
or "well ribbed up." A Terrier can scarcely be
too short in back, provided he has sufficient length of neck
and liberty of movement. The bitch may be slightly longer
in couplings than the dog.
Chest deep and not broad, a too narrow chest being almost
as undesirable as a very broad one. Excessive depth of chest
and brisket is an impediment to a Terrier when going to ground.
The brisket should be deep, the front ribs moderately arched,
and the back ribs deep and well sprung. Tail should be set
on rather high and carried gaily but not curled. It should
be of good strength and substance and of fair length-a three-quarters
dock is about right--since it affords the only safe grip
when handling working Terriers. A very short tail is suitable
neither for work nor show.
Forequarters
Shoulders when viewed from the front should slope steeply
downwards from their juncture, with the neck towards the
points, which should be fine. When viewed from the side they
should be long, well laid back, and should slope obliquely
backwards from points to withers, which should always be
clean-cut. A shoulder well laid back gives the long forehand
which, in combination with a short back, is so desirable
in Terrier or Hunter. The elbows should hang perpendicular
to the body, working free of the sides, carried straight
through in traveling. Viewed from any direction the legs
should be straight, the bone of the forelegs strong right
down to the feet.
Feet should be round, compact, and not large--the pads tough
and well cushioned, and the toes moderately arched and turned
neither in nor out. A Terrier with good-shaped forelegs and
feet will wear his nails down short by contact with the road
surface, the weight of the body being evenly distributed
between the toe pads and the heels.
Hindquarters
Should
be strong and muscular, quite free from droop or crouch; the thighs long and powerful;
the stifles well curved and turned neither in nor out; the hock joints well bent
and near the ground; the hocks perfectly upright and parallel with each other
when viewed from behind. The worst possible form of hindquarters consists of a
short second thigh and a straight stifle, a combination which causes the hind
legs to act as props rather than instruments of propulsion. The hind legs should
be carried straight through in traveling. Feet as in front.
Coat
The best coats appear to be broken, the hairs having a tendency to twist,
and are of dense, wiry texture--like coconut matting--the hairs growing so closely
and strongly together that, when parted with the fingers, the skin cannot be seen.
At the base of these stiff hairs is a shorter growth of finer and softer hair--termed
the undercoat. The coat on the sides is never quite so hard as that on the back
and quarters. Some of the hardest coats are "crinkly" or slightly waved,
but a curly coat is very objectionable. The hair on the upper and lower jaws should
be crisp and only sufficiently long to impart an appearance of strength to the
foreface. The hair on the forelegs should also be dense and crisp. The coat should
average in length from ? to one inch on shoulders and neck, lengthening to 1?
inches on withers, back, ribs, and quarters. These measurements are given rather
as a guide to exhibitors than as an infallible rule, since the length of coat
depends on the climate, seasons, and individual animal. The judge must form his
own opinion as to what constitutes a "sufficient" coat on the day.
Color
White should predominate; brindle, red, liver or slaty blue are objectionable.
Otherwise, color is of little or no importance.
Gait
The
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 to 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
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 outwards the tendency of the hind feet is to
cross, resulting in an ungainly waddle.
Temperament
The
Terrier should be alert, quick of movement, keen of expression, on the tip-toe
of expectation at the slightest provocation.
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.
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