Birth Of The Rat Terrier
By:
Darla J. at KnD Kennels
By:
Darla J. at KnD Kennels
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I looked around at many web sites trying to find a history of Rat Terriers and well, I must say many left me feeling as if the story was only half told. What I did find in many of these sites was, that the consensus is, the Rat Terrier did get it’s start in England. That they did in fact put them in pits and make bets on how many rats a Rat Terrier could kill and how fast they could kill them. Many of these sites mention that the Rat Terrier has Manchester Terrier and the Smooth Fox Terrier in there background , but some fail to mention that they also have the now extinct English White Terrier, Bull and Terrier, Black and Tan Terrier, Italian Greyhound, Whippet and Beagle. Many of these breeds were introduced into the Rat Terrier after they were brought here, The United States, by miners coming from England making them an American Breed. The area made a difference to exactly what was bred into the Rat Terrier. Different breeds for different needs. The Spitz was even bred into the breed in some parts of the country for hunting bear. Still today occasionally there might be a throwback of the longhair. Truth is we probably do not really know all the breeds in the Rat Terriers background. Today’s Rat Terrier is a stand alone breed. We no longer need to introduce MORE breeds into the Rat Terrier. The true breeder, NOT A PUPPY MILL, has a goal in mind and that goal for many, is to continue to improve what we already have. Many true breeders, AGAIN NOT PUPPY MILLS, feel it is time to breed type to type and eliminate health issues while trying to preserve the temperament, prey drive and intelligence’s of the breed. Not only are many true breeders loyal to our breed, we appall the fact that puppy mills still want to add Chihuahua’s and Papillons (to name a few) to our breed trying to make that small and easy to sell puppy. The Rat Terrier used to be referred to as an American Fiest. They are still in fact a Fiest, but this term includes many breeds, the Treeing Fiest, Mountain Fiest, Squirrel Fiest, American Fiest and the Bench Legged Fiest. The Rat Terrier was used to kill vermon, mainly rats, around the home and farm. He also became an important part of the family by helping hunt squirrel, putting food on the table. The Rat Terrier is still used today by many hunters to hunt squirrel and other small game. With so many breeds in their background, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Rat Terrier is a rainbow of colors, blue, blue fawn, black and tan, chocolate, apricot, pearl, the traditional tri and it isn’t at all unusual that a pure white (not albino) to happen along. Proving again that throwbacks can and do occur. This growing occurance of the pure white Rat Terrier, is believed to trace back to the now extinct English White Terrier that play a big part in their background. Many people have negative assumptions when faced with a white Rat Terrier. While it is true that albino’s can present serious problems from blindness to deafness, it must be remembered that a dog can be white and NOT albino. While it is a good thing for people to be aware of health concerns, they must be sure to clearly define the dog they are looking at. All these colors come in varying shades and might be referenced as many other names, depending on the breeder and the area. They also have a variety of coat patterns. Some of these are tuxedo, pie bald, bi (only 2 colors), blanket back, saddle back and thanks to the Greyhounds and the Bull Terriers to name a few, a brindle can even show up. Although the brindle is (now) considered a fault by the AKC and the UKC Rat Terrier Breed Standards, it can still very well happen. Like white, brindle also has some negative publicity. Some feel that it can harm our breed while others feel just as strongly that brindle is trouble free and should be allowed. The feeling amongst serious breeders is, that the jury is still out on brindle issues. Time will tell. The Whippets and Greyhounds brought speed and agility to the Rat Terrier but it appears that we also have them to thank for rose ears, also considered a fault in the Rat Terrier Breed Standards. The other types of ears are, button, tipped and erect. Rat Terriers can have long tail’s, natural bob tail’s and docked tail’s. Docking is a practice that many breeders do. The docked tail’s history, I believe started out in England where laws stated that dogs that worked for a living were tax exempt and these working dogs were distinguished by the docked tail. The hunter still wants that docked tail for, their reasoning, safety. A Rat Terriers tail can wag non stop and while hunting this could create a issue for accidents. They can become torn and broken from running through trees, shrubs and briars. Running at a high rate of speed and agility. These difficult to treat and very painful injury’s were eliminated by docking the tail. Rat Terries can and will hunt under ground so, the tail is docked at a length that a Rat Terrier can be retrieved from a hole by it’s tail. Many breeders see this is a personal preference and some, myself and my husband included, still dock tail’s but many choose not to. If you have never owned a Rat Terrier but plan to get one, all I can say is you are in for a treat and I bet you can’t just own one. They will win you over. They are not so feisty that they are uncontrollable. The Rat Terrier is up for whatever your wanting to do. If you want to hunt, walk, nap or watch TV they will do their very best to help you with it. This is only an introduction in to the Rat Terrier. They have branched off into some other strains, such as the hairless American Hairless Terrier, Teddy Roosevelt and the Decker. You can do a search on the different varieties to find more details on each. Here are a couple of sites that I found on the National Rat Terrier Association (NRTA) sites. As I bring this to a conclusion, I’d like to remind you to look for a
responsible breeder and we ask you for the preservation of our breed, to
please not by from a puppy mill, a puppy broker or a pet store.
I hope that this has brought a little light on the history of the Rat
Terrier. I am not, nor will I ever be an author and I will not ever be
published. What we (my husband and I) are is nothing more than true
lover’s of the breed!
As we learn more about the Rat Terriers history we will update this site. |