Page 196 - Showsight March 2013

the skull? And, using the frame in which
I am making my observations: is the dog
“alert” and “happy”? Does it appear to be
self confident in its attitude and expres-
sion? Again, the standard describes the
requisite temperament to include a dog
that is not only alert, but one that also
“exhibits interest” in his surroundings. I
observe the coat and start to get a feel for
size (I know where 18 and 19 inches are on
my leg), and although I am not necessarily
at that point “measuring” the dogs it still
a characteristic of which I am conscious.
I then move the dogs around together.
I continue to frame my observations: is the
gait “free, graceful and lively with good
reach in front and strong drive behind?”
Temperament quality becomes more
defined: “The Wheaten is a happy, steady
dog and shows himself gaily with an air of
self confidence” and with tail erect. At this
time I can begin to fill in another impor-
tant detail: is the dog maintaining the
outline of a Sporting Terrier even on the
move? The standard reads that the neck
should be “carried proudly”—if read in
conjunction with the more specific direc-
tive that the length neck is “medium” that
clearly means while moving the profile
must be maintained.
In addition, maintaining its profile on
the move is consistent with the “compact”
body that is “relatively short coupled.
However, if the moving entry is consistent-
ly dropping its head and begins to appear
streamlined, it is most often too long. And
the profile must continue to be balanced
while on the move: does the neck disap-
pear into the shoulders on the move? Is
the back “level” as the dog moves and is
it “strong” without flexing or hard up and
down movement? Hard pounding does
not make for stamina or more precisely,
a sound dog. And to repeat, these obser-
vations are being placed my frame: is the
dog “alert and happy animal” and is it
“graceful, strong and well coordinated”?
A little history that is the material from
which I have constructed my frame—
although the breed is a 20th century
addition to the sport of dog showing and
its Irish history lost in the mists of time,
the breed has been known for over 200
years. SCWTs were not only used as an all
purpose farm dog that could rid its terri-
tory of vermin, it was also a capable gun
dog—most likely for a poacher—while
being equally at home herding its owner’s
livestock. In my opinion, that history dic-
tates a “hardy” dog that should be capable
of powerfully covering ground effortlessly
and with stamina.
As the dog moves, I also consider what
many believe to be the defining character-
istic of the dog, but which the standard
twice describes as “a distinguishing char-
acteristic.” I mentioned it earlier as part of
the essence of the breed. It often causes the
most angst among non-breeder judges: the
coat. During movement, I hopefully see
coats that exhibit a “soft, silky and gen-
tly waving nature” that have “sufficient
length to flow” as the dogs goes around.
I always remember the standard directive
that states, “Dogs that are overly trimmed
shall be severely penalized.”
Without spending a considerable
amount of time, judges of our breed should
be aware, as am I, that the standard also
states, “In both puppies and adolescents,
the mature wavy coat is generally not yet
evident.” Under color it reads: “Any shade
of wheaten.” The vast majority of entries
in the classes are either young adolescents
that are of a lighter color or puppies that
are often times darker. Adult coats are
really not fully evident until 3-4 years
of age and although some Specials may
sport the full adult coat, many judges may
never see the soft, silky and gently waving
coat that is prized. When that coat is dis-
played, it is most often of varying shades
of wheat. The adult coat is very seldom a
solid color and may even carry some black
guard hairs. Although there is nothing
wrong with placing puppies in the rib-
bons—even BOB if it truly exudes breed
essence, do not ignore the adult with the
mature coat because it appears to be the
odd man out in a ring full of puppies and
adolescents. Although the finer nuances of
coat type could be the subject of a more
extensive article, suffice it to say that my
approach is that the dog under the coat is
the more important part of the package I
am judging.
From a breeder’s perspective, improv-
ing the coat of a SCWT is far easier than
improving a front or rear end assembly.
Given two, three or four exhibits of equal
quality (and I mean equal quality overall),
then the coat, a component of the breed’s
essence, may be a deciding factor—empha-
sis on the “may be.”
Finally, the individual examination:
I can now almost complete the picture I
have been painting in my frame, filling in
the details and highlights and perhaps find
the perfect SCWT—not!
I can now see that the profiles that were
held by the entries with the good reach and
drive I saw on the go around are consistent
with the short backs, and relatively short
loins I am now feeling, and perhaps con-
firm that the drop in the head of another
is consistent with the long back and/
or long loin. I feel the “well laid back”
and “well knit” shoulders that are clean
196 • ShowSight Magazine, March 2013