Page 250 - Showsight April 2013

judge should be looking for shoulders
that are smooth and relatively narrow.
The space between the legs should not be
narrower than that of the Fox Terrier—
“approximately 3" or 3 fingers” and no
larger than 4" (approximately four fingers).
The Border’s legs should be straight and
not turned in or out. He should not be
loaded in shoulders which would interferes
with is going to ground.
Looking at the head itself, there should
be very little stop with proportions of 2 to
1 from the occiput to stop with the muz-
zle one-third to tip. It is moderately broad
and flat with plenty of width between
the eyes and the ears. A slight, moder-
ately broad slope at the stop rather than
a pronounce indentation. The muzzle is
short and well filled. The ears should be
in proportion to the head, v-shaped and
moderately thick with dark ears preferred.
(Some judges cover the ears when exam-
ining the head to get a better view of an
otter like head.) The ear breaks below the
level of skull and should be in proportion
to the head.
The Border’s eyes are dark and mod-
erate in size with fill under the eyes. Its
strong masseter muscles gave the Border
a cheeky appearance. Too short a muzzle
will produce bulging eye, á la the Brussels
Griffon. The Border’s nose is black and of
a good size. The Border’s teeth have a scis-
sors bite with no deviation allowed, large
for the size of the dog.
The Border Terrier neck is well set on
and long enough to allow the freedom
of head movement. The Border Terrier
shoulder blades are long and well laid
back with the length of the shoulder blade
and upper arm being approximately equal
and converging at the withers.
The space between the forelegs is equal
at the elbows and at the feet. The length
and angulation of the shoulder and upper
arm results in the legs being set further
back and under the withers rather than as
in the Fox Terrier—giving the Border a
somewhat chesty look when viewed from
the side. Unlike the Fox Terrier and other
fancy terrier breeds, the Border has a
somewhat strait underline.
To properly evaluate terrier’ ability to go
to ground, it must be spannable. To span a
terrier a judge must place his hands behind
the elbows, raising only the front from the
table, compressing the chest gently. Ideally,
his thumbs should meet at the spine and his
fingers should meet under the terrier.
Dr. Pope called the Border the “the
smallest tall, long-legged terrier”. This was
necessary for his working in the border
between England and Scotland in order
to be able to keep up with the horse and
the hounds over rough ground. A short-
legged, over-sprung, wide, deep chested
Border would not be able to do the work he
was bred to do. Border dogs should weigh
13-15½ pounds, bitches, 11½-14 pounds
in hardworking condition. It is rare now,
in the era of couch potatoes and expensive
dog foods, to find a Border in the hard
working condition previously seen in the
working terriers in the Border country.
Proportions should be the height at the
withers is slightly greater than the distance
from the withers to the base of the tail, by
about 1"-1½".
The same rough terrain and climate
requires a double coat for protection on the
job. The tweedy broken coat is preferred. A
lack of undercoat must be faulted. The coat
should be hard and wiry. There must be
evidence of a double coat. If there is no evi-
dence, it must be assumed it does not exist.
Borders should never be overly trimmed to
resemble other breeds. Excessive grooming
should be penalized.
A useful tool for the working Border is
his tail, shaped like a carrot, thick at base and
tapering to a point. It is often used by the
huntsman to pull the Border out of the fox-
hole. Ideally it comes off the back at a forty-
five degree angle, but upright, or level carriage,
is also acceptable, but never over the back.
The topline of the Border is not men-
tioned in the standard. The original drafts
of the standard spoke about a slight rise
over the loin. The drafters, fearing that
judges would exaggerate this phrase. The
prohibition of a dip behind the withers
was the only comment put in the standard
about the topline.
The Border is the only terrier that has a
loose and thick fitting skin (hide or pelt).
This is crucial because it protects the dog
from injury inflicted by his quarry, other
dogs or underbrush. The judge should not
hesitate to grasp a handful of skin in back
of the shoulders and lift it.
The Border’s rear is muscular, thighs
long, stifles well bent and hocks well let
down. Rear angulation should be compli-
mentary to that of the front.
The Border Terrier coat can come in
red, grizzle and tan, blue and tan and
wheaten. None are preferred as function
is not affected, however altering coat color
and trimming with scissors are not appro-
priate for a working terrier.
BIOS
Ruth Ann Naun is a specialist judge
of Border Terriers since 1992. She has
judged the national specialty twice and
the breed at CC level in Britain twice as
well. She is the long time delegate of the
Border Terrier Club of America to the
AKC.
Bob Naun, her husband, died in late
2011, was a Terrier Group judge, and
had held posts in the parent club includ-
ing president for fifteen years, and club
historian. He had also judged the breed
national twice and was the first American
to award CCs in their breed in Britain.
Their Oldstone prefix has been a presence
in the breed since the early 1970s.
“THE BORDER Is THE ONly TERRIER THaT
has a loose and thick fitting skin...”
250 • ShowSight Magazine, April 2013