Page 346 - ShowSight - September 2019
P. 346

                Toy Fox Terrier Q & A
“I honestly can’t understand why these adorable
fun dogs aren’t hugely popular. Their adoration for their owners, their sense of fun, their joy in performing whether conformation, agility, tricks, barn hunt, FAST CAT, hik- ing trails with us or playing fetch, their trainability, their snuggling to be with us, minimal grooming and portabil- ity just make them such fantastic dogs.”
 Susan Thibodeaux continued
How does the breed’s terrier temperament affect their household behavior? Don’t forget they were popular circus dogs too! That terrier temperament in a diminutive package makes for a lot of fun! They are playful and full of them- selves and yet love to cuddle. They sometimes get a little too assertive with barking and bouncing when our horses or the neighbors’ dogs come near “their” fence line and no lizard, squirrel, frog or bird is safe in Toy Fox Terrier space. But the comical fun they provide? Well, my husband has been quoted as saying the only thing wrong with Toy Fox Terriers is we didn’t discover them sooner.
How do I place my puppies? The usual ways—word of mouth, listing on club sites, AKC Marketplace, social media. We don’t have frequent litters—I breed when I’m ready for the next generation so we don’t maintain a wait- ing list. I pass puppy buyers to other breeders I respect when I don’t have puppies so I hope when I have puppies they return the favor. It worked for me in Vizslas for three decades so I assumed the same niceties in my newer breed- er. So far so good—we have fabulous breeders and great members in the ATFTC.
Is my parent Club giving me adequate support? A fun question since I’m on the board. Being a breed lower in numbers, we’re a small club and as with any club finding volunteers with time and expertise for some of the more technical or consuming tasks can be difficult. We went without a newsletter for a period of time but we have a new editor, Chris Bowker, who is doing an outstanding job with it now. Our website was old and the code no longer sup- ported. My husband, bless his heart because he’s told me over the years to quit volunteering him, took it on after the club had gotten some very expensive quotes and he rewrote much of the code to make it usable again. Litter announce- ments, the members’ pages, the breeders’ list and front page news are all up and running again. He’s continuing to update and improve it at no cost to the club. I administer the parent club Facebook page and keep news of our club specialties updated as well as referring prospective puppy buyers to our breeders’ listing on the club website. We also have a members only Facebook group and more members are beginning to make use of it. We have some newer mem- bers anxious to get involved and I believe we’ll be asking them to take on some of tasks in the next year.
Is the breed standing out good or bad? It’s very good. We don’t have coat to try to camouflage any weak spots—what you see is what you get. So I wish more judges would con- sider the Toy Foxes for recognition when these lovely dogs are in the group. When I was specialing Sparkles I used to joke three things had to happen for us to place in the group.
First the judge had to be willing to use a Toy Fox, second the judge had to be willing to put up an owner handler and third Sparkles had to behave. They came into alignment on more than one occasion because she had about twenty group placements when she retired.
Some TFT exhibitors, and I have to say I would agree, have the impression that a few judges got approval for TFTs so they could get the Toy group and don’t really know our breed. Judges who are unsure of our breed or would like greater appreciation of them, can get refreshed by going to the Breed Standard page on our club’s webpage and scroll- ing to the bottom. Our illustrated breed standard is at the bottom of the page – they might have to unblock the flash player—the club did this a number of years ago and its one of the best illustrated breed standards I’ve seen. The link is http://www.atftc.com/breed_std/ibsFlash/index.html
What is the breed’s most endearing quality? How do I choose? The mix of comedic with cuddling in this breed just can’t be ignored. They go from laying in your lap to making you laugh over their silly expressions and funny antics. You will never be alone in your house again when you own a Toy Fox Terrier—they love you!
At what age do I choose a show prospect? We start deciding at eight to ten weeks who will be leaving for pet homes and who will stay to be ‘grown out’ a few months. In my first years in TFTs I bought my initial show Toy Fox Terriers from my mentors at four to five months old after they grew their potential show pups up a bit. I still rely on Denise Monette and Sheryl Irwin for advice and wisdom— they have both been fabulous mentors to me and as I’m deciding on which puppies stay or have any TFT questions they are so willing to help. Love them!
What is my favorite dog show memory? Sparkles win- ning Best of Breed at Eukanuba and getting to show in the televised Toy group. She showed like a rock star. There were shows where she and I weren’t on the same page—going in the ring is always extra interesting when you have a tiny opinionated food focused Einstein but she showed like a dream that day in both breed and the group. I still watch the group video clip sometimes.
I honestly can’t understand why these adorable fun dogs aren’t hugely popular. Their adoration for their owners, their sense of fun, their joy in performing whether confor- mation, agility, tricks, barn hunt, FAST CAT, hiking trails with us or playing fetch, their trainability, their snuggling to be with us, minimal grooming and portability just make them such fantastic dogs. I am surprised many people just don’t ever have them on their radar when they are looking for a new dog. Toy Fox Terriers are the best little dogs!
 344 • ShowSight Magazine, SepteMber 2019
    



















































































   344   345   346   347   348