Page 280 - ShowSight, March 2020
P. 280

                THE CESKY TERRIER
 “THE CESKY HAS A RATIO OF 1.5 LENGTH TO 1.0 HEIGHT MAKING THIS A LONG, SHORT-LEGGED BREED.
THIS FEATURE ALONG WITH A LONG, WELL-MUSCLED NECK MAKES THE BREED IDEAL FOR TRACKING AND TRAILING, MOVING FAST WITH HIS NOSE CLOSE TO THE GROUND.”
Ceskys come in shades of grey. This is one of the breeds that carries the gene that causes the coat color to lighten with age (the “G” pigmenta- tion gene that has yet to be located on the canine genome), and the effect is more dramatic than in any other breed. Cesky puppies are born either solid black or black with tan mark- ings. Normally by the age of two, the black has lightened to grey and the tan markings have lightened to very light tan. This often places puppies and adolescents between six and 24 months in the uncomfortable posi- tion of appearing mottled or brindled as their coat changes from black to grey at different rates. This is nor- mally resolved by age two (as required by the standard).
Some white markings are per- mitted and appear frequently on the chest, but no more than 20% of the pigmentation should be white. Pig- mentation issues sometimes arise in the ring over this “white” pigmenta- tion requirement for several reasons. The (“G”) or greying gene can cause very pronounced lightening in some Cesky Terriers producing dogs that are a very light platinum. These light platinum dogs are much more com- mon in Europe than in the US, and
when a light dog appears in the ring with more “traditional” grey dogs, it is striking. But closer inspection shows that this dog is not white (like a Sealyham, for example). Addition- ally, Ceskys with the dominant black and tan genotype often have mark- ings that fade to a very light tan again giving the appearance of more than 20% white markings. Again, closer inspection reveals light tan furnish- ings rather than white. Lighter Ceskys are appearing in the US Cesky population, so this issue should soon be less problematic as these light dogs become less of a minority.
The Cesky has a ratio of 1.5 length to 1.0 height making this a long, short-legged breed. This feature along with a long, well-muscled neck makes the breed ideal for tracking and trail- ing, moving fast with his nose close to the ground. For example, they are used in their native Czech Republic for wild-boar hunting and given the responsibility for tracking this game and flushing it from the brush. They are also used for finding small game and will enthusiastically go to ground after them.
The predominant impression of a Cesky is a “well-muscled” dog. The standard uses this term over and over
The range of the grey color of the Ceksy
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