Fox Terrier Breed Magazine - Showsight

Page 2 of 3

balanced head. Cheeks must not be full. Jaws, upper and lower, should be strong and muscular and of fair punishing strength, but not so as in any way to resemble the Greyhound or modern English Terrier. There should not be much falling away below the eyes. This part of the head should, however, be moderately chiseled out, so as not to go down in a straight slope like a wedge. The nose, toward which the muzzle must gradually taper, should be black. Disqualifications - Nose white, cherry or spotted to a considerable extent with either of these colors. The teeth should be as nearly as possible together, i.e., the points of the upper (incisors) teeth on the outside of or slightly overlapping the lower teeth. Disqualifications - Much undershot, or much overshot. Neck, Topline, Body: Neck should be clean and muscular, without throatiness, of fair length, and gradually widening to the shoulders. Back should be short, straight (i.e., level), and strong, with no appearance of slackness. Chest deep and not broad. Brisket should be deep, yet not exaggerated. The foreribs should be moderately arched, the back ribs deep and well sprung, and the dog should be well ribbed up. Loin should be very powerful, muscular and very slightly arched. Stern should be set on rather high, and carried gaily, but not over the back or curled, docked to leave about three quarters of the original length of the tail. It should be of good strength, anything approaching a "Pipestopper" tail being especially objectionable. Forequarters: Shoulders should be long and sloping, well laid back, fine at the points, and clearly cut at the withers. The elbows should hang perpendicular to the body, working free of the sides. The forelegs viewed from any direction must be straight with bone strong right down to the feet, showing little or no appearance of ankle in front, and being short and straight in pastern. Both fore and hind legs should be carried straight forward in traveling. Feet should be round, compact, and not large; the soles hard and tough; the toes moderately arched, and turned neither in nor out. Hindquarters : Should be strong and muscular, quite free from droop or crouch; the thighs long and powerful, stifles well curved and turned neither in nor out; hocks well bent and near the ground should be perfectly upright and parallel each with the other when viewed from behind, the dog standing well up on them like a Foxhound, and not straight in the stifle. The worst possible form of hindquarters consists of a short second thigh and a straight stifle. Both fore and hind legs should be carried straight forward in traveling, the stifles not turning outward. Feet as in front. Coat: Should be smooth, flat, but hard, dense and abundant. The belly and underside of the thighs should not be bare. Color: White should predominate; brindle, red or liver markings are objectionable. Otherwise this point is of little or no importance. Gait: Movement, or action, is the crucial test of conformation. The Terrier's legs should be carried straight forward while traveling, the forelegs hanging perpendicular and swinging parallel with the sides, like the pendulum of a clock. The principal propulsive power is furnished by the hind legs, perfection of action being found in the Terrier possessing long thighs and muscular

Powered by