ownership either due to their own aller- gies or those of loved ones. I became impassioned to see the American Hairless Terrier become known Worldwide for what they would offer their owners and the dog world in general. A true “Made In America” breed. Our journey began in Rare Breed status followed by UKC breed status where we were allowed to flourish and improve on some structural faults we had identified. A continued process even to this day. We had our Champi- ons for the breed whose encourage- ment and support were critical to our growth. Two people I would like to mention are Bonnie Turner, whose Flin- thill AHT kennel was instrumental with the breed’s heritage past, present and future. Her friendship is greatly missed since her passing; and Cindy Cooke, of Anstamn Scottish Terriers, who stood by us as a breed and whose friendship guided us as we grew. A question often asked is “What is the American Hairless Terrier personality like?”.
s 4HE !MERICAN (AIRLESS 4ERRIER personality is all Terrier but with an “off” switch. s 4HEY WILL PLAY HARD WHEN IT IS ASKED of them and just as easily be your best lap buddy and snuggle happily with you. s 4HEY ARE ALERT ACTIVE AND INTELLIGENT s 4HEY TRAIN EASILY GIVEN PROPER socialization as youngsters and proper training. s 4HEY ARE SMART ENOUGH TO OUTSMART their owners if not paid attention to. s 3OME WILL BE AGGRESSIVE DIGGERS AND chewers and others not at all. They love to “destuff” stuffed animals, so I caution families with children to put away their toys when play time is over. s !MERICAN (AIRLESS 4ERRIERS BOND well with their families. s 4HEY RESPOND WELL TO POSITIVE TRAIN - ing and poorly to negative training. s %XCEL IN PERFORMANCE EVENTS OF ALL types: lure coursing, agility, obedi- ence, barn hunts, terrier racing. s 3OME REMAIN WITH A STRONG prey drive.
s 4HEY MAKE GREAT FAMILY DOGS WHEN raised with children. If parents are dog savvy and supervise both child and dog properly. s 3OME WILL ACCEPT STRANGERS RIGHT away and others will be more leery. s 4HEY WILL ALERT BARK s 4HEY TEND TO BE MORE hORALv THAN other breeds as puppies and must be taught that human skin is not the same as the skin of their littermate. They get their razor sharp puppy teeth at 4 weeks of age. Another common question is: Why is there a coated dog in a hairless breed? Simple! Every hairless breed has a coat- ed variety and we have ours too. Health issues checked for in the breed would be the same as many others. Over- all the American Hairless Terrier is a rela- tively healthy breed. We have seen aller- gies become more prevalent due to the lack a protective hair coat and failure to not use a common sense approach when it comes to protecting the skin. Breeders do DNA testing when available for the breed such as PLL and DM and check Eyes, Heart, Patellas,
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