THE UNIQUE LAKELAND TERRIER HEAD, EARS & EXPRESSION
Form-follows-function: flexibility underground. Flexibil- ity in the shoulder assembly is paramount, both for jump- ing (underground ledges in the lair of the fox) and navigat- ing narrow spaces. The Terrier that can get a throat-hold takes much less punishment from the fox than biting at the head. It is possible to study side-on pictures and side gait to get a fair idea of these aspects of conformation. If you real- ly want to understand Lakeland breed type, though, you must spend time looking at them face-on. The number one characteristic: a big nose. A large nose indicates large teeth and jaws. You want maximum biting power, but they don’t have an opportunity to bite the quarry if their skull is too big to fit in the fox’s den. Therefore, the correct Lakeland skull will have flat cheeks, and the skull is about as long as the muzzle. The muzzle should never exceed the length of the backskull. Muscles obey the laws of physics; the farther they are stretched between origin and insertion the weaker their power will be unless they are bulked up, which in this case defeats the purpose of getting into tight spaces. The backskull should be square; width the same as length from stop to occiput. Skull should be flat on top, with good fill for attachment of muscles. Properly placed ears accentuate the powerful headpiece. They should be triangular, fold just above the level of the skull, the inner edge held close to the skull, with the tip not extending below the corner of the eye. As long as the ear canal is typi- cally covered, ear size and placement will serve the work- ing Terrier just as well if there is even some variation. The combination of eyes that look straight ahead and are less “varminty” than some other Terrier breeds, set in the strong headpiece with flat skull and big nose, and those correctly placed (and mobile) ears make the unique and endearing face of a Lakeland.
Very good head, ears, expression, with big nose.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Pat Rock of Providence Forge, Virginia, breeds and shows AKC Lakeland Terriers. She is a member in good standing with the United States Lakeland Terrier Club and the American Working Terrier Association, and is an American Kennel Club licensed judge for Earthdog Tests. Pat has been recognized as a Breeder of Merit Platinum in the American Kennel Club’s Breeder of Merit Program for Lakeland Terriers. Pat has had a passion for genetics and animal breeding since she was a child. (How many other kids did their school science project on coat color genetics in puppies?) Growing up with Pointers and Setters, and always at least one Terrier that her dad kept as a squirrel dog, she bred her first litter in 1961, studying the performance records of potential stud dogs through the pages of The American Field weekly, and shipping that first English Setter bitch in a rented crate on a train via Railway Express to be bred.
Getting involved with conformation showing was the fault of her husband. While they were still teens, he took her to her first dog show, knowing that she loved dogs and because it was a cheap date. After they were married and his job had them moving frequently, it just wasn’t possible to breed anything the size of Pointers. So, she turned to the Lakeland Terrier, having fallen in love with the look of them at that first dog show. Twenty twenty-one marks her 50th year showing Lakelands. Pat has bred over 100 show champions, five MACH Lakelands (one of them attaining MACH5), and a high percentage of all AKC Earthdog titles earned by Lakelands are Hollybriar owned or bred. Pat has been a member of the United States Lakeland Terrier Club since the early 1970s, has served terms on the Board, including President, has chaired the Health Committee, brought about the club’s first Breed Health Survey, has written columns for the AKC Gazette for many decades, and was instrumental in the enrollment of the breed in the UCDavis Canine Genetic Diversity Project, an ongoing endeavor to preserve as much genetic diversity in the gene pool as possible for the preservation of the breed into the future. Pat is active in Judge’s Education, has chaired the first and second Lakiepalooza events, and is looking forward to continuing to be active in promoting the breed she loves so much.
160 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, JULY 2022
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