PARSON RUSSELL TERRIER BY PAT HASTINGS
(A version of this article appeared in the March 2012 issue of SHOWSIGHT.)
T his article is unlike what you may be used to reading, since it is writ- ten neither by the parent club education committee nor by a longtime breeder. Although I have never bred, owned or shown Parson Russell Terriers, it is a breed that I am very familiar with and have been watching and learning about since way before it was accepted into AKC and became the Parson Rus- sell Terrier. My study of the breed includes having evaluated almost 100 eight-week-old Parson litters and watching many of those pup- pies grow up. On a more general- background note, I have been an AKC judge for 31 years and I am currently approved to judge the Working, Terrier, Toy, Non- Sporting, and Herding Groups, a number of Hound Breeds, Junior Showmanship, and Best in Show. Of all the breeds I judge, I hear more complaints about the quality of Parson Russell Terrier judging than most other breeds combined. It is easy to blame judges when exhibitors see dogs winning that are so widely varied in type, make and shape, coat, color, and soundness. However, I would argue that the judges are not entirely to blame. The par- ent club, breeders, exhibitors, and judges all own the chal- lenges of judging the Parson Russell Terrier. First and foremost among the challenges is that, from the current Parson Russell Terrier
Overgroomed vs. Correct
standard, it is very difficult to determine exactly what is required for breed type. In this regard, it appears that breeders are as confused as judges, and if the breeders are left to interpret things to their liking instead of to specifications within the standard, what is a judge supposed to do? When there is no consistency in the dogs being bred and shown, the judge is the one who shoulders the blame when placements seem to be all over the map. In the case of the Parson Russell Terrier, the blame may, in part, live in the breed standard. I believe that the most misunderstood piece of this standard is under Size, Substance, Propor- tion. Size is pretty clear-cut: At the highest point of the shoulder, 14 inches for dogs and 13 inches for bitches; slightly larger or smaller is acceptable on an otherwise well-balanced, quality dog. This appears to be what most breeders are breeding for and what you usually see in the show ring. Sub- stance calls for the bone to be medium, in order for the dogs to do their job. Too heavy-boned and they appear coarse and may lack agility in their work; too light-boned and they appear racy, unlike the hard-working Terriers they are meant to be. I think most breeders are doing a good job here as well. Proportion includes skull and foreface, head and frame, height at withers and length of body. It is the height-to-length aspect that seems to be the hardest to understand, both by breeders and by judges. “Of all the breeds I judge, I hear more complaints about the quality of Parson Russell Terrier judging than most other breeds combined. It is easy to blame judges when exhibitors see dogs winning that are so widely varied in type, make and shape, coat, color, and soundness. However, I would argue that the judges are not entirely to blame. The parent club, breeders, exhibitors, and judges all own the challenges of judging the Parson Russell Terrier.”
216 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, APRIL 2022
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