Fox Terrier

English physician John Caius described the English terrier type in his 1577 work English Dogges. By the 18th century, it was recorded that all terriers were wire haired, and black and tan in colour.Vanderlip (2001): p. 5 The earliest record of any white terrier was a dog named Pitch, who was owned by Colonel Thomas Thornton in 1790. The dog was the subject of a painting by Sawrey Gilpin, who created a portrait of it while it was still alive. An engraving of this painting, made prior to 1810, was accompanied by the text, "It would be necessary to notice Colonel Thorton's terriers if they were only on account of his justly celebrated Pitch, from whom are descended most of the white terriers in the kingdom."Haynes (1912): p. 23 Dog writers of the early 20th century suggested that Pitch was a terrier-greyhound cross, which was how the colour was introduced into the breed.Vanderlip (2001): p. 6

Not much is known of early 19th century breeding practices that came to create the modern Fox Terrier. However it is thought that the Beagle, Old English Bulldog, English Toy Terrier, Pointer and even Dalmatian were all used in the creation and stabilisation of the breed.Haynes (1912): p. 24Haynes (1912): p. 25

From 1870 onwards, a complete pedigree for Fox Terriers exists. Three dogs, known as Old Jock, Trap and Tartar, are the ancestors of most modern strains of white terrier. Old Jock was bred from a black and tan terrier, while Trap was from the strain out of Reverend John "Jack" Russell's dogs. Russell would later have the Jack Russell Terrier series of breeds named after him. Although definitive history on Tartar is not known, he is also thought to have come from black and tan terrier stock. Of the female dogs from this period, Grove Nettle was the best known.Lee (1902): p. 44 In addition to those dogs, another named Old Tip is thought to be the forefather of the modern Wire Fox Terrier.

The terrier of this period was short of leg, built in a chunky fashion, and had a skull that was broad across the top. Used in hunting packs and kept in kennels along with English Foxhounds, they were bred for their ability to drive the fox out of its den.Haynes (1912): p. 27 Gradually the pace of the hunt became faster, and the terriers were bred with longer legs for more speed towards the end of the 18th century. However the increased size meant that the Fox Terrier became too big to be used for its original purpose, and its use in fox hunting began to decline.Haynes (1912): p. 28

The Fox Terrier Club of England was founded in 1876, with the American Fox Terrier Club following nine years later, becoming the first breed speciality club to become a member of the American Kennel Club. A female Smooth Fox Terrier bred by Winthrop Rutherfurd named Warren Remedy was the first winner of Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in 1907, 1908, and 1909.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1907/02/15/106706137.pdf|title=Fox Terrier Wins Blue Ribbon Event|date=15 February 1907|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=10 April 2010}} Following the popularity of conformation dog shows, the Fox Terrier was the result of selective breeding. For instance, by 1949, 120 of 140 Wire Fox Terrier champions were descended from a single championship-winning dog.

File:Pitch by gilpin.jpg| The painting of Pitch (1790), by Sawrey Gilpin (1733–1807)

File:Alice Maud Bryant 1875-1910 Cheroot.jpg|Fox Terrier Cheroot was born in 1886 and is a link between the working Fox Terriers of the early 19th century and the show dogs at the end of the century.

File:Jock tartar and nettle.jpg|Old Jock, Grove Nettle and Tartar, three ancestors of the modern Fox Terrier

File:Girl Photographing a Dog (3084877374).jpg|Girl taking a photo of a Fox Terrier

File:Foksterier szorstkowlosy kufa z przodu yy.jpg

There are two main breeds of Fox Terrier, Smooth and Wire, both of which originate in England.Palika (2007): p. 242 In addition, there are several descendant breeds which have been developed in a variety of countries.{{Cite web|title=Different Types of Terrier|url=http://www.jack-russell-terrier.co.uk/breed/types_of_terriers.html|publisher=Jack-Russell.co.uk|access-date=21 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100401235849/http://www.jack-russell-terrier.co.uk/breed/types_of_terriers.html|archive-date=1 April 2010}} For example, the American Toy Fox Terrier was developed from the Smooth Fox Terrier, Italian Greyhound, Manchester Terrier, Miniature Pinscher and Chihuahua breeds.

Both major types of Fox Terrier are mostly white with coloured markings and have similar facial characteristics.Palika (2007): p. 243 They are essentially the same except for differences in coats, and slight differences in colouration and markings.Vanderlip (2001): p. 8 Markings on either type can appear black at birth on the head, but may lighten in adult life, the most common colours being tan and black. The markings are a type of piebald spotting.{{Cite journal|last=Karlsson|first=Elinor K.|title=Mapping white spotting|url=http://www.nature.com/nrg/journal/v9/n9/box/nrg2382_BX3.html|publisher=Nature.com|access-date=21 January 2011|author2=Lindblad-Toh, Kerstin|journal=Nature Reviews Genetics|date=September 2008|volume=9|issue=9|pages=713–725|doi=10.1038/nrg2382|pmid=18714291|s2cid=6460297}} Although the two main breeds were originally commonly interbred, this no longer occurs in pure-bred lines.{{Cite book|last=Warren|first=Dean M.|title=Small Animal Care and Management|year=2001|publisher=Delmar Cengage Learning|isbn=978-0-7668-1424-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qz-3V6_TatUC&q=fox+terrier&pg=PA82|page=82}}

The Fox Terrier has been more successful than any other breed at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, with four Best in Show titles going to the Smooth Fox Terrier and fourteen titles going to the Wire Fox Terrier.Vanderlip (2001): p. 7 They were both shown as one breed with two coat variations; this changed in 1985 when the American Kennel Club listed the two as separate breeds. In the UK, at Crufts, the Smooth Fox Terrier has not won any Best in Show titles, while the Wire Fox Terrier has won on three occasions.{{Cite web|title=Supplements & Breed Showcases |url=http://www.dogworld.co.uk/Supplements |work=Dog World |access-date=21 January 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015050835/http://www.dogworld.co.uk/Supplements |archive-date=15 October 2008 }}

{{Main article|Smooth Fox Terrier}}

File:Two Fox Terriers.jpgs showing the difference in breed markings]]

The Smooth Fox Terrier has a short, hard coat which is predominantly white. It measures {{convert|14|-|15.5|in|cm}} at the withers, and weighs between {{convert|15|-|19|lb|kg}}. The head of this breed is long and wedge shaped, with small, dark eyes and ears that are v-shaped.Palika (2007): p. 241

The breed has been identified as one of several Vulnerable Native Breeds in the UK. This is when there are fewer than 300 annual registrations with The Kennel Club. In 2010, there were 155 Smooth Fox Terriers registered, compared to 693 for the Wire Fox Terrier and 8,663 for the most popular breed in the Terrier Group, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier.{{Cite web|title=Quarterly Registration Statistics for the Terrier Group|url=http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/download/3076/Quarterly-breed-stats-terriers.pdf|work=The Kennel Club|access-date=1 March 2011}}

The most successful dog at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show was Ch. Warren Remedy, who won the Best in Show title three times between 1907 and 1909. These victories were followed by a further Best in Show title for Ch. Sabine Rarebit in 1910.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/02/12/104920803.pdf|title=Sabine Rarebit is Best Dog in Show|date=12 February 1910|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=1 March 2011}} Despite the Smooth Fox Terrier breed winning the first four Best in Show titles at Westminster, it has not won again since.{{Cite web|title=Best in Show Winners|url=http://www.westminsterkennelclub.org/history/biswinners.html|work=Westminster Kennel Club|access-date=1 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225033923/http://westminsterkennelclub.org/history/biswinners.html|archive-date=25 December 2007|url-status=dead}}

{{Main article|Wire Fox Terrier}}

File:Two Wire Fox Terriers.jpg

The Wire Haired Fox Terrier has a hard and crisp double coat with a coarse texture underneath that provides protection from the cold. It should be so dense that the skin cannot be seen or felt.Lee (1902): p. 154 The individual hairs should twist, but are not curly. An average member of the breed should measure {{convert|14|-|15.5|in|cm}} at the withers and weigh {{convert|15|-|19|lb|kg}}. It has similar features to the Smooth Fox Terrier, with small dark eyes and v-shaped ears. Its body is shorter than it is tall.

King Edward VII owned a Wire Fox Terrier from the Notts kennel called Caesar of Notts,Vanderlip (2001): p. 10 which did a great deal to popularise the breed at the turn of the 20th century.{{Cite web|title=Dogs Which Greatly Influenced Wires as We Know Them Today|url=http://www.wirefoxterrierassociation.co.uk/historyDogs.html|work=Wire Fox Terrier Association|access-date=21 January 2011|archive-date=19 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019062922/http://www.wirefoxterrierassociation.co.uk/historyDogs.html|url-status=dead}} Another member of the Notts kennel was an early winner of Best Champion at Crufts in 1911 named Collarbone of Notts.{{Cite web|url=http://www.wirefoxterrierassociation.co.uk/history.html|title=History|publisher=Wire Fox Terrier Association|access-date=5 June 2010|archive-date=19 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019063209/http://www.wirefoxterrierassociation.co.uk/history.html|url-status=dead}}{{Cite book|last=Jackson|first=Frank|title=Crufts: The Official History|page=193|year=1990|publisher=Pelham Books|location=London|isbn=0-7207-1889-9}} Other individual dogs that greatly influenced the breed included Ch. Talavera Simon, born in 1924, and Ch. Zeloy Emperor, born in 1960.

Myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular disease, is hereditary in the Smooth Fox Terrier through an autosomal recessive gene.{{Cite book|last=de Lahunta|first=Alexander|title=Veterinary Neuroanatomy and Clinical Neurology|year=2008|publisher=Saunders|isbn=978-0-7216-6706-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pEWbeIU9-7QC&q=%22smooth+fox+terrier%22+coat&pg=PA93|author2=Glass, Eric N.|page=93}} This can also be a symptom of megaesophagus, which is a health issue for the Wire Fox Terrier.{{Cite book|last=Tams|first=Todd R.|title=Handbook of Small Animal Gastroenterology|year=2003|publisher=Saunders|isbn=978-0-7216-8676-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2rRNYfOIoaEC&q=%22smooth+fox+terrier%22+coat&pg=PA120|page=120}} Another hereditary condition in the Smooth Fox Terrier is cataracts, which is more prevalent than average in the breed.{{Cite book|last=Martin|first=Charles L.|title=Ophthalmic Disease in Veterinary Medicine|year=2009|publisher=Manson Publishing|isbn=978-1-84076-118-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0m2yQ0B2QuQC&q=%22smooth+fox+terrier%22+coat&pg=PA381|page=381}} Both types of Fox Terrier can be susceptible to allergies.{{Cite book|last=Mindell|first=Earl|title=Dr. Earl Mindell's nutrition and health for dogs|year=2007|publisher=Basic Health Publications|location=Laguna Beach, CA|isbn=978-1-59120-203-5|page=205|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e4VbrVdTyqkC&q=%22fox+terrier%22+health&pg=PA205}}

In a survey conducted by The Kennel Club, the primary cause of death for Fox Terriers was old age, causing 31.8% of reported deaths. The secondary cause was cancer of an unspecified type, which accounted for 22.7% of reports.{{Cite web|title=Summary results of the Purebred Dog Health Survey for Fox Terriers|url=http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/download/1554/hsfoxterrier.pdf|publisher=The Kennel Club|access-date=21 January 2011|archive-date=21 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021040731/http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/download/1554/hsfoxterrier.pdf|url-status=dead}} The average lifespan of a Fox Terrier is around 15 years;Vanderlip (2001): p. 26 the Kennel Club survey reported a median age at death of 13 years and 2 months.

The wire-haired Fox Terrier is predisposed to atopic dermatitis.{{Cite book | last=Rhodes | first=Karen Helton | last2=Werner | first2=Alexander H. | title=Blackwell's Five-Minute Veterinary Consult Clinical Companion | publisher=Wiley-Blackwell | publication-place=Ames, Iowa | date=2011-01-25 | isbn=978-0-8138-1596-1 | page=94}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Refbegin}}

• {{Cite book|last=Lee|first=Rawdon Briggs|author-link=Rawdon Briggs Lee|title=A History and Description, with Reminiscences, of the Fox Terrier|year=1902|publisher=Horace Cox|location=London|url=https://archive.org/stream/historydescripti1902leer#page/n7/mode/2up|ref=lee1902}}
• {{Cite book|last=Haynes|first=William|title=The Fox Terrier|url=https://archive.org/details/foxterrier00hayngoog|year=1912|publisher=Outing Publishing Company|location=New York|ref=haynes1912}}
• {{Cite book|last=Cunliffe|first=Juliette|title=The Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds|year=2002|publisher=Parragon Books|location=Bath|isbn=0-7525-8018-3|ref=cunliffe2002}}
• {{Cite book|last=Vanderlip|first=Sharon|title=Fox Terriers|year=2001|publisher=Barron's Educational Series|location=Hauppauge, NY|isbn=978-0-7641-1636-0|ref=vanderlip2001}}
• {{Cite book|last=Palika|first=Liz|title=The Howell Book of Dogs: The Definitive Reference to 300 Breeds and Varieties|year=2007|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|location=Hoboken, NJ|isbn=978-0-470-00921-5|ref=palika2007|url=https://archive.org/details/howellbookofdogs00pali}}

{{Refend}}

{{Commons}}

{{Terriers}}

Category:Dog breeds originating in England

Category:Dog types

Category:Terriers