Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
GENERAL APPEARANCE : Of a strong, active dog, with short coupling, well built, giving the idea of power, without being wader or too low.
Personality: Active, powerful and loyal.
Energy Level : Very Active. This dog is active and energetic, and needs daily exercise.
Good with children: Yes.
Good with other dogs: With supervision.
Grooming: Seasonal.
Life Expectancy : 12-15 years old.
Bark level: Moderate.
HISTORICAL SUMMARY
The Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier's history has been somewhat obscured by its proximity to other Irish terriers. The Wheaten is probably the oldest of the four breeds. This breed has approximately 200 years of existence that could have been deduced from texts referring to “soft-coated” dogs. The relationship between the modern Irish Terrier and the Wheaten, although less documented, appears to have resulted from deliberate experiments in breeding. So the humble Wheaten probably had his ancestors quite mixed. Despite the Wheaten's long history, it was not recognized by the Irish Kennel Club until 1937. The breed has continually grown in popularity and is now well known throughout the world.
Country of Origin: Ireland.
BEHAVIOR AND TEMPERAMENT: Lively and excellent hunter. Good temper. Very affectionate and loyal to their owners. Very intelligent. Trustworthy and faithful friend; defend without being aggressive.
HEAD: Overall powerful without being rude. Long, in good proportion to the body. Coat the same color as the trunk.
CRANIAL REGION
Skull: Flat and well contoured between the ears; not too wide.
Stop: Defined.
FACIAL REGION
Nose: Black and well developed.
Muzzle: Not longer than the skull.
Jaws: Strong and proportioned
Teeth: Large, regular; scissor or pincer bite, without upper or lower prognathism.
Cheeks: Bone not prominent.
Eyes: Dark, dark hazel, not too large, not prominent and well set.
Ears: Small to medium, carried forward, set on level with the skull. Allowed dark spot at the base of the ears, accompanied by a light coating. This is the only part of the dog where undercoat is allowed. Pink or floppy ears are undesirable.
NECK: Moderately long and strong; no dewlap.
TRUNK: Not too long. The length from the withers to the root of the tail is approximately the same from the ground to the withers.
Back: Strong and level.
Loin: Short, powerful.
Chest: Deep, ribs well sprung.
TAIL: Well set, not too thick. Carried high, but never on the back. Amputated to two-thirds of its total length, assuming this is the dog's proportional balance. The uncut tail is allowed.
MEMBERS
FOREQUARTERS: Perfectly straight, viewed from any angle. Good bone and musculature.
Shoulders: Thin; leaning back well; muscular.
HINDQUARTERS: Well developed; with powerful musculature.
Thighs: Strong and muscular.
Knees: Angled.
Hocks: Short and correctly set forward. Ergots must be removed.
Feet: Small, not flat. Preferentially black nails, but dark colors are allowed.
GAIT/MOVEMENT: Observed on the way back and forth, the limbs are correctly directed forward. Elbows working close to the chest. In profile, the movement is fluent and smoothly coordinated.
COAT
By: Simple coat dog. Soft and silky to the touch, without being rough, except in young specimens. Trimming is allowed.
Shaved Dogs: Short coat on neck, chest and skull. Especially long on the eyebrows and under the jaw, preferably leaving the whiskers. Profuse fringes on limbs. On the trunk, the clip follows the contour of the dog, without being sculpted. Tail shorn short and sharply tapered.
Dogs without clipping: The coat, at its greatest length, does not exceed 12.7 cm. Soft, wavy or slightly curly, with the sheen of silk. Under no circumstances can the coat form “plume”, as in the Poodle or Old English Sheepdog. Dogs presented in these conditions should be severely penalized, as they give a false impression of the type and breed. Special attention should be paid to coat development in puppies. Puppies are rarely born with the correct coat of maturity; When evaluating this item, great care must be taken. They go through numerous color and texture changes before developing into the adult stage. This typically happens between 18 months and 2 ½ years.
Puppies: Rarely born with the typical color and texture of the coat. They come in reddish, grayish, and sometimes light wheat. Masks are usually black. Sometimes they have a dark band on the back or dark spots on the body coat. These dark marks lighten with growth.
COLOR: Any color from light wheat to reddish gold tones.
SIZE: Height at the withers: Males: 46 to 48 cm. Females: slightly smaller.
WEIGHT: Males: 18 to 20.5 kg. Females: a little less.
FAULTS
Any deviation from this standard should be considered a fault and penalized in exact proportion to its severity and its effects on the health and well-being of the dog.
DISQUALIFYING FAULTS
• Aggressiveness or excessive shyness.
• Any dog that shows any sign of physical or behavioral anomaly must be disqualified.
• Atypical dogs.