meet the... Sealyham Terrier

Head

• General Appearance: A somewhat mesaticephalic skull type is long and broad, denotes power, and is always in proportion to the rest of the body. It is approximately equal to the length of the neck or just slightly longer. The topskull is slightly domed and broad, being equal in width (measured across the top in front of the ears) and length (stop to occiput) or just slightly greater in length. It is arched, or slightly domed in profile, and slightly arched from the front. The median furrow is fairly well-marked. The skull lacks any exaggeration and is free from prominent angles or ridges. The head is clean-cut and without excess skin or wrinkles.
• Expression: Alert, intelligent, keen, fiery, and piercing.
• Stop: The head stop is moderate.
• Skull: The ideal muzzle-to-skull ratio is 1:1, with the topskull being equal to the muzzle.
  The ideal muzzle-to-skull axis is parallel.
• Muzzle: The muzzle is of a moderate length, somewhat broad, full, and square. The plane, or bridge of the muzzle, is straight with very little to almost no taper. The upper and lower jaws are well developed, approximately equal in length, and have good bone substance, never appearing snipey or weak. The end of the muzzle may be angled from a slightly projected nose, or it may be level or blunt. This trait is often concealed by heavy mustache furnishings.
• Lips or Flews: The lips are clean and fit tightly over the teeth and jaws.
• Nose: The nose is broad, well-pigmented, and black. The nostrils are well opened. The nose may project slightly forward beyond the lower jaw.
• Cheeks: The cheeks are smoothly muscled without appearing chiseled or coarse.
• Dentition and Bite: Forty-two strong, clean, and white teeth. The bite may be level or scissor. Contact must be made between the top and bottom incisors. Missing or broken teeth due to routine work are not to be penalized.
• Eyes: Medium in size, set well apart, oval to almond in shape (never round), and set well under the eyebrow furnishings. The color is as dark as possible, preferably dark brown to almost black. The eye rims are tightly fitted and darkly pigmented. There should be sufficient bone in the surrounding orbital sockets to protect the eyes.
• Ears: The ears are medium in size, folded, and drop-type, with the inner edge hanging close to the head and the outer edge being somewhat lifted. They are triangular in shape and taper to well-rounded tips. They are set with the fold being level with the plane of the topskull but never breaking above nor dropping below. The tips should extend to the outer corner of the eye when held forward. The ears are never large, overly long, excessively wide at the base, or "fly-away."

Body and Tail

• General Description: Compact, solid, and of great substance. The body is never racy nor refined. The width at the forequarters is approximately equal to the width at the hindquarters.
• Neck: Moderate length allows for good head carriage. It is strongly muscled with a slight arch. The neck is approximately equal in length to the head. The neck tapers slightly from the deeper and broader body toward the head. The neck is clean-cut and without excess skin, throatiness, or dewlap.
• Chest: Deep and broad but never wider than deep. The brisket extends to just below the point of the elbows and is well developed and well let down between the forelimbs. The forechest is well developed without being overly pronounced. There should be sufficient clearance between the ground and the brisket, sufficient enough to accommodate an average man’s fist with little to no clearance.
• Topline: Level from withers to croup. The back is somewhat short, broad, strongly muscled, and straight, yet supple. The loin is taut and flat yet supportive. The back is never overly long, swayed, or roached.
• Croup: Flat and level with the back.
• Underline: The underline runs parallel to the topline with no discernible tuck-up. The underline is taut and firm, without any indication of sagging or excess weight.
• Ribs: Long, well-sprung, well-laid-back, and oval-shaped, never barrel-chested or slab-sided.
• Tail: Set high on the croup. It is straight, thick at the base, and tapering toward the tip. The tail is carried in accordance with the dog’s mood and energy level. It is carried upright, with the tip being approximately level with the topskull. It is never seen tucked. The tail may be left natural or docked short to approximately 1/3 to ½ the original length. The tail is of a medium length, with the tip of the last vertebrae extending to the hock joints when held down.

Forequarters and Hindquarters

• Forequarters: The forequarters are always balanced with the hindquarters and well-angulated with well-laid-back shoulder blades. The shoulder blades and upper arms are moderate in length and approximately equal. The forelegs are short in comparison to the upper arm and shoulder blade.
• Elbows: The elbows are close to the body. The distance from the withers to the brisket is somewhat greater than the distance from the elbows to the ground.
• Forelegs: Frontal View: Straight, of good muscle, moderate bone, and parallel to one another.
  Side View: The forelimbs appear straight with strong pasterns.
• Pasterns: Never weak or broken.
• Hindquarters: The upper and lower thighs are equal in length, strong, sturdy, moderate bone, and well-muscled.
  Rear View: When viewed from the rear, the rear pasterns are parallel to one another.
  Side View: Good angulation will allow the rear toes to align with the point of the rump or within one to two paw-lengths behind the point of the rump, with the rear pasterns remaining perpendicular to the ground and parallel to one another.
• Stifle Joint: Well-angulated with a good bend to well-let-down rear pasterns.
• Stifle Joint: The angulation of the hindquarters is always in balance with the angulation of the forequarters.
• Feet: Oval to round and compact, with well-arched toes and tough pads.

Coat

• Skin: Well-fitted, yet supple. The skin should never obstruct the outline of the dog.
• Coat Type: Moderately long, harsh, wiry topcoat that may be straight or with a slight wave. The undercoat is soft, dense, and weather-resistant. Sealyham Terriers are shown in a style that includes plucking, stripping, or clipping throughout the body, with the head, underbelly, and leg furnishings left longer and having a softer texture; however, the coat should never be soft or feathery.
• Coat Color or Pattern: White with or without lemon, tan, badger, and badger tri-color, markings restricted to the head and ears. Heavy ticking or large patches of color on the body are less desirable.

Movement

The movement of the Sealyham Terrier breed is sound, strong, free, quick, effortless, efficient, and energetic. The characteristics of a healthy structure are evident. When moving away, the forelegs and rear pasterns should remain parallel to one another. When viewing movement from the front, the forelegs should remain parallel, with elbows and paws moving neither in nor out. From the rear, the back pads should be visible when the rear legs are extended. As speed increases, the forelimbs and hindlimbs will converge to the centerline of gravity. From the side, the topline should remain firm and level. Good reach of movement in the front allows the forepaw to extend out in line with the nose. When extended, the width between the forefeet should be approximately equal to the width between the hindfeet when extended, indicating balance, good reach, and good drive. Dogs that exhibit any sign of breathing or locomotive difficulty shall be disqualified from the show ring.

Temperament

While the Sealyham Terrier is no longer kept for their original purpose of going to ground after fearsome quarries such as badgers and foxes, they do retain much of their terrier heart. Originally developed to work independently of humans, the Sealyham Terrier, like most terriers, is an independent thinker capable of developing their own ideas about the world around them. For this reason, early obedience and socialization are a must. This training will help him to adapt to life as a goodwill ambassador for the breed. These dogs are energetic, but they are considered less highly driven than many other terriers. They are lively, courageous, and sensitive. Although they often find that asking for forgiveness is better than asking for permission, they are sensitive to scolding and harsh punishment, which can break their trust in their people. Instead, they can easily be motivated into compliance with activities that capture their interest and attention and appeal to their highly predatory nature, such as playing ball or being allowed to dissect their toys. Sealyham Terriers are known to be loyal, gentle, and devoted toward their families and people, but they may exude an air of indifference toward others. Aggression toward other dogs and predation toward smaller animals is not uncommon in this breed. Therefore, keeping the Sealyham as a housemate to small animals and rodents should only be done with great caution and oversight. Any unprovoked aggressive or fearful behavior toward people is incorrect for this breed.

Faults

All dogs should be in proper, healthy condition, free from disease or defect. Any departure from this description is considered a fault. Unless altered, all male dogs should have two fully descended testicles.