Breed Priorities – Bedlington Terrier

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306 – August, 2021

By Nikki Riggsbee

“Is that a lamb?” Bedlington Terrier fanciers are probably as cordially sick of hearing that as you are about the clichés about your breed. With its shape, size, and coat, its appearance is unique among terriers, and among most other breeds too, sharing its curves with the Whippet.

It was developed in northern England from terrier breeds in the area plus several other breeds as well. The Bedlington claims the oldest non-broken pedigree going back to 1782. The breed excelled at hunting and could chase down game as well as go to ground and even work in water. The strain of long-legged terriers owned by Squire Trevelyan became the Bedlington breed, named after the town. Interestingly, a short-legged early version of these dogs became the Dandie Dinmont Terrier.

Thirty Bedlington Terrier experts were invited to take a survey on their breed to identify the priorities when evaluating breeding stock. Twenty-one agreed to participate, and fourteen sent completed surveys. The contributing experts have been in the breed for thirty-nine years on average, with several having more than fifty years involvement. Those who judge have been doing so for nearly twenty years on average and have officiated at their national and other breed specialties.

Bedlington Terrier Virtues

The experts ranked a list of sixteen characteristics taken from the Bedlington Terrier AKC standard based on how relatively important each is when evaluating an individual in conformation competition. Below is the list, in sequence, by the average of the experts’ rankings, with one being the most important.

Click here to read the complete article
306 – August, 2021

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