Has any one bought a Wire Fox Terrier or have they got any advise for me as i went to view a litter and noticed that their tails were curling over their backs and the breeder told me this is queit normal now docking has stopped and nothing can be done about this, can any one enlighten me ?.
It depends on the line, some breeders seem to have been able to produce straighter tails than others but it will take time. Also you have to remember that terriers can be quite cocky so curling their tail over their back could be more to do with attitude. Sadly, apparently, a few people cheat and have the tendon at the back of the tail cut so the tail doesn't curl. Of course this will not translate into offspring having good tails. The truth of the matter is that the breeders of docked breeds now have to take the tail into consideration like every breeder of those breeds which were never docked have always had to! Becky
Thanks Becky, the sire is a champion and the mother is a family pet dog so the breeder didnt know too much about it, but its not a fault then, or is it ?, i have to admit they do look funny with a little piggy tail.
It's a fault with regards to the breed standard so if you were looking for showing then I would suggest viewing other litters. Just as a pet then not a problem at all. Becky
I have an undocked Airedale Terrier, and her tail curls over her back (see photos). I would say 90% of undocked Airedales in the show ring have curled tails to some degree, some very coiled, but it does not really seem to affect placings, other than some judges commenting on undocked tails not being too pretty. Our girls has a Res CC at 20 months old Judges are looking for correct tail set rather than carriage, and in time I'm sure better tail carriage will be bred for. I love Wires, that would be my choice when Airedales are too big for me to manage!
What you are describing sounds pretty common for an undocked terrier pup but I would recommend looking at some other litters/pups just to put your mind at rest. It is interesting seeing terrier pups with undocked tails nowadays and there have been some real surprises at the differences between tails because previously breeders hadn't given much thought to the tails/didn't know what they parents tails were like as they were all docked.
My thought, feel free to correct me, Wires, as with alot of upstanding terrier breed were bred to have tails 'crack up on the back'. Now that docking isn't done the dogs that would of had the preferred tail carriage tend have a gay tail (curling up over the back).
