Japanese terrier (Dog standard)

Japanese terrier is a small-sized dog of smart appearance with a clear-cut and compact outline.

FCI-Standard N° 259 / 20. 01. 1998 / GB

JAPANESE TERRIER
(Nihon Teria)

ORIGIN : Japan.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 05.06.1995.

UTILIZATION : Toy dog.

FCI CLASSIFICATION : Group 3 Terriers
Section 2 Small SIZEd Terriers
Without working trial.

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY : This breed was created by mating smooth-HAIRed Fox Terriers, exported to Nagasaki from the Netherlands in the 17th century, to small-SIZEd pointers or small-SIZEd native dogs. Japanese Terriers were kept mainly as lap-dogs in ports such as Kobe and Yokohama.
The Japanese Terrier has a lively and cheerful character. Its planned
breeding started around 1920, and it was not until about 1930 that its
type became fixed.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Small-SIZEd dog of smart appearance with a clear-cut and compact outline. The COAT is very short, being about 2 mm in length.

IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS : The ratio of height at withers to length of BODY is 1 : 1. The nasal bridge and the skull are equal in length.

BEHAVIOUR/TEMPERAMENT : The Japanese Terrier is swift and lively in temperament.

HEAD

CRANIAL REGION :
Skull : Flat and moderately narrow.
Stop : Not too defined.

FACIAL REGION :
Nose : Black with a straight nasal bridge.
Lips : Thin and tight.
Teeth : Strong and white, with a scissor bite.
Cheeks : Lean and free from fullness.
Eyes : Moderately SIZEd, oval in shape and dark in COLOUR.
Ears : Set on high, moderately small, thin, V-shaped and dropping
forward. But carried folded and standing out from sides of the skull
permitted.

NECK : Moderately long, strong, gradually thicker towards the
shoulders and free from throatiness.

BODY :
Withers : High.
Back : Short and firm.
Loins and croup : Slightly arched and powerful.
Chest : Deep, but forechest no too broad. Ribs well sprung.
Belly : Well tucked up.

TAIL : Moderately thin; docked at the third or fourth joint.

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS :
Shoulders : Sloping gently.
Forearms : Straight, bones not too heavy.

HINDQUARTERS :
Thighs : Long.
Stifle joint : Moderately angulated.
Hock joint : Moderately angulated.
Hock : Vertical.

FEET : Tightly closed, pads elastic; nails hard and preferably dark in
COLOUR .

GAIT / MOVEMENT : Light and agile.

COAT
HAIR : Short, smooth, dense and glossy.
COLOUR : TriCOLOUR with black, tan and white HEAD; white with black
spots, black markings or tan markings on BODY.

SIZE : Height for both dogs and bitches : approximately 30 - 33 cm.

FAULTS :
Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered as a
fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded
should be in exact proportion to its degree.
Slightly overshot or undershot bite.
BiCOLOUR.

DISQUALIFYING FAULTS :
Aggresive or overly shy.
Long HAIR.
Extremely overshot or undershot bite.

Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.

N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

Source: FCI >>>