Scotty Size

When asking whether Scotties are larger or smaller, remember that the puppy mill and backyard breeders are strictly breeding dogs that are fertile without regard to the standard.  It is actually a very small percentage of breeders who are trying to maintain their dogs within the standard of our breed.  Here's some history for those who are interested. The first Standard, written in England in 1880 called for a dog of about 9-1/2 inches high, with a body of moderate length, and weighing about sixteen to seventeen pounds for dogs, and two pounds less for bitches. Interestingly, when the STC of England formally adopted a standard, just 8 years later, great latitude was given in height: from 9 to 12 inches. Eighteen pounds was considered ideal for a male and 16 pounds for a bitch, with a range of 15-20 allowed.  These heights and weights remained unchanged in England until 1933, and these were the standards adopted in 1900 by the Scottish Terrier Club of America in its first standard. In England, size crept upward.  The 1933 English standard, while making no height recommendation, called for a dog "of a size to get to ground," weighing from seventeen to twenty-one pounds. The 1930's saw a huge jump in the popularity of the Scottish Terrier. American fanciers were paying thousands of dollars for imported Scottish Terriers during the Depression and English breeders were unable to resist the lure of so much money.  They began to breed away from the old type of Scottish Terrier and developed, almost overnight, the modern Scottish Terrier.  The new type, with its shorter body and profuse furnishings, was more popular with the public and with show judges.  Chs.  Heather Necessity & Albourne Barty were the most influential sires of that era, and are credited by most authors with being the foundation of the modern Scottish Terrier. Dorothy Caspersz, one of the finest writers on the subject of the Scottish Terrier, was skeptical of the new type and described the great Necessity as "Falstaffian." Her American counterpart, Dr.  Fayette Ewing, wrote this about the new Scottie of the 30's: "It was evident that in his placements, Mr.  Reeves learned toward the working type, the dog that the founders had in mind when they made the Standard, a dog just a little more active and rangy than the one that has come to be the ideal of the most successful breeders of our day.  For this he is to be commended; it is what this writer has long advocated for the salvation of the breed: a dog active enough to get over ground; game enough to fight a varmint; small enough to be a handy house-pet and at the same time go to ground and do the business for which he was created.  But this fight that I have made so long I realize is a losing fight.  For good or ill, the Scottish Terrier is to become a show picture, something different from the rest of the Terrier tribe, a distinct personality but withal unworkable though admirable, lovable, and attractive.  This writer will continue to advocate moderation...""It was evident that in his placements, Mr. Reeves learned toward the working type, the dog that the founders had in mind when they made the Standard, a dog just a little more active and rangy than the one that has come to be the ideal of the most successful breeders of our day.  For this he is to be commended; it is what this writer has long advocated for the salvation of the breed: a dog active enough to get over ground; game enough to fight a varmint; small enough to be a handy house-pet and at the same time go to ground and do the business for which he was created.  But this fight that I have made so long I realize is a losing fight.  For good or ill, the Scottish Terrier is to become a show picture, something different from the rest of the Terrier tribe, a distinct personality but withal unworkable though admirable, lovable, and attractive. This writer will continue to advocate moderation..." The purists lost the fight in England.  In1950, the English Kennel Club again revised the standard to allow for a bigger dog.  Weight was increased to a range of nineteen to twenty-three pounds and the height-at-shoulder measurement was changed to " ten to eleven inches." The Scottish Terrier Club of England objected vigorously and in writing but to no avail.  This plea appeared in the 1949 Scottish Terrier Club of England Handbook: "It is a mistake to tamper too much with fundamental things, and the Standard of a breed is fundamental.  The Standards of our British breeds were drawn up by wise men, and aided and abetted by succeeding generations of breeders, the Scottish terrier became a power in the land, not only in the British Isles but in many parts of the world to which his popularity had carried him.  He is world renowned, so why tamper with the basic rules laid down?  If the weight were raised now, to suit those who wish to cross the T's and dot the I's, mark my words, in five years there will be bigger--but I much doubt better--Scottish terriers.  Then it will be "up she goes again" and the grand little Diehard will no longer be a handy-sized terrier, but an awkward misfit, who will no longer be eligible to enter the category of low-legged Terriers, and may be dangerously near getting pushed into the long-legged section!!  The Scot must retain his size in order to maintain type, and pray let us keep Scottish Terrier type as our main consideration." The first American Scottish Terrier standard was written in 1900 and adopted the height and weight recommendations of the then-current Scottish and English Standards .  Interestingly, Americans have been significantly more conservative than the British about increasing size. The first revision to the American Standard, written in 1925, set the height at "about ten inches at the shoulder." This standard was soundly criticized by British and even some American breeders because it set the weight at eighteen to twenty pounds for dogs and bitches, rather than setting a separate range for each sex.  The most significant point about this Standard is that it narrowed the range of height allowed for the breed, and eliminated the lower range of acceptable weights. In the 1947 revised STCA standard, separate ranges were again specified for dogs and bitches.  Weight crept up a little with 19-22 pounds for dogs and  18-21 pounds for bitches. The 1993 revision to the STCA standard made no changes in height or weight but did specify for the first time length of back, "approximately 11 inches." There are many people laboring under the misconception that the Scottish Terrier is a "square" dog.  The term "square" when applied to dogs has been defined in two ways: Some consider a dog square if the length of back (measured from withers to set-on of tail) is equal to the height (measured from withers to ground).  Other breeds, the TRULY square, are the same length from prosternum to point of buttocks as from withers to ground. Regardless of which definition you use, the Scottish Terrier is not square and was never intended to be square. Five key elements must be present for the Scottish Terrier to have correct substance: Heavy bone.  Despite its small size, the Scottish Terrier has heavy bone, especially in the legs. Powerful muscles.  A Scottie's body should never feel soft, but instead should feel hard and muscular all over, but particularly in the hindquarters. Good ribs.  The ribs should spring outward from the spine and then curve inward, forming a body that is nearly heart-shaped if viewed in cross-section.  The ribs extend well back on the body. Short, broad loin.  A Scottie should never have a waist.  A little extra length of loin is more tolerable than a short, thin loin. Deep brisket.  Viewed from the front, the Scottie's body should appear to be slung between the two front legs, rather than sitting on top of them. The brisket extends below the elbows.  Viewed from the side, the forechest should extend well in front of the point of shoulder. Remember size and substance are two different things.  A Scottie must be a substantial dog but not a large dog.  A Scottie too large to go to ground lacks breed type.  While such a dog may be useful in a breeding program, he should not have success in the show ring. There is no doubt that the Scottish Terrier has evolved rather dramatically since the first Scottie entered the show ring, and there's no going back. The most dramatic change occurred in the 1930s when the breed came to a crossroads.  For a number of reasons, breeders turned their back on the rather plain, workmanlike terrier from the Highlands, and created the modern Scottish Terrier: shorter in body, lower on leg, and with considerably more hair. We may be at another such crossroads today.  With the increase in the number of shows and the approval of more judges who are less familiar with our breed, Scotties (and other breeds as well) are at risk of losing their distinctive outline.  More and more often, judges and breeders look for the "short" back and the "square" dog.  While such dogs make a smart appearance standing still, their movement and agility are hampered.  In the words of Dorothy Caspersz: "Too much agitation for excessively short bodies can only hinder the free action of the dog.  With his short legs and low build, the freedom of action depends upon his body formation, and it is well to keep in view the fact that bodies can be bred too short to be compatible with the fine, free, long-striding gait so typical of the breed." Interestingly enough, when the 1993 Breed Standard committee was working on their proposed standard, one of the committee members put an 8 1/2 x 11 inch tablet in her tackbox.  She brought up the subject of back length to breeders at every show she attended.  There were nearly always a couple of breeders who insisted that their dogs were "much" shorter than 11 inches.  With that, she brought out her tablet and laid it on the back of the dog.  Without exception, the backs of the "short-backed" dogs were all within 1/4 inch of  11 inches, BUT those same dogs were also well above 10 inches tall.  In other words, while seeking to achieve that Holy Grail, the ultra-short back, breeders have, in many cases, without realizing it, begun to breed taller dogs. Hope this answers some questions for you. Cindy Cooke  Anstamm Scottish Terriers  http://pages.prodigy.net/anstamm    August 2000

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