Purina

Other names/Nicknames:

• None

Country/Date of origin:

• Ireland
• 1700’s

Height:

• Females:  17 to 18 inches
• Males:  18 t 19 inches

Weight:

• Females:  30 to 35 pounds
• Males:  35 to 40 pounds

Personality:

• Sweet-natured and affectionate.
• Gets along well with other pets.
• Wants to please and is, consequently, easy to train.

History:

An all-purpose, farm dog bred in the south of Ireland, the Soft Coated Wheaten was kept down-on-the-farm for centuries.  Its prowess was a well kept secret. Wheatens can herd cattle and sheep, retrieve game, guard home and garden, and single-handily eliminate vermin on a property.  It has been recognized as a pure bred dog in Ireland since 1937, but didn’t gain acceptance to the American Kennel Club (AKC) until 1973.

Body Type:

• Very similar in appearance to the Kerry Blue Terrier, which comes from the southern part of Ireland as well.
• Wheatens are somewhat shorter and lighter than the Kerry.
• Button ears are not altered.
• Tail is docked short.

Coat:

• Wheaten-colored coat is the hallmark of the breed.
• The soft hair is slightly wavy.  Without frequent combing it will mat.
• Coat does not shed.

Health and Wellness:

• Generally healthy.
• Protein-losing enteropathy.
• Protein-losing nephropathy.
• Mitral insufficiency.

What you should know:

• There are no hyphens in the breed name—they were eliminated by a vote of the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier Club.
• Not prone to the dogfighting that other terriers seem to revel in.
• Puppies have a red cast to the coat with black face markings.  They will fade to the adult coloration by the time they reach their second birthday.