Breeder or Greeder?

There is a huge difference. The very first thing to try to dissect is what kind of place are you buying the puppy from? Breeders are responsible people focused on furthering a breed. Greeders are those with no trackable, measurable, and mappable knowledge and/or participate in the breed activities combined with complete disregard for health testing, and/or husbandry of dog breeding and care.

Health Testing

Ask if the parents were health tested before breeding. If they are, you should be able to find the records in the database (link below). Health testing is responsible, ethical, and appropriate no matter what. Breeders should spay or neuter dogs found to have genetic disorders and never breed them. Health testing trumps registration.

There are three kinds of (Jack) Russell Terriers. The “Parson Russell Terrier” and the “Russell Terrier” recognized by the AKC. Regardless, of recognition or no recognition, responsible breeders health test. We encourage responsible breeding and that means health testing no matter if you’re registered or not, hunting or not, showing in conformation or not. Health test to help weed out health problems in the breed. According to the Jack Russell Terrier Health registry, at minimum the following disorders should be tested for prior to breeding:

• Primary Lens Luxation (PLL) - University of Missouri/OFA and Animal Health Trust

• Spino-cerebellar Ataxia (SCA) - University of Missouri/OFA and Animal Health Trust

References:

Jack Russell Health Registry. (2023). Database. Retrieved from http://www.jrthealthregistry.com/

Pedigree Database. (2023). Inherent Problems with the Jack Russell Terrier and Parson Russell Terrier Databases - Page 1Pedigree Database. Retrieved from https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/community.read?post=1114-inherent-problems-with-the-jack-russell-terrier-and-parson-russell-terrier-databases

Temperament

It is important to ask about the temperament of a dog or puppy. No one can predict the adult personality and temperament of any dog. However, pack order within a litter is evident within hours to days after whelping. Responsible breeders should be able to identify the alpha in the litter and who is at the bottom of the pack. Decide what kind of temperament suits your intended purpose. Laid back or high energy for example.

Conformation

Conformation (not conFIRmation) is the shape or structure of an animal or how the parts (e.g., head, legs, body, tail, etc.) are assembled to conform to the desirable goal. Conformation is important for farm-bred Jack Russell Terriers because our intended goal is for them to be good instinct and scene hunters to help people in their yards and on their farms. Decide what kind of conformation suits your intended purpose best: long-legged, short-legged, etc. Luckily, JRTs come in all shapes and sizes. It is definitely not a one-size-fits-all breed, so enjoy deciding on type of conformation is good for you.

Price

The price of puppies should be reflective of their quality. Health tested dogs naturally should be more expensive. Dogs with great temperaments, not aggressive, not shy will cost more. Dogs’ conformation that are consistent with the breed standard are going to be more expensive. Color and coat might be a price-related factor as well. And lastly, people who have registered dogs might charge more than dogs that are not registered. Then decide what each aspect is worth to you.

Color & Coat

Russell terriers are white with colored markings. There should not be any merle in this breed towards keeping in line with traditional JRTs. Well bred JRTs are white with brown markings, white with black markings, or white with brown and black (tri) markings. That’s it. Don’t fall for “rare color” jargon or anything that is classified by a breeder (greeder) as “rare”.

Russell Terriers come in smooth coat, broken coat, and rough coat. Smooth coat dogs are short haired dogs that do not look wiry. Broken coat dogs have rough, wiry hair around their heads most often. Rough coat dogs have rough, wiry hair all over. You choose your preference. We breed all three. They are all adorable!

Height & Weight

Russell Terriers come in all shapes and sizes. Our line in particular are short RTs. We like them that way. Smidgeon was a short RT and her hunting ability and farm-life ability was unmatched…ever… Our RTs are under 12” tall and weigh between 12-15 lbs. at adulthood.

Registration

Our dogs are registered with the American Kennel Club (AKC). Some dogs you might find might be registered with the NKC, CKC, or UKC. Some dogs you might find might not be registered at all. It is widely known that many JRTs do not have full pedigrees for lots of reasons. If registration is the most important thing to you, research the breed clubs and the kennel club registries and pick the one you think is best for you. Get ready…there are lots of them. But do consider this…

It is arguable that there could be less health problems found in registered dogs than in unregistered dogs. This is because it is likely more registered dog breeders health test than do non-registered breeders. Depending on your intended purpose, you have to decide what is most important to you.

• American Russell Terrier Club

• Jack Russell Terrier Club of America

• American Kennel Club (AKC)

• Continental Kennel Club

• National Kennel Club

• United Kennel Club