COUNTRY: Great Britain
WEIGHT; 11-12 pounds
HEIGHT: 10 inches
COAT: Hard, wiry, broken, lies flat to the body
COLOR: Red to wheaten
GROUP: Terrier
The Norfolk has many similarities to the Border in size, color and coat, but his head is more fox-like and he has the erect ear. His ancestors may have included some of the same brave fellows that produced the Border and his relative, the Cairn, in the north, and many cynologists feel that red terriers from Ireland figured in his history. The town of Norwich is in the county of Norfolk just north of London in the eastcentral area of England called East Anglia.
In the 1800s, there was no official recognition of the Norwich/Norfolk, which was just another general type farm dog and hunting terrier used in the area. In the 1880s, he became the rage with the undergraduates at Cambridge University and his popularity soared. Some even felt he should be called the Cantab Terrier in honor of the collegiate atmosphere which promoted him. In the early 1900s, the keystone sire was named "Rags." One of the prominent breeders after World War I was named Frank "Roughrider" Jones, a horseman, who had Glen of Imaal Terriers and a dark red brindle Cairn-type bitch. Some of these were bred to Rags, as was a terrier bitch named "Ninety," of Dandie Dinmont and hunting terrier stock. The harsh-coated red progeny were retained by Jones and these formed the foundation for the Norwich/Norfolk. Early specimens imported into the USA were often called Jones Terriers.
In America they were utilized by several Masters of Foxhounds for their original purpose of assisting the foxhound with the prey that had gone to ground. In fact, the Cheshire Hunt Club of Philadelphia and a few others of the 1920s maintained purebred kennels of Norwich to assist in their hunts. Bred to hunt in packs, they are sociable dogs. The breed obtained official recognition from English and American governing bodies in the 1930s.
Like the Border, the Norwich is shown in a nearly natural coat. He is an alert, handsome, and charming fellow who makes a fine companion as well as a working terrier. Up until 1979, the breed was allowed to be shown in the USA with either a prick (erect) ear or a small forward-folding drop ear. At that time, AKC followed the example of The Kennel Club of England and called the prick-eared variety the Norwich Terrier and established a new breed name, the Norfolk Terrier, for the drop-eared variety. The town of Norwich is in the county of Norfolk; thus one was named for the town and the other for the whole county.
They are very similar except for the ears. "Wich" is the Norwich, and "wich" is the Norfolk? The Norwich has pointed ears like a witch's hat, and the Norfolk's ears fold.
Both terriers do fine in the house, with sufficient opportunity to "stretch their legs" outdoors. Responsive, but still scalawags, these little dogs bring to mind the warning of terrier man Jerome K. Jerome, "Terriers are born with about four times as much original sin in them as other dogs."
WEIGHT; 11-12 pounds
HEIGHT: 10 inches
COAT: Hard, wiry, broken, lies flat to the body
COLOR: Red to wheaten
GROUP: Terrier
The Norfolk has many similarities to the Border in size, color and coat, but his head is more fox-like and he has the erect ear. His ancestors may have included some of the same brave fellows that produced the Border and his relative, the Cairn, in the north, and many cynologists feel that red terriers from Ireland figured in his history. The town of Norwich is in the county of Norfolk just north of London in the eastcentral area of England called East Anglia.
In the 1800s, there was no official recognition of the Norwich/Norfolk, which was just another general type farm dog and hunting terrier used in the area. In the 1880s, he became the rage with the undergraduates at Cambridge University and his popularity soared. Some even felt he should be called the Cantab Terrier in honor of the collegiate atmosphere which promoted him. In the early 1900s, the keystone sire was named "Rags." One of the prominent breeders after World War I was named Frank "Roughrider" Jones, a horseman, who had Glen of Imaal Terriers and a dark red brindle Cairn-type bitch. Some of these were bred to Rags, as was a terrier bitch named "Ninety," of Dandie Dinmont and hunting terrier stock. The harsh-coated red progeny were retained by Jones and these formed the foundation for the Norwich/Norfolk. Early specimens imported into the USA were often called Jones Terriers.
In America they were utilized by several Masters of Foxhounds for their original purpose of assisting the foxhound with the prey that had gone to ground. In fact, the Cheshire Hunt Club of Philadelphia and a few others of the 1920s maintained purebred kennels of Norwich to assist in their hunts. Bred to hunt in packs, they are sociable dogs. The breed obtained official recognition from English and American governing bodies in the 1930s.
Like the Border, the Norwich is shown in a nearly natural coat. He is an alert, handsome, and charming fellow who makes a fine companion as well as a working terrier. Up until 1979, the breed was allowed to be shown in the USA with either a prick (erect) ear or a small forward-folding drop ear. At that time, AKC followed the example of The Kennel Club of England and called the prick-eared variety the Norwich Terrier and established a new breed name, the Norfolk Terrier, for the drop-eared variety. The town of Norwich is in the county of Norfolk; thus one was named for the town and the other for the whole county.
They are very similar except for the ears. "Wich" is the Norwich, and "wich" is the Norfolk? The Norwich has pointed ears like a witch's hat, and the Norfolk's ears fold.
Both terriers do fine in the house, with sufficient opportunity to "stretch their legs" outdoors. Responsive, but still scalawags, these little dogs bring to mind the warning of terrier man Jerome K. Jerome, "Terriers are born with about four times as much original sin in them as other dogs."