All Jack Russells are small terriers less than about 40cm in height. They are predominantly white with tan or brown markings, particularly on the face and the base of the tail. They have a short, smooth coat and small, pointed ears that usually fold forwards. The tail is often docked to about four inches long and is high and upright. They have a sturdy and robust appearance and a brave and outgoing character.
The working strain of Jack Russell Terriers are not recognised by the FCI, or by any major registry. Some breeders have campaigned for recognition either as part of the Parson Russell Terrier breed or separately. However, other breeders feel that that this working breed should not be restricted by the standardisation and limits to breeding that this would involve. Most large registries will only recognise and register breeds that they regard as "purebred". That is who breed to form, within a set standard and whose parentage is known to be of other examples of the breed meeting these criteria. For working terrier enthusiasts this may not always be acceptable. They want to breed for function rather than form, which may include using dogs of variable ancestry in order to improve the working abilities of the offspring.
The Jack Russell Terrier Club of America (JRTCA) is the National Breed Club and Registry for the Jack Russell Terrier in the United States. The JRTCA is the largest Jack Russell Terrier club and registry in the world.
The JRTCA and its registry were founded in 1976 for the purpose of protecting and preserving the unique characteristics and working heritage of this great little terrier, and remains dedicated to that purpose today. The Club is, and always have been, emphatically opposed to recognition of the Jack Russell Terrier by any kennel club or all-breed registry. Recognition, it is believed, will be detrimental to the preservation of the Jack Russell as the sound, intelligent strain of working terrier it has been for more than 100 years.
The JRTCA breed registry is one of the most unique registries in the world. It has been designed specifically to maintain the Jack Russell Terrier as a healthy working breed, free from genetic faults and characteristics that would be detrimental to the breed. Unlike other registries which register entire litters at birth, each application for registration in the JRTCA is judged on the individual terrier's own merits.
Russell terriers were first bred by the Reverend John Russell, a parson and hunting enthusiast born in 1795. In his last year of university at Oxford he bought a small white and tan terrier bitch called Trump. She was the basis for a breeding programme to develop a terrier with high stamina for the hunt as well as the courage and formation to chase out foxes that had gone to ground. The line of terriers developed by John Russell was well respected for these qualities and, when he died in 1883, his dogs were taken on by other hunt enthusiasts.
The first split between the types of Russell terriers may have occurred early in their history with dogs being sold by the sister of John Russell's kennel man. These she described as "Jack Russells" but they may not have been part of the line of terriers developed by John Russell. Instead they may have been shorter-legged working terriers of variable heritage. Later, around the turn of the century, the secretary of the Parson Jack Russell Terrier Club bred a strain of terriers for badger digging. These needed the brave character and endurance of the Jack Russell Terrier, which were crossed with Bull Terriers to give a stronger and harder dog with shorter legs than the original type. Again these were described as "Jack Russells".
Along with these changes the Second World War had a great impact on the breed. Sporting dogs were needed less and the numbers of working Russell terriers were drastically reduced during these years. The original working Russells often became family dogs and were crossed with other popular family dogs including Corgis, Chihuahuas and terriers such as the Fox Terrier and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. These crosses resulted in changes in form and function and led to a new type of short-legged terrier with a variable conformation. It is this form of the descendants of Trump that are now known as "Russell Terriers" or "shortie Jacks".
The original longer-legged forms were also preserved and, in England, were called "Parson Jack Russell Terriers". This form was recognised by the Kennel Club (UK) in 1990 and gained provisional recognition by the international breeds association, the F.C.I, in the same year. The name of the breed was changed to "Parson Russell Terrier" in 1999 by the Kennel Club (UK) and gained full recognition by the F.C.I under this name in 2001.
In the United States a group of enthusiasts opposed to the registration and regulation of the working breed registered "Parson Jack Russell" as a trademark. This lead to the long-legged breed being recognised by the American Kennel Club under the name "Jack Russell Terrier". This name was changed to the "Parson Russell Terrier" in 2003 to conform with the nomenclature in other countries. Breeders of the unregistered, working strain continued to use the Jack Russell name for their dogs. Currently there are few differences between the two types, although working Jack Russell Terriers are sometimes smaller than Parson Russell Terriers. However, it is likely that the differing approaches to breeding and the restricted gene pool of the registered type will result in divergence between the types, possibly leading to two very different breeds.
In England, the Kennel Club recently re-opened its registry to allow the inclusion of some Jack Russell Terriers under the Parson Russell name. The standard was extended to include slightly smaller dogs to about 10 inches high but still with the longer-legged form. Individuals registered with the Jack Russell Terrier Club of Great Britain or the British Jack Russell Terrier Club and with registered parents and grandparents were accepted for registration. This may have a delaying effect on any divergence of the two types, but many breeders remain opposed to registration and are likely to continue to breed outside the Parson Russell standard and to continue to use the "Jack Russell Terrier" name.
In 1990 Jack Russell Terriers were given full recognition by the Australian National Kennel Council. The FCI followed with recognition in 2001. This breed is sometimes called the "Australian Jack Russell Terrier" to distinguish it from the other forms of Jack Russell found in other countries. Its form is very similar to the Parson Jack Russell and to working Jack Russell Terriers, although its standard form is for the body to be longer than it is tall. This gives it a form somewhere in between that of "shortie" Jacks and the taller formation of other Jack Russell Terriers and of Parson Russell Terriers.
Because of the recent nature of these changes there is still considerable variation in the names used for the different types of dog. Additionally, controversy over registration, conformity to set standards and breeding restrictions may still lead to other variations in the naming and classification of these dogs.
History