: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is an American breed descended from the terriers brought over by English miners and other working class immigrants. These versatile terriers probably included crosses between the Smooth Fox Terrier, the Manchester Terrier, the Bull Terrier, the Beagle, the Whippet, the Italian Greyhound, and the now extinct white English Terrier. These dogs were used as ratters, and soon became known as “Rat Terriers.” Two types of Rat Terriers evolved, distinguished primarily by leg length. The short-legged Rat Terriers developed a devoted following and were named in honor of President Teddy Roosevelt, who was once thought to have owned these ratters. The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier was recognized by the United Kennel Club on January 1, 1999.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is a low-set, muscular, active, small-to-medium size hunting terrier. The preferred ratio of length of body (prosternum to point of buttocks) to height (withers to ground) is between 10:7 and 10:8. The head is broad, slightly domed, wedge-shaped, and proportionate to the size of the body. Ears are V-shaped, set at the outside edges of the skull, and may be erect or button. A docked tail is preferred, but a natural bob tail or a natural tail carried in an upward curve are also acceptable. The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier comes in solid white, other solid colors with markings, and white with a variety of colored patches. The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier should be evaluated as a working terrier, and exaggerations or faults should be penalized in proportion to how much they interfere with the dog’s ability to work. Honorable scars resulting from field work are not to be penalized.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is an energetic, alert dog whose curiosity and intelligence make him very easy to train. He thrives on human companionship and will enthusiastically share any activity with his owner. The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is a lively, friendly, affectionate dog with his family but can be somewhat of a one-person dog. With his strong protective nature and well-developed pack instincts, the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier gets along well with children (when raised with them), cats, and other dogs. He is a bold, tenacious hunter with seemingly unlimited energy whose size and endurance makes him an excellent hunter of squirrels and vermin. Teddy Roosevelt Terriers should not be sparred during conformation judging. This is a long-lived breed and it is not uncommon for one to live to 15 or 16 years of age.
: The head is proportionate to the size of the body. When viewed from the side, the skull and muzzle are of equal length and joined by a moderate stop. Viewed from the front and the side, the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier’s head forms a blunt wedge shape.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier has a complete set of good-sized, evenly spaced, white teeth. A scissors bite is preferred but a level bite is acceptable.
: Eyes may be round to almond shaped and are small, somewhat prominent, and set obliquely. Eye rims match nose pigment. Eye color ranges from dark brown to amber and corresponds with coat color. Hazel eyes are acceptable in dogs with lighter coat color. Blue or amber eyes are permitted in blue-colored dogs only, but a dark gray eye with gray eye rims is preferred.
: Ears are V-shaped, set at the outside edges of the skull. Matching ears are strongly preferred. Non-matching ear carriage should be penalized to the degree of the variation. Note: Ear carriage may not stabilize until a dog is mature. Dogs under one year of age should not be penalized for variations in ear carriage.
: The neck is clean, moderately long, slightly arched, and tapers slightly from the shoulders to the head. The neck blends smoothly into well laid-back shoulders.
: A properly proportioned Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is longer (measured from prosternum to point of buttocks) than tall (measured from the withers to the ground) with a ratio of between 10:8 to 10:7. The length of the front leg (measured from point of elbow to the ground) should approximately equal one-third of the dog’s height. Whether the dog is standing or moving, the line of the back is strong and level. The loin is moderately short, slightly arched, and muscular, with moderate tuck-up. The croup is slightly sloping. The ribs extend well back and are well sprung out from the spine, forming a broad, strong back, then curving down and inward to form a deep body. The brisket extends to or just below the elbow. Viewed from the front, the chest between the forelegs is well filled in on either side of the prominent breast bone and of moderate width. Viewed from the side, the forechest extends in an oval shape well in front of the forelegs.
: Shoulders are smoothly muscled. The shoulder blades are well laid back with the upper tips separated by about three fingers’ width at the withers. The upper arm appears to be equal in length to the shoulder blade and joins it at an apparent right angle. The elbows are close to the body. Viewed from the front, the forearm turns slightly inward so that the distance between the wrists is slightly less than the distance between the elbows, and the pasterns are straight, although a slight bend in the pastern is acceptable. Viewed from the side, pasterns are strong, short, and nearly vertical.
: The feet are compact and slightly oval in shape, with the two middle toes slightly longer than the other toes. Cat feet are acceptable and toes may be well split up but not flat or splayed. Front dewclaws may be removed. Rear dewclaws must be removed.
: The hindquarters are strong and flexible, and smoothly muscled, with the length of the upper thigh somewhat longer than the lower thigh. The angulation of the hindquarters is in balance with the angulation of the forequarters. The stifles are well-bent, and the hocks are well let down. When the dog is standing, the short, strong rear pasterns are perpendicular to the ground and, viewed from the rear, parallel to one another.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier moves with a jaunty air that suggests agility, speed, and power. Teddy Roosevelt Terrier gait is smooth and effortless, with good reach of forequarters without any trace of hackney gait. Because of the deep chest and the shortness of the legs, the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is required to reach just slightly inward as well as forward when trotting. Rear quarters have strong driving power, with hocks fully extending. Viewed from any position, legs turn neither in nor out, nor do feet cross or interfere with each other. As speed increases, feet tend to converge toward center line of balance.
: The coat is short, dense, and medium-hard to smooth, with a sheen. Whiskers are not removed.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier may be solid white, bi-color or tri-color but must always have some white, which may be of any size and located anywhere on the dog. The white area may be ticked as long as white predominates. The remaining accepted colors are: black, tan (ranging from dark tan to very light tan and from intense dark mahogany red to light red with black nose and eyerims), chocolate (ranging from dark liver to light chocolate with self-colored nose and eyerims), blue and blue fawn (with self-colored nose and eyerims), apricot (ranging from orange to faded yellow with black nose and eyerims), and lemon (ranging from orange to faded yellow with self-colored nose and eyerims). Colored areas may be brindle or have sable overlay.
: The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier is a working terrier and should be presented in hard, muscular condition. Height of a mature Teddy Roosevelt Terrier ranges between 8 and 15 inches, measured at the withers. Weight will vary depending on the size of the individual dog.
Hindquarters: Too little or exaggerated angulation; excessively muscular buttocks.
Size: Height under 8 inches or over 15 inches; obesity.
Body: Exaggerated lowness; extreme length or shortness of back.
Appearance: A longer-legged, square-bodied dog whose proportions vary significantly from the desired ratio lacks breed type and must be disqualified.
Color: Merle; absence of white; any solid color other than white.