Breed: Kerry Blue Terriers were already known at their homeland - in Ireland - at least 200 years ago. The blue terrier was mentioned many times in Irish folk tales and legends.

In XIX century in Ireland there were at least five varieties of terriers, differing in colors: bright red - the ancestors of the Irish Terrier, wheaten - precursors of the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, blue - ??initial material for breeding the Kerry Blue Terrier, as well as black and??tan and mottled terriers, which eventually disappeared.??Over the centuries, the blue terrier was quite common throughout the whole Ireland, but by the 60-70 th of the last century there was only a small number of this dogs left - mostly in the county of Kerry. These terriers were looking then quite diverse and had quite different hair structure, often hard or wiry, except for the dogs from the county of Kerry - those had the same kind of coat, that we can see today with the modern Kerry Blue Terrier.??In that days many dogs had a color of a gray stone or blue and tan.??In the county of Kerry as the main centers of breeding were considered Tralee, Kaslaylend, Kilton.

In 1847 H.D.??Richardson described the breed, which he called "the??Harlequin??Terrier": "By his??appearance, it is the real English terrier of blue-gray color, with darker spots and markings, often with the red hair on his legs and face.??The most characteristic feature of these dogs, and here they are not worse than any other breed, is that obsession with which they pursue and catch their prey, that fury with which they fight and kill their victim.??Whatever are the origins of this little dog (about 16,5 inches in size), it is now a recognized breed, with it's own unique beauty of external forms and coloration in combination with the best qualities of the terrier. Bred in purity, this dogs rightly deserve to be cultivated."

Modern researchers have a reason to believe that the "Harlequin Terrier" of those early days - is, of course, the Kerry Blue Terrier. Until now??in the litters of this breed from time to time there are born puppies with the red marks, which still creates confusion in the breeder's minds.

It is believed that the Irish farmers to breed Kerry were using Black and Tan Terrier as a source material, and later - the Irish Wolfhound to improve the sense of smell and to fix the grey color, which was not so noticeable in the woods. The??Irish Wolfhound of the past had a gray-blue color, to keep this dog and to hunt with this dog was the privilege of the aristocracy, he could be seen pretty often in the castles of the Irish kings. The commoners??were forbidden to keep the Wolfhounds and hunt with them, but it is possible that they could cross the working terrier-bitch with the Irish Wolfhound.??Subsequently, for the formation of a typical Kerry Blue Terrier's coat, this working terriers, were probably crossed with the Bedlington Terriers and the Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers.??There is another version: to the local terriers was added the blood of the legendary Poodle-looking male, who left the sinking ship of the Great Armada, and swam ashore near Tralee in 1597.

For a long time, Kerry Blue Terrier was the farmer's dog, he used to live with the family in the house.??Surprisingly clever and brave, easily oriented in different situations, they were used on a variety of services: as a shepherds for horses and cattle, as a guardians for the house and family, to hunt the small game, to retrieve from the water.

The first Kerry Blue Terrier Club was organised in June 1920 in Ireland, and in 1922 the Kerry Blue Terrier was shown at the??exhibitions??as an independent breed for the first time.??In the same year, the first Kerry Blue Terrier was registered in England.??At the Crafts exhibition in London in 1922 were demonstrated 10 Kerry Blue Terriers, most of them belonged to an early enthusiast of the breed Casey Hevitt, or have been born in her famous kennel "Moonster".

In those early days of the breed Kerry were displayed in their natural form - for the exhibitions they were only washed and combed. The coat of??the patriarchs of the breed was not that abundant as in the modern Kerry, but had already all shades of gray and blue. There was a lot of??light-silver dogs.??Subsequently, however, there was a significant darkening of the color, which some researchers attributed to the appearance of another sire in England - his coat was almost black and had a different structure - significantly thicker than in the rest of Kerry at the time, but not that silky and wavy.

Of course, at that time there could be no question about any trimming of these dogs.??The minimum requirements for them were mainly related to their temperament, lack of dewclaws, color of gums, eyelids and eyes.??Later, to make the Kerry blue Terrier ??more appealing and popular, Violet Hendy decided to make a haircut for this dogs ??and published the trimming scheme with detailed commentary.??At Kerry's homeland, in Ireland, the haircut was strictly forbidden by the standard, and for many years, dogs were exposed without any kind of trimming.

The hunting tests for the Kerry Blue Terrier were many and varied, and much wider they were cultivated in Ireland than in England.??According to the law issued in Ireland in 1926 ( which currently is not a guide line) the Kerry Blue Terrier, who won in the show ring, still could not get the title of Irish Champion, if he did not have two certificates for the field trials.??The Irish have developed two types of tests for this breed. During??the first test dogs had to demonstrate their hunting abilities, chasing a rabbit and a water rat.??In the second test, the Kerry Blue Terrier had to fight with the badger in a barrow and pull him out to the surface.??Certificates awarded to those dogs who fought with the beast for at least 5 minutes or for those, who could kill the badger before 5 minutes finished.

General Features: The most characteristic feature in the shape of the Kerry Blue Terrier - square head, well-groomed and trimmed in a special form, which gives ?????? muzzle ?? "non-canine" expression. Kerry's coat is thick, silky, soft and abandoned, with incredibly beautiful color.??The Kerry Blue Terrier is a strong built dog with the free movements.A true terrier, brave and smart, Kerry gained a worldwide fame. Kerry Blue Terrier is not a delicate lap-dog, intended for home decorating. An excellent hunter and a professional guardian. This is an excellent choice for many dog lovers.

Temperament: The modern Kerry Blue Terrier is a very beautiful, elegant, harmoniously built dog, that combines all the best qualities of a terrier.??Funny and inquisitive, they are always ready to engage in any of the master's affairs, whether they search for the lost shoe or hike on a fishing trip. But in any??case, Kerry would not be constantly looking into your eyes and walk up to you with a toy.??The dog clearly understands - if the owner is not in the mood toplay, it's better to leave the place and not to disturb him.

Another advantage of this breed - is their coat.??Soft and silky, almost without a specific doggie odor and, most importantly, not shedding.??This allows people suffering from asthma to live happily with the Kerry Blue Terrier.

In addition, the Kerry Blue Terrier has an excellent security qualities.??Very affectionate with family and friends, they are very reserved with the strangers and guard their territory very well. However, the??manifestation of unmotivated aggression is not a common thing with this dogs.??They will growl and bark at the intruders till the last moment and usually they bite only in the event of an imminent threat to the owner and his family.

The child can be left with the Kerry Blue Terrier with peace of mind.??This dog will never hurt a kid and would peacefully play with him while you're busy.

Kerry is fairly easy to train. This dogs are very smart and studies clearly gives them a real ??pleasure. the most important point here is to make it??interesting for Kerry.??At the same time, raising a Kerry Blue Terrier puppy you need to be firm: a spoiled dog can easily become??unmanageable and it will be very difficult to change this and prove, who is "the boss".

Properly trained Kerry Blue Terrier is easily controlled just by voice commands, but it does not mean that you can completely forget about the leash.??The dog must walk on the leash for at least 10-15 minutes a day.??It strengthens the back and put a good impact on the legs, also the dog, accustomed to the leash, is easier to accustom with the movements on the ring, that will be required for the exhibitions.

Speaking of exhibitions.??Contrary to the popular belief, the exhibition - is not a mockery of the dog.??Many Kerry Blue Terriers just adore exhibition crowd, and are very offended when they are left at home, and the other dog is driven to the exhibition.

Kerry perfectly understands that he is admired and will never miss the opportunity to collect some compliments.

Thus, the Kerry Blue Terrier can be an ideal companion dog for a man of strong character, confident, loving sports and active style of life.

Health problems: The Kerry Blue Terrier is a fairly healthy breed.

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