We often hear about new breeds being accepted by the AKC, but not as much when it happens across the pond. A breed makes its debut at Crufts next Friday (Cruft dates: March 9 – March 12, 2017) and as it happens, it’s a breed that was featured as a Purebred of Interest on NPDD’s pages back in 2014. The breed is the fabulous Russian Toy Terrier.

Below, is ten seconds of the Russian Toy Terrier Alert System:

We can’t put it any better than a Russian Toy Terrier said of the breed three years ago: “The breed is not a Papillon, it is not a Chihuahua, it is not a Pomeranian, a miniature pinscher or a Manchester Terrier. So [when asked for words of wisdom for anyone considering the breed] the first thought is to try not to fit them into another breeds traits. Do RT’s carry traits of all of these breeds? Of course, just like your human children carry traits of both parents. Look for a breeder who raises this breed as part of the family. If you have children, let them grow up before getting a Russian Toy, this breed does have delicate fine leg bones and could shatter a leg if they are suddenly dropped, stepped on or rolled on. If you have small children and you just have to get a Russian Toy, then look for a more substantial sized puppy, NOT one that could fit in your coffee cup.”

The political isolation of the Russia at the time caused the creation of an entirely new breed as breeders sought to stabilize toy sized terriers at the time into a uniform breed following years of repression by the Soviets who felt that the only dog of value was a working dog.  The first standard for the two coated varieties was written in 1966 as authorized by the Ministry of Agriculture. After the Iron Curtain fell, some foreign small breed dogs were imported which caused the popularity of the Russian Toy to diminish. Happily, a new generation of breeders revived the breed’s popularity after the long coated variety had hit critically low numbers by the 1990s.