Of all “purebred” terriers, the Bedlington has the oldest non-broken pedigree going back to 1782. And we don’t know what that means. We were intrigued when we came across the statement, but have not been able to learn its meaning. Thus, we invite suggestions about the meaning of a “non broken pedigree.”
That said, this notable dog was owned by Squire Trevelyan in the town of Netherwhitton located not far from the towns of Morpeth, Rothbury and Bedlington in northern England. It’s been suggested that Bedlingtons were once known as “gypsy dogs” because gypsies (their preferred name these days is “Roma”) and poachers used them as vermin hunters and small game retrievers; in reality, the popularity of Bedlingtons crossed all social boundaries. They were favorites of factory and mine workers, as well as Lord Rothbury whose estate was located in Bedlington. The breed was even known for a time as Rothbury terriers, but eventually the name Bedlington stuck. The first dog to actually be called a Bedlington Terrier was “Ainsley’s Piper” a dog owned by Joseph Ainsley in 1825.
Image: Bedlington Terrier by Paul Doyle
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Isn’t a non-broken or unbroken pedigree one that has no gaps? All individuals are known from a dictated starting point, at least in one lineage. There was an old Irish book that was said to trace Irish humans back to Adam through a Spanish King. I believe they also said, at the time, that Queen Victoria was part of it!
A logical explanation, Charlotte, and we appreciate you sharing it! This has been making us a bit nuts because we like to provide evidence, but this time, couldn’t. We hoped the expertise of our fine readers would come through, so thank you!