As is the case with so many breeds, no one is certain how the Kerry Blue Terrier was developed, let alone if there is validity to the legend of a shipwrecked dog with a blue coat swimming to an Irish shoreline. That said, there is no shortage of theories. One of them, for example, is that the Kerry Blue came from Carrick-on-Sur in County Tipperary, and for that reason was initially called the Carrick Blue Terrier. Many experts, including the AKC, don’t support the claim.

A 19th century Irish breed expert, H.D. Richardson, called the breed the Harlequin Terrier even though he himself described the dog’s color as slate blue. It’s possible that Richardson coined the name because Kerry Blue puppies can exhibit dark coats and tan points on their way to their adult color.

Fuss over the breed’s name amped up during the time that Michael Collins, leader of the Irish Republican Army, was fighting for Irish independence from Britain. Nationalists strongly favored the name, “Irish Blue Terrier,” especially because Collins owned a Kerry Blue. In Irish, the name was “Brocaire Gorm” which literally means “blue terrier.” Note the lack of reference to any specific geographical location. If “Kerry” had been included in the name, one would see a form of the word, “Ciarraí.”

Adding the name “Kerry” to the breed came when the Kennel Club of the United Kingdom recognized the breed. From its perspective, the club chose to distance itself from the politics of Irish nationalism and anointed the breed with a name reflective of its color and region of origin.

Even though in its native Ireland, the breed is still known as the Irish Blue Terrier, or sometimes just “the Blue,” historically these dogs were fixtures in the community of Kerry County, Ireland; it was deemed natural that the breed should bear the name ‘Kerry’ in recognition of the county from which it was believed to originate.

In some circles, the Kerry Blue Terrier is known by the nickname of the “County Kerry Beauty,” but there is one other moniker, well deserved, that was born out of the breed’s pluck. In early dog shows, the Irish Kennel Club required many breeds, including the Kerry Blue Terrier, to pass Teastas Mor certification, a test for gameness. Dogs were required to catch rabbits and bring badgers to bay in its set (anecdotally, some owners said that Kerrys were the only dogs who would tackle Otter single-handedly in deep water). Kerry Blues performed so well on these tests that they earned the nickname “Blue Devils” as a result.

Image: Handmade Blown Glass Kerry Blue Terrier by GlassAnimals is available for purchase here