Perhaps she’s a “rat whisperer.”

Or, given that she’s on a boat in the photo, perhaps she is seaworthy and a great first mate. “Daisy” may not leave a show ring with a purple and gold ribbon, and we don’t know exactly why “Daisy” is described as an “exceptional” Rat Terrier by the photo stock service where we found her image, but we’re sharing her photo because of her ears.

Daisy’s ears are appropriately set high on the top outer edge of her skull, they are V-shaped, and their length is in proportion to her head. Her attitude, eyes, and head posture tell us that Daisy is wide awake and watchful, and the Rat Terrier standard indicates that when a Rattie is alert, a rose ear is a fault.  Daisy’s ears are not rose ears, and they match in shape and carriage (desired).  The standard also writes that when viewed from the side, the base of the ear is on line with the outer corner of the eye.

In a whelping box and in a show ring, the whole dog should be evaluated, not just its “parts,” but a sound dog is made up of its parts, and it’s helpful to know how those parts meet – or stray – from the breed standard. We don’t know about the rest of Daisy, but in this photo, her ears help us illustrate one aspect of her AKC breed standard.

Photo: Deposit Stock Photos