THIS year’s reserve champion at Crufts was a nine-year-old red and white, rough coated Jack Russell named Zen, co-owned by Hiroshi Tsuyuki and Kao Miichi from Japan. In the history of this prestigious dog show this is the first time a Jack Russell has received an award and, considering Crufts started in 1891 and the breed has been in existence since the early 1800s, this long-awaited recognition of the breed is well overdue.

The Jack Russell breed today can trace its origins back to the early white Hunt Terrier which is now extinct. The small working terriers we now know were originally bred by the Reverend John Russell, a Church of England parson from Devon, from whom the breed derives its name. A keen huntsman, he apparently kept his Sunday sermons very short in order to get away hunting. His original terriers were mostly white so that they could be seen from a distance, and not be mistaken for a fox.

In recent years the taste for body colour on the dog has meant that this old whiter form in general has now been superseded and looks much different to the parson’s original vision of how his Jack Russell terrier should be.

Almond shaped

A correct example of the breed is a dog who stands at 10 to 12 inches at the shoulder, weighs 14 to 18 lb, is predominantly white with some coloured markings, preferably on the face, and some small splashes on the body, (my own favourite being white with some tan markings) but black, red and tricolour are correct also.

The legs must be straight, the head of moderate width, and flat between the ears, almond shaped dark eyes and most importantly, V-shaped triangular or folded ears, essential to their original classic look. A very straight upright tail completes the configuration. Until very recently, most Jack Russells had their tails docked, but now they are seen with a full tail, which has divided opinion on the matter.

My first introduction to the Jack Russell breed was in 1978 when my older brother brought home a tiny (adorable) wired haired bitch puppy in the box of his Honda 50. This very small dog became my constant companion.

Walking through the countryside in Co Meath, it became obvious she loved chasing rabbits and was always to be found tearing up the straw shed hunting for rats. I named her Dash because of her boundless energy and was very proud when she was awarded first prize in the dog show competition at the Macra na Feirme show in Athboy.

Smaller dogs

After Dash died, we acquired Susie in the 1980s from a breeder near Navan who bred smaller, smooth-coated Jack Russells. From Susie we bred several litters which laid the foundation for the current breed I have today.

At that time, the Jack Russell breed was perhaps greatly underappreciated. People just wanted smaller dogs, the word miniature started being used and so the breed morphed into smaller, barrell chested types, with upright pricked ears and twisted or Queen Anne legs. This led to great confusion of what a Jack Russell should look like. Thankfully, there was a small number of die-hard connoisseurs, many of them within the equine community who consciously kept the breed free of the imperfections and the deterioration of the original features listed previously.

Locally, Meath veterinarian Michele Dore and horse breeder and judge, Jane Darragh, continued to preserve the original features of the breed. However, once a firm favourite, the popularity of the Jack Russell has declined recently with the advent of fashionable newer hybrid breeds.

Great style

I have long been aware of the excellent standard of the breed in Italy, and, having recently holidayed there, this was indeed apparent. The Italians, always known for their great style, seemed to be very happy to be accompanied by the longer-legged “Parson” type. I saw some beautiful Jack Russells being walked by several “bella figuras” around Piazza Bra in Verona.

On the recommendation of a friend I acquired a really beautiful rough haired bitch named Annabelle from Milan some years ago. Because the gene pool of the breed here in Ireland is small and restricted at a pure-bred level, I felt it important to introduce a new line in my breeding to ward off the problems that may occur with using the same over used bloodlines. This has been hugely successful: Annabelle’s puppies have exceeded all my expectations. Her daughter, Dolly, bears a striking resemblance to Zen, the Crufts reserve champion of 2024.

Perhaps Zen’s triumph at Crufts will lead to a resurgence of interest in the classic Jack Russell Terrier.

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