Two K Articles

A breed standard is a breed organization’s blueprint of what the ideal dog should look and act like. This is what a show dog like a purebred Boston Terrier is judged against. Instead of being compared to the other dogs in the ring, the dog is compared to how well they fit the breed standard. This is usually what breeders strive to achieve in their breeding programs. A breed standard is the Holy Writ of the dog world.

Consequentially, not many Boston Terriers come anywhere near matching the breed standard and are cut from breeding programs or abandoned because of their imperfections. If you find a cute little black and white dog in your local shelter and wonder what breed he or she could be, a look at the Boston Terrier breed standard can help. Identifying a shelter dog’s breed can help let you know what you are getting yourself in for.

Overall, a Boston Terrier is a toy-sized black and white dog with large ears, a level back and huge eyes. They look somewhat like a French Bulldog and a black and white cat. They usually have short hair and short noses, but not as short as a Pekingese’s. They are easily portable and weigh only about fifteen to twenty-five pounds. Oddly enough, the Boston Terrier is one of the very few breeds that often have naturally really short tails (although occasionally a long tail pops up).

Common faults in pet-quality Boston Terriers include the afore-mentioned long tail, being too heavy, being taller than fifteen inches at the shoulder and bat-ears (having ears that are far bigger than the rest of the head). Ideally, the ears should be in proportion to the rest of the body. Other common faults include a sway back (similar to a sway-backed horse), being able to see the teeth or tongue when the mouth is closed, or having a head or most of the body be completely black.

Sadly, other breeds like Rottweilers, Boxers, Dobermans and Pembroke Welsh Corgis have to have docked tails in order to show. Another fault is being too big - Boston Terriers are only supposed to be fifteen inches high at the shoulder and twenty-five pounds at the most.

Boston Terriers were bred purposefully to be companion animals. They are happy, trainable, lively and like to get along with others. The nickname for the breed is The American Gentleman.

Boston Terriers often have pointed ears that are proportional to the size of the head. Sometimes, you’ll see a purebred Boston with huge bat-ears - that’s not a show dog. They bounce when they walk, but they should not have a high-stepping walk like a Hackney horse or the incredibly slow shuffle of a Pekingese.

Boston Terriers are usually abandoned through no fault of their own, but because they are so cute and small, as people often buy them on impulse.