Jagdterrier or German Terrier Breed Origins and Caracteristics

This breed was born in Bavaria, about 1920, as a result of the selective cross of the hard-haired and straight haired fox terrier, the welsh terrier and the Lakeland terrier, being their descendants covered by a sole English brokenhaired terrier. The dogs that resulted from this procedure had different qualities for hunting. The passionate and aggressive underground hunting dogs always follow the trail despite the barking and they are useful to look for blood trails. They are mostly used in Germany and in Austria, but later their presence has extended to other European countries. The success of this breed in international competitions, working in burrows, where their characteristics have demonstrated to be more balanced than that of other hunting breeds, has contributed greatly to their popularity. The special selection of breed, which has tried to keep its functionality, has made the standard too low in its external aspect. Compared to other English terrier breeds, the German terrier is not balanced physically. It has a very rectangular shape, the ears are too high and very big, the feet are longer than most English terriers.

The German terrier is a dog full of life, intelligent, very aggressive and mistrustful with strangers. It needs a lot of exercise and it is very mischievous. It is not appropriate to live in an apartment.

Size: 30-40 cm. Weight: male 9-10 kg; female 7.5-8.5 kg. Colors: black, dark brown, studded with blackish gray with some red brown or yellow patches around the eyes on the face, the chest, the legs and the toes. A bit of white on the chest and toes are accepted.

There are two types of hair. The hard-haired dogs with short, tight, hard, pointy hair; the straight-haired dogs (2) have a double layer of straight, tight, dense and short hair. The hair should not be cut like it is done with the English terrier.