Jack Russell Terrier
The Jack Russell Terrier was recognised by the Royal Kennel Club only in 2016, long after the Parson Russell Terrier, and the two are separate breeds: the Jack Russell is the…
About the Jack Russell Terrier
The Jack Russell Terrier was recognised by the Royal Kennel Club only in 2016, long after the Parson Russell Terrier, and the two are separate breeds: the Jack Russell is the shorter-legged, longer-bodied dog that most people know by the name. Both descend from the fox-working terriers of the Reverend John Russell in nineteenth-century Devon.
Jack Russells stand about 25 to 30 cm, predominantly white with tan, black or brown markings, in smooth, broken or rough coat. Because the breed was bred as a worker outside the show system for so long, type varies widely, and a stud registered on the Breed Register with several generations behind it is not as easy to find as the breed's popularity suggests. Temperament should be bold and friendly, never nervous or snappy.
Ask a Jack Russell stud owner for DNA results for primary lens luxation, which is the breed's most important inherited eye condition, and for spinocerebellar ataxia, which affects young dogs. A BAER hearing test matters in a predominantly white breed. Add a current eye certificate and patella examination, and ask whether the dog has been checked for Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease.
Health & breeding
We check every hip, elbow, eye and DNA result you give us against the Royal Kennel Club’s public records by hand, and we record who checked it and when. The Royal Kennel Club’s public records may not include all the screening a dog has had, so a dog with no Royal Kennel Club record showing is not necessarily untested.
Breed Right’s summary — under The Royal Kennel Club Health Standard
Health tests for the Jack Russell Terrier
This panel is Breed Right’s summary of the testing that matters for the breed under The Royal Kennel Club Health Standard. The Health Standard is the Royal Kennel Club’s guidance for breeders, not a registration rule. It describes tests to ask about — it is not a report on any individual dog. The Royal Kennel Club’s public records may not include all the screening a dog has had, so a dog with no Royal Kennel Club record showing is not necessarily untested.
Good Practice — the Royal Kennel Club’s minimum before breeding
The tests the Royal Kennel Club says breeders should, at a minimum, complete before breeding.
| Test | Type | Scheme | What’s involved |
|---|---|---|---|
| DNA test — PLL (Primary Lens Luxation) | DNA test | Laboratory | The result printed on the laboratory certificate. |
Best Practice — further tests it recommends
Completing these as well as the Good Practice tests is what the Royal Kennel Club calls Best Practice.
| Test | Type | Scheme | What’s involved |
|---|---|---|---|
| DNA test — LOA (Late-Onset Ataxia) | DNA test | Laboratory | The result printed on the laboratory certificate. |
| DNA test — SCA (Spinocerebellar Ataxia) | DNA test | Laboratory | The result printed on the laboratory certificate. |
| Eye testing (BVA/KC/ISDS) | Screening scheme | BVA/KC/ISDS | Result printed on the eye certificate. |
At stud now
Jack Russell Terrier stud dogs
No Jack Russell Terrier studs are listed right now
When a Jack Russell Terrier on the Royal Kennel Club Breed Register is listed at stud, it will appear here.
Also available
Jack Russell Terrier litters
No Jack Russell Terrier litters are listed right now
Litters appear here as breeders list them. Check back soon, or browse other breeds.
