Information on AKC Lakeland Terrier Puppies
AKC MEET THE BREEDS®: Lakeland Terrier
The Lakeland Terrier has a dense, wiry coat with longer hair on the legs and muzzle, often giving him a distinct beard. Small, sturdy and workmanlike, the breed’s narrow frame allows him to squeeze into rocky dens to chase after vermin. While generally a show dog or family companion today, Lakelands can also be found utilizing their natural instincts at earthdog events or digging in the backyard. The breed comes in a variety of colors including blue, black, liver, red and wheaten with or without a patch of color over the back and shoulders called a "saddle".
A Look Back
The Lakeland is an English breed dating back to the 1800s. One of the oldest living terrier breeds still known today, they were originally developed by farmers to accompany them on hunts and to prevent fox and other vermin from destroying their sheep herds.
Right Breed for You?
The Lakeland is bold, friendly and confident but has a quiet disposition. While he is well suited for a variety of living situations including rural and urban settings, the Lakeland’s energy level makes him well suited for an active lifestyle. His coat shed minimally but requires periodic clipping by a groomer.
If you are considering purchasing a Lakeland Terrier puppy, learn more here.
- Terrier Group; AKC recognized in 1934.
- Ideal size approximately 14½ inches tall at the shoulder and 17 pounds.
- Vermin hunter.
© The American Kennel Club, Inc.
Lakeland Terrier Breed Standard
General Appearance
The Lakeland Terrier was bred to hunt vermin in the rugged shale mountains of
the Lake District of northern England. He is a small, workmanlike dog of square,
sturdy build. His body is deep and relatively narrow, which allows him to squeeze
into rocky dens. He has sufficient length of leg under him to cover rough ground
easily. His neck is long, leading smoothly into high withers and a short topline
ending in a high tail set. His attitude is gay, friendly, and self-confident,
but not overly aggressive. He is alert and ready to go. His movement is lithe
and graceful, with a straight-ahead, free stride of good length. His head is rectangular,
jaws are powerful, and ears are V-shaped. A dense, wiry coat is finished off with
longer furnishings on muzzle and legs.
Size, Proportion, Substance
The ideal height of the mature dog is 14½ inches from the withers to the
ground, with up to a one-half inch deviation either way permissible. Bitches may
measure as much as one inch less than dogs. The weight of the well balanced, mature
male in hard show condition averages approximately 17 pounds. Dogs of other heights
will be proportionately more or less. The dog is squarely built, and bitches may
be slightly longer than dogs. Balance and proportion are of primary importance.
Short-legged, heavy-bodied dogs or overly refined, racy specimens are atypical
and should be penalized. The dog should have sufficient bone and substance, so
as to appear sturdy and workmanlike without any suggestion of coarseness.
Head
The expression depends on the dog’s mood of the moment;
although typically alert, it may be intense and determined, or gay and even
impish. The eyes, moderately small and somewhat oval in
outline, are set squarely in the skull, fairly wide apart. In liver or liver
and tan dogs, the eyes are dark hazel to warm brown and eye rims are brown.
In all other colors, the eyes are warm brown to black and eye rims are dark.
The ears are small, V-shaped, their fold just above the
top of the skull, the inner edge close to the side of the head, and the
flap pointed toward the outside corner of the eye.
The skull is flat on top and moderately broad, the cheeks
flat and smooth as possible. The stop is barely perceptible. The muzzle
is strong with straight nose bridge and good fill-in beneath the eyes. The
head is well balanced, rectangular, the length of skull equaling the length
of the muzzle when measured from occiput to stop, and from stop to nose
tip. The proportions of the head are critical to correct type. An overlong
foreface or short, wedge shaped head are atypical and should be penalized.
The nose is black. A "winter" nose with faded
pigment is permitted, but not desired. Liver colored noses and lips are
permissible on liver coated dogs only. A pink or distinctly spotted nose
is very undesirable. The lips are dark. Jaws are powerful. The teeth,
which are comparatively large, may meet in either a level, edge to edge
bite, or a slightly overlapping scissors bite. Specimens with teeth overshot
or undershot are to be disqualified.
Neck, Topline, Body
The neck is long; refined but strong; clean at the throat;
slightly arched, and widening gradually and smoothly into the shoulders.
The withers, that point at the back of the neck where neck and body meet,
are noticeably higher than the level of the back. The topline,
measured from the withers to the tail, is short and level. The body
is strong and supple. The moderately narrow oval chest is deep, extending
to the elbows. The ribs are well sprung and moderately rounded off
the vertebrae. The Lakeland Terrier is a breed of moderation. A barrel-chested,
big-bodied dog or one which is slab-sided and lacking substance is atypical
and should be penalized. The loins are taut and short, although they
may be slightly longer in bitches. There is moderate tuck-up. The
tail is set high on the back. It is customarily docked so
that when the dog is set up in show position, the tip of the tail is level
with the occiput. In carriage, it is upright and a slight curve toward the
head is desirable. Behind the tail is a well-defined, broad pelvic shelf.
It is more developed in dogs than in bitches. The tail tightly curled over
the back is a fault.
Forequarters
The shoulders are well angulated. An imaginary line drawn from the top
of the shoulder blade should pass through the elbow. The shoulder blade is long
in proportion to the upper arm, which allows for reasonable angulation while maintaining
the more upright "terrier front." The musculature of the shoulders is
flat and smooth. The elbows are held close to the body, standing or moving.
The forelegs are strong, clean and straight when viewed from the front
or side. There is no appreciable bend at the pasterns. The feet are round
and point forward, the toes compact and strong. The pads are thick and black or
dark gray, except in liver colored dogs where they are brown. The nails are strong
and may be black or self-colored. Dewclaws are removed.
Hindquarters
The thighs are powerful and well muscled. The hind legs are well
angulated, but not so much as to affect the balance between front and rear, which
allows for smooth efficient movement. The stifles turn neither in nor out.
The distance from the hock to the ground is relatively short and the line
from the hock to toes is straight when viewed from the side. From the rear the
hocks are parallel to each other. Feet same as front. Dewclaws, if any,
are removed.
Coat
Two-ply or double, the outer coat is hard and wiry in texture, the undercoat
is close to the skin and soft and should never overpower the wiry outer coat.
The Lakeland is hand stripped to show his outline. (Clipping is inappropriate
for the show ring.) The appearance should be neat and workmanlike. The coat on
the skull, ears, forechest, shoulders and behind the tail is trimmed short and
smooth. The coat on the body is longer (about one-half to one inch) and may be
slightly wavy or straight. The furnishings on the legs and foreface are plentiful
as opposed to profuse and should be tidy. They are crisp in texture. The legs
should appear cylindrical. The face is traditionally trimmed, with the hair left
longer over the eyes to give the head a rectangular appearance from all angles,
with the eyes covered from above. From the front, the eyes are quite apparent,
giving the Lakeland his own unique mischievous expression.
Color
The Lakeland Terrier comes in a variety of colors, all of which are equally acceptable.
Solid colors include blue, black, liver, red, and wheaten. In saddle marked dogs,
the saddle covers the back of the neck, back, sides and up the tail. A saddle
may be blue, black, liver, or varying shades of grizzle. The remainder of the
dog (head, throat, shoulders, and legs) is a wheaten or golden tan. Grizzle is
a blend of red or wheaten intermixed in varying proportions with black, blue or
liver.
Gait
Movement is straightforward and free, with good reach in front and drive behind.
It should be smooth, efficient and ground-covering. Coming and going, the legs
should be straight with feet turning neither in nor out; elbows close to the sides
in front and hocks straight behind. As the dog moves faster he will tend to converge
toward his center of gravity. This should not be confused with close movement.
Temperament
The typical Lakeland Terrier is bold, gay and friendly, with a confident, cock-of-the-walk
attitude. Shyness, especially shy-sharpness, in the mature specimen is to be heavily
penalized. Conversely, the overly aggressive, argumentative dog is not typical
and should be strongly discouraged.
Disqualifications
Teeth overshot or undershot.
Approved January 15, 1991
Effective February 27, 1991
