More about those terrific terriers

Image: Just one of the many cute terrier pictures on show at Gumhaven Kennels -Tenterfield Terriers.

Maureen Schutt, inspired by the recent reference to her favourite dog breed, writes:

JUST wondered if you are aware of the history. Miniature Fox Terrier, Tenterfield - same dog, new name. I was there when the dog was renamed.
The canine association would let us register the dogs under the name mini fox terrier as they were not a miniaturisation of the Fox Terrier, but made up of other breeds as well.
In order to move forward with these little dogs we had to rename them. Several names were put forward and as Don Burke for some reason had started referring to them as a Tenterfield and so it was decided to go with that as people were getting familiar with that name and we felt calling them something else again would be too confusing basically.
So the Miniature Fox Terrier clubs changed their names to Tenterfield Terrier clubs. There is still an offshoot Mini Foxie Club in NSW of a few members that did not want to change the name, but as such their dogs cant be shown at Australian National Kennel Club shows, nor are their pups registered with the ANKC (Australian National Kennel Council ). The Tenterfield Terrier is the Official name.

MAUREEN also sent the following text "from the history page":

It is believed they used the smaller progeny of the Fox Terrier and outcrossed it to other breeds to bring the dog down in size.
There appears to have been many inputs of other breeds over the years, with probable inclusion of Chihuahua, Whippet, Manchester Black and Tan, Min Pin and Italian Greyhounds. The dog has commonly been referred to as the "Miniature Fox Terrier".
In the early 1990s a group of interested owners, who wanted to secure the future of this terrier, advertised for interested persons to attend their first meeting.
This meeting led to the formation of the Miniature Fox Terrier Club of SA. A similar club had been running in NSW for some time prior to this. A club was then formed in WA and the breed registry was established soon after, with the first entries being January 1991.
In 1992, it became quite apparent that if we were to eventually have this wonderful little dog recognised by the ANKC, the name of "Miniature Fox Terrier" was extremely inappropriate as the terrier was not a miniaturisation of the Fox Terrier.
We, as a club, could understand this valid point. The link to the Fox Terrier is long since removed.
After consultation with all club members, moves were then made through SA, WA and NSW to instigate a name change for the breed.
Numerous ideas were put forward which resulted in a ballot to all members of the SA, WA and NSW Clubs. After much publicity via the media, it was strongly voted (some 85% of returned votes) to embrace the name "Tenterfield Terrier".

Maureen Schutt is president of the Tenterfield Terrier Club of South Australia.
(TTCSA).