Plummer Terrier

		Plummer Terrier
		He is not recognized by the F.C.I.


Origin			U.S.A.
Translation			Francis Vandersteen

The Plummer Terrier is a working terrier, and like all working terriers, it's a composite animal.

The Plummer Terrier was created by Dr. David Brian Plummer, who started his type with a variety of Jack Russell terrier from his home in Wales. He added Beagle, Fell terrier and Bull terrier, creating an established and defined individual type. Originally known as the Huddlesford Rat Pack, the breed is now named after him.

In the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, Plummer worked as a reluctant teacher in several schools in South Yorkshire and the Midlands. A self-confessed rustic eccentric, his passion was hunting rats with what was then his motley pack of Russell-type terriers. He became one of the leading authors of books on hunting with sledges and terriers. Well versed in breeding, he strove to produce a unique strain of terrier using the above lines with Jack Russell terriers from Sealy Cottage lines as his foundation. These terriers were worked hard and as the breed developed too, Plummer's reputation as a breeder of hardy terriers improved.

The dogs of this era included Vampire, who died in 1980 at the age of nine. This Plummer terrier was a veteran of the weekly rat hunt at the local chicken battery. His brother Warlock, sister Beltane (whom Brian considered the "matron" of his terrier team and indeed the prototype of the breed) and probably most famously Omega, raised by his Vampire father to his own daughter Janey. Plummer has devoted an entire book to Omega's hunting abilities.

The Beagle introduced into Plummer's lines in the 1960s was descended from Catherine Sutton's Rossut strain of American imports brought to the UK to tidy up British shows. It was owned by Brian's friend Philip Ainsley.

Other crosses were introduced along the way. The addition of Fell terrier blood, Jaeger from Nigel Hinchcliffe's lines and Flint from Brian Nuttall's lines, both noted working lines and probably descended from Cyril Breay and Frank Buck's stock, infused refinement of form and to some extent contributed to set type, such as that seen in Pagan, a black and beige terrier, recognized as one of the breed's early mainstays.

Other additions included a Jack Russell terrier known as Pip by Eric Forsyth, Hamish and Laddie by Alan Thomas of Chiddingfold and Leconfield Kennels. Performance as an earth dog was and is an expected prerequisite of most, if not all, terrier breeds, and Plummers are no exception. These three dogs were known to be full on earth workers.

In the early 1980s, during one of the many TV documentaries (Man on the Rat Hunt and Lone Furrow) about Plummer and his terriers, he said that one day he'd like his terriers to be known as Plummer terriers and recognized by the Kennel Club.

In 1985, he suffered a near-fatal heart attack that resulted in his substantial pack of terriers being dispersed to friends. He eventually moved to an isolated crypt in Caithness, Scotland, and began writing full-time. By the early 1990s, most of the pack's substantial gene pool had been found and pooled, albeit on a smaller scale. Work continued, and further lines expanded the gene pool sufficiently to limit inbreeding.

At this stage, two distinct types began to develop, the smaller, more stretched nose shape and the more intimidating strong-headed type. Plummer opted for the latter, and in the late 1990s decided that the breed needed a wider gene pool in order to reach its maximum potential. Blood of known Bull Terrier ancestry was sought out and crossed into the breed.

Plummer suffered from cancer and died in September 2002. His work has been continued by others, and the breed standard remains intact.

As a working terrier, the Plummer is a versatile dog with many uses. They are great rowers, most often take to the water freely, are highly intelligent, have excellent noses, are docile and have many uses in the field. They are often found ferreting, some are found in the beating line on local shoots, sometimes they are used to crush soil, but they are probably most commonly used in pack-hunting rats.

The Plummer Terrier is a striking dog to look at, its fiery red coat should conform to two distinct patterns bonded (a white band around the neck) and cape (showing only white on the throat). They should be strongly colored and preferably no longer than 14" at the shoulder. Terriers without collar or hood markings are labeled as broken in, perfect as workers, companions, but not considered good examples of the breed. The same can be said for tricolors, dogs that carry black in their coloring. The ears fold back like most terriers, and the nose and eyes are generally black, and the jaw has a good scissor bite.

Generally a game dog, the Plummer Terrier is not a Kennel Club breed, and most of today's working dog owners prefer this dog not yet to be part of the Kennel Club for a myriad of reasons.

While the Plummer Terrier generally breeds in appearance, the standard is a working terrier standard. The most common serious health defect in this breed is cleft palate, followed by foul mouth, luxated patella and cryptorchidism.

Plummer defined a breed standard in 2000.
- General character: a Plummer Terrier should be strong, robust, active and adaptable, with terrier characteristics and as much substance as possible. Both at home and in the kennel, they should be highly intelligent, courageous and tenacious. Affectionate, loyal and trustworthy with family and friends. Yet should present a bright, alert appearance without displaying excessive aggression or nervousness.
- Head: Medium-sized, full of quality with strong bones and powerful cheek and jaw muscles. Slight bull terrier characteristics are encouraged, as is a well defined stop.
- Ears: drooping, rounded and neatly pinned to the head. Ear prick or rose prick are not encouraged.
- Eyes: dark, prominent and oval, set wide apart.
- Muzzle: strong, narrow lips without excessive looseness. Teeth strong, even with a scissor bite.
- Neck: strong, elegant, especially in bitches, and well carried.
- Shoulders and forelegs: strong, well relaxed and developed without excessive muscle tone. The front legs should be straight and square, not tied. Feet should be well shaped and dense. No resemblance of fold in front.
- Back, hindquarters and rear legs: back and loins muscular, strong and well coupled, with well-defined muscle development. The hind legs should be long and strong, with a well-fixed tail. Hind legs - the second thigh should be strong and muscular. The hocks are clean and flat, turning neither in nor out. The hind leg should not be too curved.
- Feet: well shaped and dense.
- Body: square aspect seen from the side, i.e. from the distance between shoulder and ground. The depth across the heart should be easily crossed by two hands placed just behind the shoulders.
- Tail: carried high. Preferably docked and balanced to the size of the dog. Curled tails are not encouraged.
- Coat: short, closed and without guard hairs, but with the ability to withstand the weather. Loose/broken coats are not acceptable.
- Color and markings: bright fire red with white. Full cape markings from head to tail, or a broad collar of white between head and shoulders are encouraged. Under belly and chest, front and rear legs must be white, although wetting is acceptable. Head either solid color, or with a stripe or marked badger. Tricolor Plummer terriers are still produced in small numbers today and although they are registrable with club registrars, they are not generally encouraged.
- Height: maximum height at shoulder, dog or bitch 35.5 centimetres.
- Movement: should be light, energetic, free, true and forced and cover the ground. The hocks should be flexed under the body with powerful leverage.
- Faults: Under or overhanging mouth. Unsoundness, coarseness or displaying a hereditary fault.