Lucas Terrier Club

Last updated24th April 2010

2010 Lucas Terrier Club show will be held on 10th October

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It is with tremendous sadness that I report the passing of our President, Miss Jumbo Frost, on Wednesday 11th November 2009. Jumbo was an unique person, a great friend to many and dedicated to the continuation of the Lucas terrier. Her loss is felt deeply by all who knew her.

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SHOW 2009

The 2009 Show has now taken place. Judge's comments received and included. Congratulations to Lynette Langford whose bitch Rodwell's Suzie Wong was Best Bitch and Best In Show and Melvin and Rochelle Heslam whose dog Langford's Buster was Best Dog and Reserve Best In Show.

PUPPY ENQUIRIES

All puppy enquiries should be made to Mrs Cathy Thomas by completing the questionnaire on the website.

Lucas Terrier Club members wanting to request paperwork for registering puppies, and completed paperwork, should now contact Mrs Thomas who will issue registration certificates for each puppy and, I assume, pedigrees if required.

PUPPY REGISTRATION

New owners should ensure that their puppies have been registered with the Lucas Terrier Club by the breeder. Unregistered dogs cannot exhibit at the annual Lucas Terrier Club show as this show is only open to registered Lucas terriers, and any puppies they produce in the future will not be eligible for registration as only puppies from parents either registered with the Lucas Terrier Club, or Kennel Club in the case of Norfolk terriers and Sealyham terriers, are eligible for registration.

If you are offered a puppy that does not come with a 5 generation pedigree and watermarked registration certificate then it is probably not a Lucas terrier.

Lucas terrier puppies are NEVER advertised for sale on the internet, in shop windows or through newspapers/magazines.

Only puppies from parents registered with the Lucas Terrier Club and holding a Breed Register Number (except where a parent or parents are Norfolk or Sealyham and then they should have Kennel Club registration) should be described as Lucas terriers.

It is possible that someone buying a puppy which is sold to them as a Lucas terrier but not eligible for registration with the Lucas Terrier Club may have some recourse against the breeder under the Trade Description Act 1968 but it is, surely, less stressful to do some homework BEFORE you get the puppy rather than embark on legal wrangling afterwards!

If we have any concerns regarding the parentage of puppies the breeder is required to DNA test the whole litter and parents through the Animal Health Trust, if they fail to do so then the puppies will not be registered.

RECENT PUPPIES

2009 was a slow year for pups which meant those on the waiting list have had to be extremely patient. Breeders often have pre-bookings for females with friends and family members, and seem prefer them to go to people that they know, presumably since they can exert more influence in ensuring that they are bred from at a later date. This is quite understandable as in a numerically small breed every female removed from the gene pool (more of a gene puddle, actually!) by people who promise to breed and never do is a serious loss to the breed overall. So, females are more difficult to get than males but really last year neither have been particularly plentiful and 2010 to date has been pretty quiet on the breeding front too. Therefore, anyone wanting a puppy in the shorter term would probably be better to look at other breeds.

TAIL DOCKING

The docking of dogs' tails was banned in England from 6 April 2007 and in Wales from 28 March 2007 but with exemptions from the ban for certain working dogs, and for medical treatment. A total ban in Scotland took effect from 30 April 2007.

There will also be a ban on the showing of docked dogs (all dogs docked after the commencement date of 6 April/28 March/30 April) at events to which members of the public are admitted on payment of a fee. The Lucas Terrier Club does not charge a fee to members of the public who want to come to our annual show so we are not affected by this part of the legislation.

The exemption for working dogs states that a dog likely to perform certain specified types of work can have its tail docked by a veterinary surgeon. The dog must be less than than 5 days old and the veterinary surgeon will be required to certify that (s)he has seen specific evidence (outlined in the legislation) that the dog is likely to work in specified areas. Puppies being docked must have a microchip inserted, either at the time of docking or when the vet considers they are old enough. The types of dog that will be allowed to be docked and the types of evidence needed, are detailed below.

As far as Lucas terriers are concerned some dogs may still be docked if evidence is provided to the vet that it is likely to be worked in connection with lawful pest control, or the lawful shooting of animals, and some of our owners and their dogs are involved in this type of work. It is accepted that in a litter not all puppies docked will be found suitable for work.

The owner of the dog, or a person representing the owner must make a signed statement that the dam of the puppies to be docked is of a type which can be certified as set out below, that it is intended that they will be used, or sold, for one of the working purposes set out in the regulations and they should give the date the puppies were born.

The vet must sign a declaration that the requirements of the regulations have been satisfied i.e. that (s)he has been given the necessary declaration by the owner or person representing the owner and has seen the evidence required.

The vet must have a completed statement, signed and dated by the owner of the dog or their representative, made on the form set out in the regulations. The vet must see the dam of the dog and a further piece of evidence such as:

a current shotgun or firearms certificate issued to the owner of the dog, or to the agent or employee of the owner most likely to be using the dog for work in connection with the lawful shooting of animals; OR
a letter from a gamekeeper, a land occupier (or his agent), a person with shooting rights, a shoot organiser, a club official, a person representing the National Working Terrier Federation, or a person engaged in lawful pest control, stating that the breeder of the dog whose tail is to be docked is known to him and that dogs bred by that breeder have been used (as the case may be) on his land, or in his shoot, or for pest control.

Although the procedure is the same, the breeds/types of dog which can be docked is different between England and Wales.

In England the following terriers can be docked:

Terriers of any type or combination of types.
In Wales the following terriers can be docked:

Terriers of the following breeds: Jack Russell Terrier, Cairn Terrier, Lakeland Terrier, Norfolk Terrier, but not combinations of breeds;

And, of course, at the end of the day it still remains the prerogative of a veterinary surgeon as to whether (s)he chooses to dock a dog’s tail or not.

US WEBSITE

The Lucas Terrier Club of America's website can be seen at www.lucasterrier.com

If you have any news you would like to include please click the envelope at the bottom of the page to e-mail me and I will include it as soon as possible.