The Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier is a breed of dog originating in Ireland. There are four coat varieties: Traditional Irish, Heavy Irish, English, and American. They are considered to be hypoallergenic, a trait popular with allergic or asthmatic dog owners. These dogs have a single coat which sheds very little hair.
Appearance
Puppies have a dark coat of either red, brown, mahogany or white. The muzzle and ears of Wheaten puppies may be black or dark brown. The dark puppy coat gradually grows out to nearly white before maturing into a wheaten-coloured coat as they get older. The colour can range from wheat to white, but white coats are not considered desirable by breeders and show enthusiasts. The adult coat may contain black, white, or darker brown “guard” hairs in addition to the lighter wheaten-coloured hair. If adults ever have skin injuries the resulting hair growth will be the dark colour of their puppy coat before it eventually grows out to the wheat colour.
The Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier is a medium-sized dog, which ranges on average anywhere from 17 to 19 inches and weighs about 30 to 45 pounds. The breed has a square structure and is well built. Its hair does not shed like most dogs; like human hair and Poodle hair, it keeps growing, needs regular trimming, and drops just a few hairs daily.
The Irish coat tends to be thinner and silkier than the American variety.
Health
Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers are generally a long-life breed. They are susceptible to protein-losing nephropathy (PLN) where the dog loses protein from the kidneys. There is also protein-losing enteropathy where the dog loses protein from the intestines (PLE) Both PLN and PLE are fatal.
These conditions have an unknown mode of inheritance but there are research programs, mainly in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Other wheaten health issues are renal dysplasia, inflammatory bowel disease, Addison’s disease and cancer. Some Wheatens can also suffer from food and environmental allergies.
Temperament
The Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier is an energetic and playful dog. They require patience and consistent positive training. Harsh methods will often result in fear aggression. A positive, even-handed approach works best with these intelligent yet headstrong terriers. They are enthusiastic greeters and will often jump up in order to lick a person’s face, commonly referred to as the “Wheaten greetin'” These dogs do best when they are exercised regularly. They are cool weather dogs and can become easily overheated in hot weather. They are very good with children. If socialised with cats as puppies they will get along fine with them; if not, care should be taken in introducing them to cats. Wheatens get along well with other dogs if properly socialised. They are extremely friendly and loving pets. Wheatens are very protective of their families, and although they may bark an alert at strangers, they rarely get aggressive. Many Wheaten owners thus say that Wheatens make great watch dogs but poor guard dogs.
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