THE SCHIPPERKE. 



139 



be rotund and full, guinea-pig-like. The 

 continued straight line of a terrier's back 

 is not desirable, but it will frequently be 

 found in specimens that have been docked. 

 The ' tailless breed ' theory is a myth : 

 none of the canida were originally tailless, 

 but the regular removal of the stern for 

 generations will cause any breed that is 

 so operated upon to give birth to tailless 

 pups. This has been the case with Schip- 

 perkes. It is said that a docked dog can 

 be told from one that has been born tailless 

 in this way ; when the docked animal is 

 pleased, a slight movement at the end of the 

 spine where the tail was cut off is discernible, 

 but the naturally tailless dog sways the 

 whole of its hindquarters. The Belgian 

 standard requires the legs to be ' fine,' and 

 not have much bone. The bone of a terrier 

 is only met with in coarse Schipperkes. 

 As to size, it need only be noted that the 

 maximum of the small size, viz., 12 lbs., is 

 that generally preferred in England, as 

 well as in Belgium. Further, it is only 

 necessary to remark that the Schipperke is a 

 dog of quality, of distinct characteristics, 

 cobby in appearance, not long in the back, 

 nor high on the leg ; the muzzle must not 

 be weak and thin, nor short and blunt ; and, 

 finally, he is not a prick-eared, black wire- 

 haired terrier." 



The popularity of the Schipperke in- 

 creased so much in this country that not 

 only did the two original clubs prosper, but 

 it was considered expedient to form the 

 Northern Schipperke Club, which was 

 founded in 1905, and is also doing excellent 

 work. 



The Schipperke's tail, or rather its absence, 

 has been the cause of much discussion, and 

 at one time gave rise to considerable acri- 

 monious feeling amongst fanciers. On the 

 introduction of this dog into Great Britain it 

 arrived from abroad with the reputation of 

 being a tailless breed, but whether Belgian 

 owners accidentally conveyed that impres- 

 sion or did it purposely to give the breed an 

 additional distinction is difficult to say. 

 Anyhow the Schipperke is no more " tail- 

 less " than the old English Sheepdog. 



That is to say a iarger number of individuals 

 are born without any caudal appendage or 

 only a stump of a tail than in any other 

 variety of dogs. 



The present writer was the first to draw 

 attention to the — to say the least of it — 

 undesirable operation which has to be per- 

 formed in order to give a Schipperke with 

 a tail the appearance of having been born 

 tailless, and the deception thereby practised 

 on the public. This resulted in a meeting 

 of representatives of the Schipperke Club 

 with a specially appointed sub-committee of 

 the Kennel Club at which it was agreed upon 

 to substitute and add to the description 

 dealing with the tail the following words :— 



" Tail if not naturally absent may be 

 docked, and a stump of 2 inches is not 

 objected to, but ' carving or gouging out ' 

 is not permissible and shall disqualify." 



At various times it has been attempted 

 to introduce Schipperkes other than black. 



MRS. DEANE WILLIS'S 



CH. BAPTON FOX 



In 1892 Mr. W. R. Temple proposed in 

 the Schipperke Club (England) the admis- 

 sion of chocolate colour to the standard of 

 points, but it was rejected. However, at 

 some recent shows classes for " other 

 coloured " Schipperkes have been given, 

 and some very typical specimens of attrac- 

 tive shades of red and fawn have been ex- 

 hibited. 



