HISTORY OF THE BIEWER YORKIE

BY: Nancy Anderson

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To accurately describe the history of the Biewer Yorkie we will have to start with the development of the Yorkshire Terrier.  The Yorkshire Terrier origin begins in England in 1886 in the districts of Yorkshire but whose ancestry is of  half Scotland descent.    For the purpose of this article we feel the need to revert back to the dogs that were used to develop the breed so a clear understanding is achieved as to the breeds used and their role in the development of the dog we know today.

The first unofficial named breed to be associated with the Yorkshire Terrier was the Waterside Terrier so named for the river banks at the rivers and canals where it's origin began.  The Waterside Terrier was a larger terrier than what the Yorkshire Terrier is today reportedly weighing up to 20 pounds with the fur of shimmering blue/black with the tan markings on the head.   The Waterside Terrier is known today as the Airedale Terrier whose beginnings can be traced back as far as 1853.

Around 1864 the Airedale was referred to as Working, Waterside or Bingley Terriers.  They were shown in ever increasing entries at agricultural shows during the infancy of dog shows.

The Skye Terrier originated centuries ago on the Isle of Skye, Scotland.  Their origin is connected with a shipwreck in the early 1600's in the Scottish Hebrides.  Several Maltese type dogs that survived the wreck  were bred with what is reported to be local Terrier type dogs on the Island of Skye .  The Skye's short, sturdy legs made it a candidate for burrowing to locate underground vermin and it's double coat served it well as protection from injury and fail weather.   They were originally used to control vermin but are used today primarily for companions.  The Skye's weight can be up to 25 pounds.  The breed was first shown in England in 1864.  The first registered Skye with AKC was in 1887.  The breed was quite popular in the mid-1800's when Queen Victoria took a fancy to the breed.   It should also be noted that the Cairn Terrier was known at the turn of the century as "Short-haired Skye Terrier" or "Prick Earred Terrier".

When the Scott's migrated to England during the mining days of the 19th Century during the Industrial Revolution, they brought with them what were called "Scotch Terriers" later classified as Skye Terrier and the Paisley Terrier (also called Clydesdale Terrier).   These two breeds were used to cross with the Waterside Terrier through careful selection to begin 1 bloodline toward the development of what became known today as the Yorkshire Terrier.

The Skye Terrier and Clysdale/Paisley Terrier were one and the same until the 1880's when they were divided into separate breeds based on hair coat texture.  While the Skye Terrier continued to survive the Clysdale/Paisley did not favor as well and became extinct.  

The Clysdale/Paisley strains were the ones probably used the most in the development of the Yorkshire Terrier due to their silkier, long and straight hair coat seen in the Yorkshire Terrier today.  The Clysdale/Paisley also had the erect ear set covered with long silky fringed hair.

In later years it is reported that the black/tan  terrier known today as Manchester Terrier was introduced into the breed by the Scott's using the Skye - black and tan terrier crosses and crossing them with the Waterside Terrier.  This black/tan terrier  was referred to as a crossbred terrier dark brown in color.  This could answer the age ole question of how "Chocolate Yorkshire Terriers" can occur.  This could very well be the limited gene pool for which the Chocolate Yorkies seen today are produced from.

Laws passed in the 11th century required a dog that was owned by the simple people of England to be hunted to be able to fit through a 7 inch diameter tire.  Selective breeding was begun at this time to downsize this versatile yet tenacious dog so that it would be within the limit of the law.   These dog held by the simple people to obey the law were the beginning of the ancestry for the Yorkshire Terrier and were used to hunt rabbits, and catch rats and mice. 

In 1866 these dogs were registered by The Kennel Club (known as AKC today) as "Broken Haired Scotch Terrier" and later changed to be registered as "Yorkshire Terrier" in the year  1874.  Yorkshire was given due to the district of Yorkshire where the dog had the beginning of it's roots and terrier from the Latin term "terra" meaning earth.

IT was not until the 19th century that terriers were given breed distinction.  Prior to 1800 they were labeled as to hair coat/texture/length and placed into loose groups of rough/hard-haired, broken coated, long-legged and short-leg variety.  

It is quite amazing that the smallest documented dog in the world through the Guinness Book of World Records is a 4 ounce Yorkshire Terrier but yet it's origin started from the largest of all the terrier breeds nicknamed "The King of Terriers" the Airedale Terrier.  The recorded dog was at the age of 2 years and stood 2.5 inches at the withers and measured 3 3/4 inches from tip of nose to root of tail.  He was owned by Arthur Marples of Blackburn, Great Britain and died in 1945.

The Kennel Club was created in April of 1873 and was later changed to American Kennel Club in 1884.

The Broken-Haired Scotch Terrier was bench shown in England in 1861, shown through  The Kennel Club in 1872 and became an officially recognized breed in 1878 by The Kennel Club.   

The first Broken Haired Scotch Terrier came to America in the early 1870's.  It was first shown in America in 1872. 

It was during the 1870's that the weight standard was downsized from up to 12 pounds to 3 to 7 pounds in size.

The first known Broken-Haired Scotch Terrier was Huddersfield Ben, Registration # 3612 and lived from 1865-1871.  "Ben" is considered the foundation dog for the later recognized Yorkshire Terrier and produced many outstanding offspring in his too-short lifetime.  Ben was shown in Manchester in 1869.  Ben died on September 23, 1871 at the wheels of a buggy.  He was sired by "Old Bouncer" and his dam was "Lady".  Ben was bred by Mr. W. Eastwood of Huddeersfield and owned by a Bradford woman by the name of Mrs. M.A. Fowler.  Ben won over 70 shows and was also a champion on the rat-catching scale as well.

The earliest record of a Yorkshire Terrier born in the United States was in 1872 being a dog called Jack bred by J. Marriot and sired by Havelock Ex Jessie.  

In the early years as far back as 1872 they were shown in two classes being "over 5 pounds" and "not exceeding 5 pounds".  The original breed standard was for the dogs to be allowed to weigh up to 12 pounds.  

The first Yorkshire Terrier shown at Westminster was in 1878.

The first Yorkshire Terrier club formed in the UK was in 1898.

The first French Yorkshire Terrier Club was formed in 1953.  

The Yorkshire Terrier was recognized by UKC - United Kennel Club in 1956.

The Yorkshire Terrier Club of America was accepted in 1958 as the parent club for AKC.      

The Yorkshire Terrier was not on the top of the popularity breed chart until the 1960's.  It was during this time that the Yorkshire Terrier became widely recognized and show enthusiast and breed clubs took interest and formed.  It was also at this time that the 12 pound and under Yorkshire Terrier was at it's best in health and physical abilities.

AKC has said that the first Yorkshire Terrier made it's first appearance at a bench show in England in 1861 known as "broken-haired Scotch Terrier" .   Since the breed was first recognized as "broken-haired Scotch Terrier" we are led to believe that the Scott's did indeed have a hand in it's development.  

The Biewer Yorkie originated in Germany in 1984 and was a belted/banded genetic recessive gene occurrence exhibiting a specific banded/stripped offspring reportedly produced by Gertrud and Werner Biewer's Yorkshire Terriers.   The sire and dam of the first recognized Biewer Yorkie were reportedly "Darling of Friedheck" and "Frufru of Friedheck" .  

The Biewer's saw this little dog with it's white markings as extraordinarily attractive and began the selective breeding process to produce more.  The Biewer's named these little dogs with their white base coat "Biewer Yorkshire a la Pom Pon".   Thus the beginning of the Biewer Yorkies as we know them today.

The first American Biewer Yorkshire club was established on May 24, 2003 being the BYA.