Looking under the skirt—managing coat in the evaluation of substance in the SCWT” - Guillermo Rueda – Trébol.
A soft, silky coat may be the hallmark of Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier (SCWT) standard, but the variety of coat types will often complicate a comprehensive appraisal of this sporting terrier.
Our standard calls for “an abundant single coat covering the entire body, legs and head; coat on the latter falls forward to shade the eyes. Texture soft and silky with a gentle wave.” But this description, importantly, is that of a mature dog and is not always evident in puppies, adolescents and many dogs under 3 years of age.
Outside of our breeder community, it seems little known that coats present in two distinct types: Irish type and "heavy" type.
Although not exclusively so, the latter has been associated with US breeding. And while Irish coats in the US may not be common, we now understand that the Irish coat is the product of the dominant gene and what is called the heavy or US coat, is recessive. Both coat types will present with gene modifiers that govern the variations in density, wave, color, shine, etc. and both coat types should be equally measured against the standard. The heavy coat will not typically present the depth of shine or wave seen in the coat of origin--a fact that can't be negated as incidental. However, one coat type does not automatically trump another.
Most exhibits in USA displaying the "heavy" plushier, what can be considered standaway, coats will exit the ring well before maturity when coats could be more appropriately compared to the Standard. Shown beyond adolescence and a champion’s title, their progression into maturity is markedly different from their Irish cousins, and these differences should be understood in how they affect one's evaluation.
However, judges and breeders who do not have experience with the progression of an Irish coat may not understand that it can start short, smooth and harsh, giving an impression of a young hard coated Terrier. In the ring, these coats are often faulted lacking in abundance or in adolescence as too wavy compared to their "heavy" brothers.
The typical Irish coat type is very sparse for the first 12 to 24 months, only to achieve the signature shine and requested abundance after 36 months of age. One cannot penalize the lack of hair in a young Irish coat as lacking abundance any more than a straight "heavy" puppy coat should be penalized for its plushness and density.
Importantly, the reader should consider how differences in coat type will affect the objective evaluation of young dogs [especially]. Too often, dogs with less coat that do not differ in structure are discarded for what is in plain sight and not hidden under a veil of mystery—the filter provided by the coat.
With regards to size, proportion and substance, the Standard requests that “A dog shall be 18 to 19 inches at the withers, the ideal being 18½ [and that] a bitch shall be 17 to 18 inches at the withers, the ideal being 17½…. [It is] square in outline. Hardy, well balanced. Dogs should weigh 35 to 40 pounds; bitches 30 to 35 pounds." This fact is sometimes too casually dismissed. As breeders, we need to understand what an 18” dog that weighs 35 lbs or a 30-lb,17” bitch feels like. These measures are NOT independent of each other. Size and weight are interconnected. One needs to consider how even one pound affects the perception of both size and substance and how much coat will play into their perception.
Understanding that we must avail ourselves of tools like wickets, scales and calipers outside the ring, size and proportion of the SCWT are generally summed up visually in the ring. Substance, on the other hand, must be informed by the hand. We must be rigorous in this detail. It is paramount to our dogs’ function. The eye, adjusted to seeing mostly fuller coats, will naturally equate substance with outline and apparent mass provided by a coat. Dogs with less body can carry more coat and through their presentation in the ring over the years have visually established what is perceived as acceptable substance and balance. Conversely, a dog of proper substance and with a more plentiful or standaway coat can appear coarse and overdone. A narrow focus on coat can make other features of the Standard easily excused as secondary or unimportant.
Taken a step further, dogs of equal substance will appear quite differently and a dog with an Irish coat can be interpreted as underweight or slight when comparing traits to a similar heavy coated cousin. This should serve to remind us that to balance our exam of future breeding stock, we must learn when the information gleaned by our hands should take precedence over that gained from our eyes.
