The Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, also known as Soft Coated Wheat-Colored Terrier and Short Haired Wheat-Colored Terrier, is a breed of terrier that originated in Ireland.
It has a medium-sized body, a confident temperament, and a well-balanced physique. It is a working terrier.
Its most distinctive feature is its soft, slightly wavy wheaten-colored coat.
The Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier is outgoing, brave, confident, with strong willpower and alertness. Compared to other terrier breeds, it has slightly weaker aggression, but it is very capable of hunting animals such as otters and badgers.
Originating in Ireland in the 18th century, the Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier is one of the oldest terrier breeds in Ireland. It has been widely raised, especially in the Kerry and Cork regions. However, the exact region of its origin in Ireland has not been determined yet.
Although there is no specific evidence of its origin in the discovered literature, there are many records of terrier breeds that are extremely similar to the Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier. Therefore, we have reason to believe that the breed existed before these records.
This breed has been known to people for over two hundred years, and some people believe that it is an important ancestor of the Kerry Blue Terrier. There is a legend about this breed: when a fleet heading to Spain unfortunately sank off the coast of Ireland, some blue terriers on the ship managed to swim to the shore, where they were welcomed by a breed of wheaten-colored terriers with soft coats.
This dog is very brave, smart, vigilant, and patient, and is suitable for being raised as a family companion and guard dog.
1. Canine Infectious Diseases
Common infectious diseases that dogs are prone to include canine distemper, canine coronavirus, etc. Common clinical manifestations include fever, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, difficulty breathing, bloody stool, purulent eye discharge, dry nose, cracked paws, and other symptoms.
Generally, this type of infectious and fatal disease occurs more often when dogs are weaned or around 1 year old. Puppies have a higher susceptibility rate, lower cure rate, and are more prone to complications.
How to prevent:
When bringing a dog home, it is recommended for the owner to choose a dog through formal channels, vaccinate the dog on time, do regular disinfection in the house, not take the dog out for walks before completing the vaccination, avoid contact with unfamiliar dogs, and do not let others touch the dog's mouth and nose casually.
2. Canine Skin Diseases
Because dogs often wander outside, they are prone to various skin diseases. If a dog is accidentally infected with mites, bacteria, or fungi while outside, there is a risk of long-term and difficult healing. Therefore, owners must pay attention. Clinical manifestations of dog skin diseases include oily skin, peeling, erythema, itching, papules, ulcers, purulent discharge, hair loss, scabs, etc.
How to prevent:
In daily care, it is necessary to keep the dog's living environment clean and tidy, avoid darkness and moisture, regularly disinfect the dog's living environment, do internal and external deworming, use specialized dog bathing liquid, comb the hair regularly, and supplement vitamins and fish oil.
3. Canine Parasites
Common parasites in dogs include roundworms, heartworms, ticks, fleas, etc., which often cause skin diseases and intestinal diseases in dogs, and may cause vomiting and diarrhea, affecting the quality of life and physical development of dogs. Dogs with parasites are usually weak and listless.
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How to prevent:
When feeding, owners need to pay attention and try not to feed dogs non-sterilized raw meat or unknown meat sources. Dogs need to be dewormed internally every 3 months and externally every month. When going out, they need to prevent dogs from eating or licking things randomly, and inspect them carefully after returning home.
Grooming is usually used to remove loose hair and keep the skin clean, reducing the probability of skin diseases and parasitic diseases. It also helps distribute oil evenly on the coat, making it look smoother and more shiny, and makes shampoo easier to penetrate the surface of the skin during bathing.
According to the cleanliness of the dog's body and its metabolism, it is generally recommended to groom 3-5 times a week.
It is best to use a flat-head fine-toothed comb, which is suitable for long, soft, and smooth silky hair.
You can also prepare a flea comb, which is a special fine-toothed comb usually used to remove parasites from the hair. This comb can also be used as a very useful special fine-toothed comb for the face, to remove food debris from around the eyes.
1. Cannot bathe frequently
When bathing a dog, of course, it cannot be too frequent. The frequency of bathing a dog depends on the dog's hygiene situation. In hot weather, it can be bathed one or two more times, and in winter, it can be reduced one or two times. But overall, it should not exceed 5 times. Otherwise, it will damage its fur and skin!
2. Brush regularly
Dogs shed almost every day, especially in spring and autumn. Seasonal shedding is more severe. To promote good hair growth, regular brushing is an important step. Pet owners can use pet-specific brushes to help dogs remove naturally shed hair and avoid knots. Brushing once in the morning and once in the evening, each time for about five minutes is enough.
3. Sunbathe
Sunbathing is beneficial for the growth of a dog's fur. In addition to making the fur more shiny, letting the dog bask in the sun can also help kill bacteria. While sunbathing, the owner can let the dog exercise, which can improve the dog's physical fitness, promote blood circulation, and help grow healthier fur.
4. Deworming
Poor fur condition is often related to parasites. Parasites absorb a large amount of nutrients from the dog's body and compete for nutrients. Therefore, deworming is necessary. It is recommended to do internal and external deworming together. Deworming medication can cause great harm to the dog's gastrointestinal tract, so it is recommended to feed probiotics regularly to alleviate gastrointestinal discomfort.
5. Pay attention to diet
To make the dog have shiny fur, it must have a good nutritional foundation and pay attention to daily diet. On the one hand, feed the dog nutritious and healthy dog food, choose a dog food that is suitable for the dog and is nutritionally adequate to meet the dog's needs. On the other hand, the dog can be fed with an appropriate amount of lean meat, cooked egg yolk, and vegetable oil, etc.
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