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Kerry Blue Terrier: Breed Temperament, Exercise Needs & Health

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About Kerry Blue Terrier

Country of Origin, History of Kerry Blue Terriers

The Kerry Blue Terrier originated in the 1700's in the mountainous regions of County Kerry from which its name is derived. The Kerry is the national terrier of Ireland (under the name Irish Blue Terrier) and has become a symbol of Ireland.

Kerry Blue Terrier Tools

Breed Selector Tool - is the Kerry Blue Terrier the right breed for you?

Is the Kerry Blue Terrier the right breed for you and your family?

Find out by using our Free Dog Breed Selector Tool

Check Your Kerry Blue Terrier's Learning Style

Are you aware dogs also have a learning style that can greatly affect their ability to housetrain as well as be trained correctly. Evaluate your Kerry Blue Terrier's learning style and personality using our free Learning Style tool so that you are better able to provide him with the proper Kerry Blue Terrier training methods.

Is your Kerry Blue Terrier dominating over you?

Does your Kerry Blue Terrier bark unnecessarily? Does your Kerry Blue Terrier come to you when you call? Download a FREE Report on Dog Dominance for you and your Kerry Blue Terrier and learn how to control your dog.

Do you make these mistakes with your Kerry Blue Terrier?

Are you inadvertently snow-balling bad behavior in your Kerry Blue Terrier? Evaluate your Dog Training Style from our Free Tool and learn how best to deal with your dog.

Kerry Blue Terrier Calorie Calculator

Do you know how many calories your Kerry Blue Terrier needs every day and how many cups of food you should be giving it every day? Click here to use our Kerry Blue Terrier Calorie Calculator.

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Description

The Kerry Blue Terrier is a well-built, muscular, medium-sized dog. Born black at birth the silky, unusually dense and wavy coat changes very dark blue (darker than deep slate) shades or tinges of brown to different shades of blue gray. The long, well-balanced head sports abundant whiskers, beard and eyebrows.

In show dogs, the eyebrows reach all the way to the bridge of the nose. The ears are v-shaped and crease above the skull to fall toward the outside corner of the dark, keen eye. The ears are pasted while the puppy is of teething age to create the necessary crease. The nose is black. Dewclaws are removed, especially those on the hind legs. The limbs are straight with a powerful bone structure. The tail is docked and carried upright.

Height

Dogs 18½-20 inches (46-51 cm.);
Bitches 17½-19 inches (44-48 cm.)

Weight: 33-40 pounds (15-18 kg.)

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Free Kerry Blue Terrier Training Secrets

Free Course on Kerry Blue Terrier Training & Obedience
Stop All Bad Behavior, Excessive Barking and Biting

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Kerry Blue Terrier Personality Traits

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Temperament of the Dog

Vivacious and playful, determined and alert, boisterous and unrepressed, this dog has a way about it that makes people laugh and have fun. The Kerry is a good watchdog, but will not attack without real provocation. A loving, outgoing and friendly family dog, he likes to be with his people, and is affectionate with friends of the family.

The Kerry Blue generally gets along well with other pets if properly introduced and supervised, but tends to be fairly dog aggressive. This breed is protective and should be extensively socialized, especially with other dogs, or he may be quite a handful. They rarely bark unnecessarily.

Kerry Blues put up well in apartments with small yard. They are fairly active indoors.

Exercise & Training

The Kerry Blue is a sporty dog, which needs to be taken out on a daily walk, jog or run. They retain this vigor all their lives. They enjoy roughhousing. Kerry Blues require a confident owner and need firm obedience training. These dogs are intelligent, have a very good memory, and are somewhat willful with minds of their own. They have an aptitude for sports such as catch and agility training, but make sure the dog enjoys the challenge. If its lessons are too routine for the Kerry Blue, its stubbornness will show.

Grooming

Kerries should be groomed every 6 weeks professionally, plus bathing, brushing and combing once a week. They also need to have the hair pulled out of the ear canal, as they are prone to ear infections when the ear hair gets too long and wax and dirt have built up. The Kerry Blue sheds little to no hair and is odorless, even when wet. So they are considered good for allergy sufferers.

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Free Kerry Blue Terrier Training Secrets

Free Course on Kerry Blue Terrier Training & Obedience
Stop All Bad Behavior, Excessive Barking and Biting

Sign Up Here

Health and Care

They are prone to eye problems such as Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (dry eyes), cataracts, and entropion. They sometimes get cysts or cancerous growths in their skin, but these are rarely malignant. Hip dysplasia, spiculosis, hypothyroidism, cryptorchidism have also been reported. Progressive neuronal abiotrophy (PNA) is also seen. This condition is also referred to as Cerebellar cortical abiotrophy (CCA) or Cerebellar Abiotrophy (CA). PNA is a disease of the nervous system, in which the cerebellum loses its ability to coordinate movement.

Life Expectancy: 12-15 years.

National Breed Clubs

Breed Club: www.uskbtc.com

Rescue Link: www.uskbtc.com/category.php/9

Group: Terrier Group.

AKC Popularity Ranking: 129

Also Known As: Irish Blue Terrier

Train Your Kerry Blue Terrier To Listen To You

Get Instant Access to Your Training Now - For Free

Sign up for our Free Kerry Blue Terrier Mini Course to have a housebroken, obedient dog that happily comes to you every time you call.

You'll learn new commands to obedience-train your dog as well as how to housebreak your dog in 6 days or less.

You'll also learn how to eliminate bad habits like barking, nipping or biting, jumping, or pulling on the leash.Here's just s small fraction of what else you'll learn in the course:

  • How to lead and think like a pack dog - the new psychology.

  • 3 dangerous mistakes that most Irish Blue Terrier owners make when they are trying to potty train their dogs.

  • The 2 main reasons why your dog barks excessively and how to control its excessive barking.

  • How to obedience train your Kerry Blue Terrier to permanently end behavioral problems like Jumping, Aggression, Pulling on Leash.

  • A surprisingly easy way to teach your dog cool new tricks.

  • How to improve your dog's lifespan and keep it from getting overly heavy with a healthy and nutritious diet.

  • Getting Pro help fast - how to get access to our expert trainers when you need them most.

  • One hidden psychological trigger that all Kerry Blue Terriers have... that practically allows you to "analyze" and "control" your dog's every action.

  • Priority access to the free online seminars conducted by our training experts.

Whereas other dog training related web sites and books offer generic information for dogs in general, ours is the ONLY web site that offers Irish Blue Terrier information specifically, from a renowned panel of experts - because as you probably know, Irish Blue Terriers have their own special training requirements that other dogs don't have.

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Our Dog Experts

The Kerry Blue Terrier training information you will read here was developed by a panel of renowned dog training experts whose combined wisdom represents nearly 100 years of specialist experience training dogs.

Here are a few of our experts:

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