The Sporting Terrier

Terriers are the most typically British breed of dog: no other country has comparable game sporting dogs. In this comprehensive history of terriers, Brian Plummer starts by looking for the reasons why this should be so. His research takes him back to the late Middle Ages, to the earliest sporting writers. He finds mastiffs, hounds and bassetts, all variously described as contributing to the emergent terrier type. Only in the 19th century did proper identification of the characteristics of the different terrier types start as the local preference for particular qualities -- of coat, of height, of colour -- began to be expressed. There are upwards of twenty types described in this book with vivid stories of the characters among early breeders and sound advice on how the several terrier types may be worked to different quarry. With a typical mix of Plummer wit and controversy this book makes fascinating reading. D Brian Plummer is the author of many books on keeping, training and working with terriers, lurchers and ferrets. His reputation and following has spread beyond the UK and he is recognised as an authority throughout the hunting world.