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Rus-A-Pei Hybrid Description

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Hybrid Description

The Rus-A-Pei is not a purebred dog. It is a cross between the Jack Russell Terrier and the Shar-Pei. The best way to determine the temperment of a mixed breed is to look up all breeds in the cross. It is possible you can get any combination of any of the characteristics found in either breed. Not all of these designer hybrid dogs being bred are 50% purebred to 50% purebred. It is very common for breeders to breed multi-generational crosses. Please review individual breeds for potential health issues.

Jack Russell Terrier Breed Description - Cross #1

The JRTCA was founded in 1976 by Mrs. Ailsa Crawford, one of the first Jack Russell Terrier breeders in the United States. Ms. Crawford and the early founders of the Jack Russell Terrier Club put a lot of thought into structuring the JRTCA so that work remained front and center.

Towards that end, the club decided that its highest award — the “Bronze Medallion” — would not go to show dogs, but to working dogs that had demonstrated their ability in the field by working at least three of six types of American quarry — red fox, Gray fox, raccoon, groundhog, opossum, or badger in front of a JRTCA-certified field judge. In the show ring the Jack Russell Terrier Club of America decided to ban professional handlers as it was thought this would make the shows less serious (and more fun) while keeping the focus on the essential element of work.

Instead of mandating the kind of narrow conformation ranges demanded by the American Kennel Club for their terrier breeds, the JRTCA decided to divide the diverse world of the Jack Russell Terrier into three coat types (smooth, broken and rough), and two sizes (10 inches tall to 12.5 inches tall, and 12.5 inches tall to 15 inches tall).“Different horses for different courses” became the watchword, with overt recognition that different quarry, different earths, and different climates required different dogs.

Unlike the Kennel Club, the Jack Russell Terrier Club of America also decided to maintain an “open” registry so that new blood might be infused at times. At the same time, the JRTCA discouraged inbreeding and eventually restricted line breeding to a set percentage. To balance off an open-registry with the desire to keep Jack Russell-type dogs looking like Jack Russells, the JRTCA decided not to allow dogs to be registered at birth or to register entire litters. Instead, each adult dog would be photographed from both sides and the front, with each dog admitted to the registry on its own merit. In addition, each dog had to be measured for height and chest span. This last element turned out to be quite important, as it meant that the height and chest measurements of adult dogs were recorded as they were registered. Over time, both height and chest size of adult dogs could be tracked through pedigrees — an essential element of breeding correctly sized working terriers. The JRTCA was not shy about their rationale for these rules: they openly and emphatically opposed Kennel Club registration, maintaining that time had shown that dogs brought into the Kennel Club quickly grew too big and often lost other essential working attributes such as nose, voice, and prey drive.

The Jack Russell Terrier is bred to conform to a conformation show standard. Unlike its close relative, the Parson Russell Terrier, Jack Russell Terriers have noticeably longer legs that are about as tall as the length of the Terrier's body. It is a predominantly white breed with black, tan or tricolor markings and an easy to groom coat which is either smooth or broken (similar to a smooth coat, but with some longer hair on the head, face, legs or body). The breed standard does not recognise a Parson Russell with a curly or rough coat. There is a clear outline with only a hint of eyebrows and beard should the dog be broken coated. They possess moderately thick small "V" shaped drop ears with the tip pointed towards the eyes. The nose of the dog should be black. The normal range of sizes is between 13–14 inches (33–36 cm) tall at the withers, with a weight around 13–17 pounds (5.9–7.7 kg).

The Parson Russell has a relatively square outline, with a body about as long as the dog is tall. Compared to the Jack Russell Terrier the Parson Russell has a longer head and a larger chest along with overall a slightly larger body size. The Parson retains the flat skull but not the elongated shape of the Fox Terrier, and with lower set ears. In addition, the Jack Russell Terrier has a greater variation in size, ranging between 10–15 inches (25–38 cm) in height at the withers. Two hands should be able to span the chest of the dog behind its elbows, with the thumbs at the withers. This is required in show judging, with the judge lifting the dog's front legs gently off the ground in this motion in order to measure the size of the chest. The judges fingers should meet under the chest and the thumbs on top of the spine. The American Kennel Club describes this as a "significant factor and a critical part of the judging process." It is not done to measure the size of the chest, but rather to feel for the correct shape.

Under the show standard, there are several physical points which would be treated as faults in the show ring. These are for the height of the dog at the withers to be outside of the standard range, or for the dog to possess either pricked up ears, a liver or brown colored nose, an overshot or undershot jawline or to have brindle markings.

The AKC used to recognize the Jack Russell Terrier however as of April 1, 2003 they changed the name to Parson Russell Terrier. The breed split into two breeds and now the Jack Russell Terrier and Parson Russell Terrier are considered two different breeds. The Parson's name change is in great part to a lawsuit from the JRTCA to the AKC, when the breed was first allowed registration.

Behavior

The Terrier is a cheerful, merry, devoted and loving dog. It is spirited and obedient, yet absolutely fearless. Careful and amusing, he enjoys games and playing with toys. Stable dogs are friendly and generally kind to children. Children should be taught not to tease or hit the dog. They are intelligent, independent, somewhat stubborn, and they have a strong personality. He makes a devoted, affectionate pet and is easy to train.

He can adjust to life as a house dog provided he gets a lot of much needed exercise. The coat requires little care.

Health

The breed is sporadically prone to dislocation of the kneecaps, inherited eye diseases, deafness and Legg Perthes, a disease of the hip joints of small dog breeds. It is also prone to mast cell tumors.



Shar-Pei Breed Description - Cross #2

The Shar-Pei is a short-coated medium-sized breed of dog, renowned for its excessively wrinkled skin. The breed resembles many dog breeds from the mastiff family; however, it is most closely related to spitz breeds, with the Chow Chow being its closest relative. This is most clearly seen with the two breeds both possessing unique blue-black tongues. This dog falls within the same genetic group as the Chow Chow, the Akita, the Shiba Inu, the Malamute and the Greenland dog.

Adult Shar-Peis typically stand between 44 and 51 centimetres (17 and 20 in) and weigh between 16 and 20 kilograms (35 and 44 lb), they have a short, very harsh coat that can be any solid colour except white, although black, red, fawn and cream are the most common.

The Chinese breed standard states they have clam-shell ears, butterfly nose, melon-shaped head, grandmotherly face, water buffalo neck, horse's buttocks and dragon's legs. The breed's head is relatively large compared to its body with a broad muzzle that usually darker than the rest of the coat and well padded causing a bulge at its base, the ears are set wide apart and are small and triangular, and the eyes are set very deeply into the folds of skin on the head. The breed has straight, well boned, muscular legs below sloping shoulders and a medium length broad tail that is curled over their back in a manner typical of spitz-type dogs.

Behavior

Shar-Pei puppies need early socialization with children, strangers, and other animals. Like other fighting breeds, they can be stubborn, strong-willed and very territorial. Early training can help control these traits before they become problem behaviors. Some people may experience a sensitivity to the harshness of the coat of either length. This is a mild, short-lived rash that can develop on the skin that has been in contact with the coat, most commonly on the forearms.

The Shar Pei is often suspicious of strangers, which pertains to their origin as a guard dog. It is a very independent and reserved breed. Nevertheless, the Shar-Pei is extremely devoted, loyal and affectionate to its family and is amenable to accepting strangers given time and proper introduction at a young age. If poorly socialized or trained, it can become especially territorial and aggressive. Even friendly and well-socialized individuals will retain the breed's watch dog proclivities (like barking at strangers). It is a largely silent breed, barking only when it is playing or worried. The Shar-Pei were originally bred as palace guards in China. The breed is amenable to training but can be very stubborn. With repetition and a clear reward system, training is not very difficult. Overall, the Shar Pei can be a dog that is loyal and loving to its family while being very protective and independent.

This breed makes a good house dog as long as daily exercise is provided. Weekly brushing is sufficient. This dog must be kept extremely clean, and the folds in his loose skin require special care.

Health

Because of its popularity after being introduced to North America in the 1970s, the breed suffered much inexperienced or rushed breeding. This resulted in not only a dramatically different look for the Shar Pei (as its most distinctive features, including its wrinkles and rounded snout, were exaggerated), but also many health problems. The American breed club states that few Shar-Peis reach the age of 10 and it has a longevity program recording those dogs that live to 10 years or more.

Compared to other breeds, Shar Peis have an increased risk of developing atopic dermatitis, a chronic allergic skin disease. Dogs with allergic skin disease often get allergy-induced skin infections. Shar Peis are also at an increased risk of demodicosis, a disease which happens when Demodex canis mites proliferate and cause skin irritation, inflammation and infection.

Familial Shar-Pei fever (FSF) is a serious congenital disease that causes short fevers lasting from 24 hours to sometimes up to three days and usually accompanied by accumulation of fluid around the ankles (called Swollen Hock Syndrome). Amyloidosis, a long-term condition, is most likely related to FSF, caused by unprocessed amyloid proteins depositing in the organs, most often in the kidneys or liver, leading eventually to kidney failure. The disease is associated with the Western type and it is estimated that 23% are affected. The Australian breed standard was changed in 2009 to discourage breeding for heavy wrinkling.

A common problem is a painful eye condition, entropion, in which the eyelashes curl inward, irritating the eye. If untreated, it can cause blindness. This condition can be fixed by surgery, "tacking" the eyelids up so they will not roll onto the eyeball for puppies or surgically removing extra skin in adolescent and older Shar-Peis. In Australia, more than eight in 10 Shar Peis require surgery to correct eye problems, contributing to them being the most expensive breed to insure.

The Shar Pei is also prone to chronic yeast infections in its ears. This is due to a tight inner ear structure with a wrinkled appearance, making cleaning very difficult; exacerbated by the tight "flap" that the ear creates over the canal, promoting a moist environment.

Vitamin B12 deficiency is a common problem in the Shar-Pei and is suspected to be hereditary.


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