But who is the Skye?

The Skye terrier is certainly one of the oldest canine breeds of the west coast of Scotland. Originally, the region was
populated by the natives of the island and was then invaded by the Vikings, the two peoples saw dogs living in the
Wild on the island as domestic animals and adopted some of those. For centuries, men have used dogs to protect their houses or farms against Vermin as rats, foxes, badgers.…

The Skye in history:

In the mid-fifteenth century, English writers began to use in their books the word "terrier" to describe all
dogs hunted vermin.
In the 16th century, John Caius, the official doctor of Edward VI, of the queen Mary I, and of the Queen Elizabeth I, withdrew from his duties as doctor of the royalty and became "Master of Gon City ", College teacher at the University of Cambridge in 1559. He was passionate about the different varieties of dogs present in England and he has written a book entitled "of English Dogges," published in 1570. Because Scotland is a independent country , the Treaty of Caius doesn't include Scottish dogs, except for a reference to a scot dog with a long coat.
"The utility and the atypical physical of this long fleece suit terrier graded it in the category of alien dogs. These dogs who lived on the island had a particular physical with their long rough coat, extraordinary look accentuated by their length body and long fringes of the face which didn't leave anything to appear of the face itself. These dogs interested so much the people of the Isle that they were the only ones allowed in the room of their master. The men's vision towards their dog was changing, they had now enjoy to live with their own dogs in the life of every days and stopped to see him, just as an utility animal.. Things had changed quickly especially the men's opinions considering the dog differently.
He had forgotten that dogs were not perfect in general, this was especially true in the noble classes of society than among craftsmen, but why could we assist suddenly at this interest for dogs in general? Was is because the farmers discover, in first, that dogs could be so intelligent, so clever and so usefully that they became almost perfect. " The first dog to be exported from the north territories was Beggerly, which was watched with such  fascination and wonder that aroused in us the first man The moon!
The Skye terrier is differentiated in the Treaty of Caius than the other terrier breeds in reason of his long hair, the passage where he mentioned " The length of their hair completely hide their bodies and face "is the first allusion to our Skye Terrier.
However, Caius also described the hair on our dog as "waved" an adjective that does not correspond any more to the breed today.  Another old legend locates the origin of Skye Terrier during a certain night of 1588 during which died on the  isle's coast, a Caravel boat called the "Invincible Armada".from which  a Maltese pet could escape and came to meet  the local terriers living already on the this isle.
Smith mentioned this story in his Natural History of dogs in 1939, and Beeton, more commonly known as Stonenge, resumed this
History in his book "Quillick the Skye" (dog in the heath and disease (1859): "In a period of great storm, one day, In 1588, a caravel of the "invincible" Armada came crashing on the rocks of Canal Minch.
It is said that among the survivors of the sinking were dogs of the equipage, some kind of dog with long abundant hairs, dogs type Epagneul or type Maltese.
These feature dogs would then be married with local terriers and have produced the ancestors of our current Skye Terriers "
In reality, we have no scientific way whether the Spanish sailors had actually boarded dogs, but however bones of dogs have been discovered aboard the "Mary Rose".an English warship that ran aground in 1545.

Another legend of the 16th century brings another version about the beginnings of the breed of Skye terriers, which seems more realistic  than the Spanish gallion's legend and must keep our attention. In 1568, the Catholic Queen of Scots, Mary, was obliged to abdicate of her throne to his son. Mary left England and went to live with her cousin, the Queen Elizabeth I, which put her n prison.
During his incarceration, Mary has acquired a Skye Terrier. In 1586, Mary was recognized guilty of conspiring against the
Queen Elizabeth I, her cousin, which immediately signed the death execution of Queen Mary I. Mary I, Queen of Scots, was
Decapitated on the 8 of February, 1587, at the castle of Fortheringay. When the guards attempted to remove his body, they discovered the Skye Terrier hiding in her skirts. stained by the blood of the queen, the Skye refused to move and began to scream.
The ministers of Elizabeth I burned the remains of the personal things of the Queen Mary, because they suspected that in reason of her strong catholic faith, her personal effects could take a sacred character, they also ordered that each of his clothes is burned and
The place where that took place performance is carefully cleaned and rubbed…
Several of the guards managed to capture the Skye and cleaned the little dog, full of distress, refused to eat anything.
It is reported that Queen Elizabeth I was very upset by the persistence and dedication of this dog to his owner of this dog and ordered to feed the dog willingly or forcibly. But the little Skye was not impress provided and camped on its position. The
Legend says that the little dog continued to cry his mistress and finally died.
In the seventeenth century, the island is still isolated and insulated from  hazards of history: Walter Scott described it in his Rob Roy as "A wild world filled with rocks, caves, forests, rivers, mountains, so high that the wings of the devil himself would be tired if he wanted to fly to the top "Some filiations are beginning to be mentioned in official documents. Towards 1740, Georg Maim mentions in the story of his trip on the Isle of Skye that hunting foxes are practiced and precise It took place in the following manner: Initially we sent two or three pairs of fox terriers then, and only then, it let go the "log terriers"," thereby hear the Skye terriers, to finish the job and bring out the animal out of its burrow. When the party 's announced too long, riders wore the Skye on their horses to avoid unnecessary fatigue and posed by land, for their final task…
It seems that this would be the nineteenth century that Skye Terriers are beginning to go abroad, where the Lord of the island offered of a couple of these fabulous dogs to the Duke of Argyll. Then, he decided to breed them, and decided to offer the product of his work to many people of his entourage… The great boom? Utopia…
Until the end of the eighteenth There is no more information concerning the Skye terrier's breed, which could give us precious details to understand the past of our dog. . In the writings of that period, the authors speak very often about the Scottish terriers but nowhere they named them as Skye Terriers.
The first specific reference indicating the Skye terrier was made in the work of Hd Richardson in 1847. "The Skye Terrier, and
Appointed was described as being the most perfect discovered in the western islands of Scotland, and on the Isle of Skye in particular. ".
But until 1861, Skye continued to be exposed canines in exhibitions under the name "Scottish terriers" Until the canine exhibition in Manchester where a class by itself is created for Skye terriers.
The popularity of Skye terrier definitely came in the early nineteenth century. In 1844, no doubt that the name of Mrs Pratt and the history of the dog, notified the real begin of the popularity of this breed . She used to go for a walk, every day,  with a pair of Skye
In Hyde Park, one day when her dogs began to run after a badger and caught it before it has time to enter in his hole.. This hunt, described as While sporting, by an admirative London, which was certainly not accustomed to see a spectacle in the center of the city, is reported to Queen Victoria… The queen wanted absolutely to meet these famous dogs, she falls in love, finally Mrs. Pratt was obliged to give one of her dog to the queen, her male named Islay.
The paintings made for the royal family by Sir Edwin Landseer, and the sculpture of Queen conducted by William Nicholson
shows the image of the Skye Terrier.
The Skye Terrier has become the pet of choice of the nobility. During 1890, duchesses would almost ashamed if they had not been accompanied during their walks into the park by their long terrier, outward signs of wealth and popularity. This has contributed greatly to the evolution of the breed in people's minds. The small Skye fighter vermin became a beautiful, tall and elegant dog has to
A long fleece that required some respects, and some care.
Some research has indicated that some Epagneuls may have been crossed with Skye to improve the quality of their coat.
Curiously, changes in the physical appearance of Skye terrier to make it more sophisticated and giving it a look more precious have certainly contributed to decline of the public's enthusiasm for the breed.
Later, in the19th century, most of Skyes was so big and broad shoulders that they were unable to go hunting Terrier, and the cares necessaries to have a long coat rendered it unfit to use it as a hunter.
Little by little, farmers have replaced their Skye by other breeds of terriers more rustic and more functional. Persons High society had abandoned the race and chose another favorite dog, poor Skye..., who was no longer in their Eye, dog in vogue, long before the death of Queen Victoria in 1901
In the 20 th century, Skye terriers have never been even more famous in the public eye as their ancestors, but never mind
after all, it is well known that the phenomenon of fashion creates a race that is rarely beneficial to the latter. The real
Lovers Skyes Terriers were pleased to constat this phenomena, let them time to work more on the blood lines.... These fans are no longer Only English or Scottish, no, the Skye terrier had become international.
In the twentieth century as in the past century, dogs of the Isle of Skye continued to be presented at canines exhibitions in Britain. Each year, it's just Nearly 200 babies Skyes who see the light of day. Thirty eight Skyes were enrolled in the canine exhibition of Crufts in 1998. Unfortunately, Skye Terrier never has been better devoted dog exposure (BIS) since this distinction has emerged, however,
Twice he was crowned best in the terrier group. In 1907, it was the Skye of Mr. Claude Alexander "Wee Mack Adel", who won
The group. In 1974, the second Skye to win a group was the dog "CH Silhill Silver Secret" to Mrs. S. Atkinson. A party of
The best English and Scots Skye were expatriated to the world to become the founders of the race everuwhere in the world.
The evolution of the  breed was seriously disrupted during the two world wars but thanks to the eagerness of some
Passionate, strong blood lines have been preserved and the breeding of quality Skye has been able to follow its progress after wars...

The Skye today:

Today, there are breeders of Skye terriers in France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Poland, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Canada, the USA, etc..…
The first Skye terrier officially registered by the American Kennel Club (AKC) was the dog "Romarch" in 1884. The breed was
presented at the most prestigious exhibition of the country. The creation of the American Skye Terrier Club (STCA) was salutary to
the development of the breed both in terms of quality and in terms of its distribution. Therefore from the beginning of the year 1938,
STCA members have devoted their time and energy to promulgate the breed of Skye. The club members reserve a warm welcome and encourages the curious to take information about the Skye Terrier directly from the club itself.
The headquarters of the club is based New York. Nowadays, with the advent of new technologies, the club's American Skye terrier
touchs many more people by having its own site, with email and telephone line.
Since the early 40, Skye terrier has a stable evolution . Each year, between 100 and 150 babies are Skye see the day and are listed on the American Kennel Club register. In the early 60's, we even witnessed a surge of race caused by the Walt Disney's film . The film recounted the story of Greyfriars Bobby, a Skye Terrier belonging to a shepherd. When the shepherd died, his dog full of distress, spent its whole life to sleep in the cemetery near his owner.... A statue has been erected in his memory at the entrance to the cemetery in Edinburgh. This media had a bad impact on the breed by pushing the temptation breeders to multiply by four production this year, with all the problems we can imagine.. This new celebrity refond gave to the breed a new award at Westminster. A Skye terrier obtained a BIS for the first time in the breed story, this high title was won by Walter Goodman for his dog "CH GLAMOUR Good news"...In 1996, another beautiful black Skye, CH FIINSKY Oliver (Finland), became very famous by winning the Terrier Group at Westminster.
During the last 25 years, registration has been nearly constant number of 125 births.
In 1997, it was still registered a slight increase with 137 births.
In 1998, it is more than 111 Skyes who were enrolled at the American Kennel Club.
In 1999, more than 75 Skyes which were presented at the Cruft, with the consecration of the best female lice, since Exported to France, Mariquita Braveaddition.
Farmers today's absolutely no regret the lack of enthusiasm for their race, they prefer to produce it confidentially for real lover.
All unscrupulous breeders and conscientious of Skyes fear, in fact, to see their race suffer from a phenomenon of fashion.
Recently, dalmatiens suffered from the release on the screens of the Walt Disney's cartoon "101 Dalmatians" , which took effect
Deplorable on the quality of their race, too widely, sold without any care. Indeed, Adults and Children dreamed to tight in their arms the adorable puppy they had seen in the film, but few disappointed and surprised to constat the difference between a dog in a cartoon and an alive animal.
This kind of purchase are very often followed of a tragedy, dogs have been  often let down and abandoned in the SPA or given to special animal protection associations. Its important, to produce the Skye Terrier, little by little to have time to choose the perfect home for him…

But in France, then?

A small trace of Skye in the history of France passed almost unnoticed, James H. Offer offered  to Louis XIV a couple each Scottish terriers, which included of course a couple of Skye Terrier. But this gift didn't let any memories in the French story . Nothing after, in the book speaks about the breed in France, it has disappeared...
Today, in France on Skye goes wrong… What sacrilege when you think that all the great breeders of this world have built their
kennel on French origins, such as "From Chamardière", "Mandane", "Luchar", "Ricelaine", "Du petit Tanagra", "Neuville Mousseaux", "Saint Lubin" and many others…. We remember these fabulous American champions Jacinthe of Ricelaine, Bistro Saint Lubin, Jimmy of Ricelaine, Evening Star Luchar, You'll do the Luchar that gave the basis of the greatest pedigrees in America… Whether we remain there for good legacy? Nothing, absolutely nothing,
Apart from one or two pale descendants because I must admit they are far removed from the original type. We are more interested by our own person. I remind my discussion in 2000 with Nicole TRELUT, breeder "Mousseaux" Neuville told me that she preferred having a Dandie Dinmont Terrier, when she had to take a dog, because Skye was dead and she found that everything she saw resembled no more to the real Skyes.

I thought it was a little hard for us, I still had illusions, but I am forced to see that she was right ... Our ancestors have left us a gold heritage but we  weren't able to keep it and to work with it... What a tragedy… The quality of our dogs is far from spectacular, with a few exceptions ... The bonds are so pale, lost the beautiful pigmentation because we were attached to product some cream dogs, nevermind the important rules of colors: the precepts of our ancestors, their recipe for success: a blonde did not marry a blond… The backs are hollow and / or undulate
An hugely top line which waved when they are moving but the most important still to have a mountain of hair, but anyway with a smile, and with a compliment to the judge, dogs become… Champions and breed dogs who have their backs even more hollow and so forth, pathetic, just pathetic… Sometimes, females like males… Dogs have become heavy and fat, no neck because in the
Grease, when we know that in the standard it is clear that the Skye should slide gracefully on a ring… Gliding gracefully,
Ah, what a beautiful image… We see now Skye with back legs like the rabbits, walking with the two back legs going together...,
Both legs at the same time and then it starts to have the hind legs which describe the funny movement will eventually
Knock on one another but never mind, but no stress, because everything is hidden under the hair…. And most importantly will allow to bite judges even it had disappeared, the default comes back very quickly…
Nowdays, only one or two breeder are interested to produce and to work on the breed. There's no agreement between breeders, 'one for all and all for one" as we say in France...We are not able to work together, to watch in the same direction when to be driven by the same passion: the Skye Terrier. It's a pity for the breed... The skye is alone among a person group, unable to progress..... The race has always been produced confidentially because people need to be some real passionate people and need a lot of personal work to progress.... In the early 80, births registered with the Societe Centrale Canine (French Canine Sovciety) counted painfully 50 births per year. However starting ears 85, several people took passion for the breed and decided to breed Skyes terriers and try to do a nice work for the breed.. I'm speaking about kennels Des Donades, Of Miss Liberty, Du Pont de Constantine, Small Grys, Des Vallées Engissoises ...and so on.… The breed gave the illusion to rebirth with peaks of birth of up to 209 subjects for the year 89. This craze, lasted until 1992, births exceeding 150 subjects annually. But from 1993, the descent into hell began,
Number of births continues to fall dangerously. Many kennels disappeared on account of the ambiance in exhibition
too hard and unjust, puppies that are selling poorly and Skye still has the horrible reputation as a difficult character dog, which
damaged the Skye's popularity ...even if now are able to see some real gentlemen Skyes terriers, the mentality about the breed is not easy to change..., However, Judges take pleasure to judge them, they are not so afraid than in the past. This is the result of hard work of genetic selection that gave this result little by little..
Wrong excuses and nonsense, why so many wrong excuses? I do not think that the 209 babies born in 1989 have been more difficult to place in good families, in fact people are not courageous enough to support the breeding constraint… It's a pity to constat that our show dogs in general, are very far from the engravings of great champions printed on glossy paper and living abroad…
The birth of the new century sign the breed's death , some years, it is only one litter which is produced in our country, sometimes two.... Bitches produce less and less puppies in each litter, we are obliged to constat that the Skye goes wrong…
Today, with almost 7 births per year, 96% less than in the years 80-90, Skye terrier can't Survive. The blood lines need to be renewed year after year and the poor number of birth doesn't allow to change the existing blood... The wait is long for people who want to have a Skye puppy, some of them prefer to import of dog from abroad
It's also a pity to constat that these peoples prefer sometimes to buy another breed, tired to wait their Skye puppy....… We must react because with 96% less of Skyes births, the breed won't survive in our country very longer, and especially our blood line couldn't be renewed and the quality of our dog will become very poor year after year can not happen again now as it should

If We really love our breed, the Skye Terrier, we must prove iour love to the breed…