By Lucy Hine
The Australian silky terrier is a versatile little dog which is adored by people all over the world. Extremely loyal, affectionate and gentle, the silky terrier is a perfect family dog that learns quickly and is willing to please, making it an easy dog to train and a great companion.
The silky terrier is a moderately small dog that is very alert, quick and active, making it an excellent watchdog.
This little breed can adapt to almost any environment and is happy in a small backyard as long as it gets walked for at least 30 minutes every day. Normally seen as a toy breed in the show ring, the silky is mainly a working terrier and still has the instinct to hunt and chase mice and rats, so make sure you curb this instinct with lots of ball and Frisbee games.
Australian silky terriers are known for their fine, glossy, long coat which parts in the middle down their back and comes in a rich blue and tan colour. The silky’s coat is relatively easy to clean, making it a great house dog. They are low maintenance and don’t need much clipping or trimming, however grooming your silky once a week will keep its coat in good condition and prevent tangles.
Most believe silkies were developed along the same lines as the Australian terrier, which came from the broken coated terrier. Early records show that a broken coated terrier female of a blue colour was taken from Tasmania to England in the 1820s and bred with a Dandie Dinmont terrier.
Some puppies from these litters were bred to achieve different characteristics, like a softer coat. Later some of these dogs were brought back to Australia where their owners continued to develop and experiment in breeding them. The new breed of silky coated dogs began to spread around Australia, first from Sydney and then further south and even as far away as Broome.
By 1908 the breed had become well-known and came in two sizes ? over six pounds and under 12 pounds. A club was made for the breed in the early 1900s, called the Victorian Silky and Yorkshire Terrier Club, but a year or two later another club was formed in Sydney, which called the dogs the Sydney silky terriers. Eventually the dogs, regardless of which state they lived in, became known as Australian silky terriers.
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