The Skye Terrier breed comes originally from the Isle of Skye although it was also found on the Isle of Lewis, Oronsay, Colonsay and others of the Hebrides and indeed on the mainland of Scotland and is thought to date back to the 1600’s. Bred for hunting small vermin and ‘going to ground’ it was imperative that these little dogs were short in height with long and lithe bodies, ample face fringes to fend of an attack to their eyes and possessed of unlimited ‘pluck and dash’. At this point the Skye existed in many different colours from pure white to fawn, brown, blue-grey and black with the lighter dogs having black muzzles, ears and tails. The Skye’s of this time were considerably different to the ones today; modern day Skye’s are larger all round with particular increases to skull size and body length and profuseness of coat and fringes. |
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The Skye’s existed in relative quietness until about 1860 when they began to become more popular among fanciers south of the Scottish border. Queen Victoria admired the breed from 1842 onwards and she was consistently in possession of a Skye; Sir Edwin Landeer’s paintings also worked to introduce the decorative and useful aspects of the Skye to the general public. Skye’s appeared in the first volume of the Kennel Club Stud Book with the best among the earlier dogs being Mr. Pratt’s Gillie and Dunvegan, Mr. John Bowman’s Dandie and Mr. Macdonald’s Rook which were mostly of the drop eared variety and deliberately bred small. |
The breeding of the Skye Terrier while long, has not been as intense as the breeding of some of its Scottish relatives: a mere 30 Skye puppies were registered with the Kennel Club in 2005. It is this that has afforded the Skye’s inclusion on the Vulnerable Breeds Register, along with some of its cousins.
Although the Skye is not as popular today, there have been some famous owners in the past and it is through these that many of the Skye’s good traits have been brought to public attention.
Mary Queen of Scots, after being imprisoned for nineteen years was beheaded on the 8th February 1587. While her clothes were removed after the execution her faithful Skye Terrier crept from under her skirt and lay beside her head. Although the dog was removed and bathed it refused to eat and eventually died of a broken heart.
Nearly three hundred years later, during the Indian Massacre of Cawnpore in 1857 it was reported by witnesses that sepoys stole guns, rupees, gold watches and Skye Terriers. It seems incredible that Skye’s should have ventured as far as India but many soldiers and their families from Edinburgh were involved in the mutiny and the Skye was at its peak of popularity.
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Undoubtedly the most famous Skye Terrier of them all is Greyfriars Bobby who, when his owner John Gray passed away in 1858 sat vigil over the grave until his own death fourteen years later. It is reported that people would stand at the entrance to the graveyard waiting for the one o’clock gun which signalled the appearance of Bobby as he left the grave for his midday meal. |
