Welcome to the I Can't Sleep Podcast,
Where I help you drift off one fact at a time.
I'm your host Benjamin Boster,
And today's episode is about the West Highland White Terrier.
Thanks to Kate for sponsoring today's episode.
Today is her birthday and she says,
My Westie Freddy is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
The West Highland White Terrier,
Commonly shortened to Westie,
Is a Scottish dog breed with a distinctive white harsh coat and somewhat soft white undercoat.
It is a medium-sized terrier,
But has longer legs than other Scottish terriers.
It has a white double coat of fur,
Which fills out its face,
Giving it a rounded appearance.
The Westie is intelligent and quick to learn.
It is social and can be good with children,
But rarely tolerates rough handling and sometimes prefers solitude.
Having been bred to hunt small rodents on farms,
It is an energetic and boisterous breed,
With a high prey drive,
And thus needs regular exercise of around one hour per day.
The modern breed is descended from a number of pre-20th century breeding programs of white terriers in Scotland.
Edward Donald Malcolm,
16th Laird of Potallac,
Is credited with the creation of the modern breed from his Potallac Terrier,
But did not want to be known as such.
The Westie is a cousin of the Cairn Terrier,
And is related to other breeds such as the Rosineth Terrier,
Bred by George Campbell,
8th Duke of Argyle,
And Pitimwim Terrier,
Bred by Amrek Edwin Flaxman.
The Westy was given its modern name for the first time in 1908,
With recognition by major kennel clubs occurring around the same time.
The breed remains very popular in the United Kingdom with multiple wins at Crufts and has been in the top third of all breeds in the United States since the 1960s.
Westies commonly have bright,
Deep-set,
Almond-shaped eyes that are dark in color.
Their ears are pointed and erect.
Westies typically weigh between 15 and 20 pounds,
Or 6.
8 and 9.
1 kilograms,
With an average height between 10 to 11 inches,
Or 25 to 28 centimeters,
At the withers.
The body should be shorter than the height of the dog at the shoulder.
Westies have a black nose,
Deep chest,
Muscular limbs,
And a short,
Closely fitted jaw with scissors bites.
Their paws are slightly turned out to give them better grip than flat-footed breeds when they climb on rocky surfaces.
Young puppies have pink markings on the nose and foot pads that slowly turn black as they age.
Westies also have short and sturdy tails.
Westies have a rough outer coat that can grow to about 2 inches or 5.
1 cm long and a soft thick undercoat.
The fur fills out the face to give it a rounded appearance.
As puppies develop into adults,
Their coarse outer coat is normally removed by either hand stripping,
Especially for dog showing,
Or otherwise clipping.
Most Westies are pure white,
Although there are some light wheat color variations.
The temperament of Westies can vary greatly,
With some being friendly towards children,
And others preferring solitude.
They will not typically tolerate rough handling,
Such as a child pulling on their ears or fur,
And can frequently be both food and toy possessive.
This makes regular training from a young age particularly important.
Westies can make good watchdogs and are normally independent,
Self-assured,
And confident.
They are loyal and bond with their owner,
But are often on the move,
Requiring a minimum of one hour of daily exercise.
Westies are highly social and are the most friendly of all the Scottish Terriers.
A hardy breed,
Westies can be stubborn and cause issues with training,
Potentially requiring their training to be refreshed on occasion during their lifetime.
Having a typical terrier prey drive,
They tend to be highly interested in toys,
Especially chasing balls.
They retain the instincts of an earth dog,
Such as being inquisitive and investigative,
As well as natural instincts to bark and dig holes.
Westies are tied for 47th place with the Scottish Deerhound in Stanley Coren's 1994 book,
The Intelligence of Dogs,
Which designates them as being of average working obedience intelligence and places them almost exactly in the middle of the list.
A 2015 French study found a life expectancy of 12.
93 years,
While a 2024 British study found a life expectancy of 13.
4 years,
Averaging 12.
7 years for purebreeds and 12 years for crossbreeds.
The typical litter size is between 3 and 5 puppies.
Scottish white terriers were recorded as early as during the reign of James VI of Scotland,
Who reigned between 1567 and 1625.
The king ordered that a dozen of these white terriers be procured from Argyle to be presented to the kingdom of France as a gift.
Sandy and brindle-colored dogs were seen as hardier than those of other colors,
And white dogs were seen as being weak.
At various times during the breed's existence,
It has been considered a white offshoot of both the Scottish Terrier and the Cairn Terrier breeds.
Reports of a ship from the Spanish Armada being wracked on the island of Skye in 1588 indicated the ship carried white Spanish dogs,
Whose descendants were kept distinct from other breeds by Clan Donald,
Including the families of the chiefs.
Other families on Skye preserved both white and sandy colored dogs.
One such family was the Clan MacLeod,
And it was reported by their descendants that at least two chiefs kept white terriers,
Including the Wicked Man,
Norman MacLeod,
And his grandson,
Norman,
Who became chief after his death.
George Campbell,
8th Duke of Argyll,
Chief of Clan Campbell,
Bred a breed of White Scottish Terriers known as the Rosineth Terrier.
Another breed of white Scottish Terriers also appeared at this point,
With Dr.
Amrik Edwin Flaxman from Five,
Developing his line of Pittenwing Terriers out of a female Scottish Terrier,
Which produced white offspring.
A dog seemed to produce these white puppies regardless of the sire to which she was bred.
He rededicated his breeding program to produce white Scottish Terriers with the aim of restoring it to the same stature as the dark-colored breed.
Plaxman is credited with classes being added to dog shows for white Scottish Terriers towards the end of the 19th century.
The person most closely associated with developing the modern breed of West Highland White Terrier is Edward Donald Malcolm,
16th Laird of Potallack.
Malcolm owned terriers used to work game.
The story told is that a reddish-brown terrier was mistaken for a fox.
Following this,
Malcolm decided to develop a white terrier breed,
Which became known as the Potallic Terrier.
The first generation of Potallax had sandy colored coats and had already developed prick ears which is a trade seen later in the modern breed.
It is unknown if the Petallic Terriers and Pitt and William Terriers were interbred.
In 1903,
Malcolm declared that he did not want to be known as the creator of the breed,
And insisted that his breed of white terriers be renamed.
The term West Highland White Terrier first appears in Otters and Otter Hunting by L.
C.
R.
Cameron,
Published in 1908.
The first breed club was set up in 1904.
Niall Campbell,
10th Duke of Argyle,
Was the society's first president.
A second club was subsequently set up,
With the Countess of Aberdeen as chairman.
Edward Malcolm succeeded the Countess as the club's second chairman.
Kennel Club recognition followed in 1907,
And the breed appeared at Crufts for the first time in the same year.
The Westy was imported into the United States in 1907 to 1908.
Initially it was also known at the time as the Rosinus Terrier,
And the Rosinus Terrier Club was recognized by the American Cow Club in 1908.
The club was renamed during the following year to the West Highland White Terrier Club of America.
The breed spent the period that immediately followed as being in vogue,
Becoming popular almost immediately upon its arrival in the U.
S.
Canadian Kennel Club recognition followed in 1909.
Until 1924 in the UK,
Westie pedigrees were allowed to have Cairn and Scottish terriers in them.
By the time of Malcolm's death in 1930,
A stable type had appeared with prick ears,
A white coat,
And a short back.
And major confirmation shows the breed has been equally successful on both sides of the Atlantic.
The first member of the breed to win a show championship was champion Morvan in 1905,
Owned by Colin Young.
The dog was registered at the time as a Scottish Terrier and won the title at the Scottish Kennel Club,
Shown at the age of seven months.
Because the breed was not yet recognized independently,
The championship title was not retained when the dog was re-registered as a West Highland White Terrier.
The first win at a major show came at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in 1942,
When Constance Winans' champion,
Wolvie Pattern of Edgerton,
Won the title of best in show.
The same title was taken by Barbara Worcester's champion Elfenbrook Simon in 1962.
It took a further 14 years before the breed took its first Best in Show title at Crufts,
The UK's major dog show.
Champion Dianthus Buttons,
Owned by Cass Neustad and Dorsey Taylor,
Took the title for the breed in 1976.
A Westy also won Crufts in 1990,
With the best in show title going to Derek Tattersall's champion,
Olak Moon Pilot.
And in 2016 to Bernie's Geordie Girl.
The popularity of the breed during the early 20th century was such that dogs were being exchanged for hundreds of guineas.
As of 2010,
The Westie is the third most popular breed of terrier in the UK,
With 5,
361 puppies registered with the Kennel Club.
However,
This is a decrease in numbers since 2001,
When it was the most popular terrier breed,
With 11,
019 new dog breeds registered.
The breed's position in the United States is more stable with its remaining in the top third of all breeds since around 1960.
It was ranked 30th most popular in 2001.
Based on registrations with the American Kennel Club,
Which varied around the 30s in the decade after,
Was it ranked 34th in 2010.
It was the 41st most popular AKC breed in 2024.
Argyle is a historic county and registration county of Western Scotland.
The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975,
And most of the area now forms part of Argyle and Butte Council Area.
Argyll is of ancient origin and broadly corresponds to the ancient kingdom of Dáil Ríode,
Lest the parts which were in Ireland.
Argyle was also a medieval bishopric,
With its cathedral at Lisbon.
During the Middle Ages,
The area was divided into a number of provincial lordships.
One of these,
Covering only the central part of the later county,
Was called Argyle.
It was initially an earldom elevated to become a dukedom in 1701.
It was a creation of the Duke of Argyll.
Other lordships in the area included Cole,
Kinteer,
Napdale,
And Lorne.
From at least the 14th century,
There was a sheriff of Argyll,
Whose jurisdiction was gradually extended.
From 1633,
The shire covered all these five provinces.
Shires gradually eclipsed the old provinces in administrative importance and also became known as counties.
Between 1890 and 1975,
Argyle had a county council.
The county town was historically Inveraray,
But from its creation in 1890,
The county council was based at Lochgilad.
The county is sparsely populated,
With many islands and sea locks along its coast,
And the inland parts are mountainous.
Six towns in the county held borough status.
Campbelltown,
Dunoon,
Inveraray,
Loch Gled,
Oban,
And Burmery.
Argyle borders Invernessshire to the north,
Perthshire and Dunburtonshire to the east,
And,
Separated by the Firth of Clyde,
Neighbours Renfrewshire and Ayrshire to the south-east,
And the county of Bute to the south.
The Kilmartin Glen has standing stones and other monuments dating back to around 3000 BC.
And is one of the most significant areas for Neolithic and Bronze Age remains in mainland Scotland.
In 563 AD,
Iona Abbey was founded,
Becoming one of the most important early Christian sites in Scotland.
The Gaelic kingdom of Dalriada existed between the 5th and 9th centuries.
Its territory covered northeastern parts of Ireland and what later became County Antrim,
Part of the mainland of Great Britain and what is now Western Scotland,
And numerous islands in the Inner Hebrides.
A fortress at Duned in the Kilmartin Glen,
Four miles or six kilometers northwest of the modern town of Lough Diled,
Served as the main seat of the kingdom.
Dalriada fragmented in the 9th century during the Viking Age.
The part in Ireland was absorbed into the Kingdom of Ullud.
The islands came under the control of the Kingdom of the Isles.
And the part on mainland Britain was united in 843 A.
D.
Was the Pictish Kingdom to its east under Cynnus MacAlpin to become the Kingdom of Alba.
The name Argyle,
Meaning coast or borderland of the Gaels,
Came to be used for the part of the former Dalriada territory on mainland Britain.
The name distinguished the area from the Inchagall,
Meaning Islands of the Foreigners,
Which was used for the Kingdom of the Isles,
Ruled by Old Norse-speaking Norse Gaels.
Dunnerdry in Argyll was a historic seat of the ancient MacTavish clan.
Given that the MacTavishes were documented at Dunner Derry for 900 years prior to that reference,
Their presence in the region can be tracked back to approximately 893 AD.
Argyle was divided into several lordships or provinces,
Including Kintyr,
Napdale,
Lorne,
Cole,
And a smaller Argyle province which covered the area around Inveraray between Loch Fin and Loch Awe.
The latter sometimes described by later writers as argyle proper,
Or mid-argyle,
To distinguish it from the wider area.
The term North Argyle was also used to refer to the area later called Wester Ross.
It was called North Argyle as it was settled by missionaries and refugees from Dalriada,
Based at the Abbey of Applecross.
The position of abbot was hereditary,
And when Ferkarmak and Sagert,
Son of the abbot,
Became the Earl of Ros in the 13th century,
The region of North Argyll gradually became known as Wester-Ros instead.
The earliest reference to a Sheriff of Argyle was in 1326.
The position appears to have been a re-establishment or renaming of the position of the Sheriff of Lorne.
The post subsequently became a hereditary position held by members of Clan Campbell.
Despite the creation of the Shires,
Much of the area remained under the practical control of the Lord of the Isles until 1476,
When John MacDonald,
Last Lord of the Isles,
Quit-claimed Kintyre,
Knappedale,
And mid-Argyll to full Scottish control.
In 1481,
Napdale was added to the Shire of Kintyre,
Which then became known as Tarbertshire,
Being initially administered from Tarbert.
The Scottish Reformation coincidentally followed the fall of the Lordship of the Isles.
The MacDonalds,
The clan of the former Lords of the Isles,
Were strong supporters of the former religious regime.
The Campbells,
By contrast,
Were strong supporters of the reforms.
At the start of the 17th century,
Under instruction from James VI,
The Campbells were sent to the Macdonald territory at Islay and Jura,
Which they subdued and added to the Shire of Argyll.
Campbell pressure at this time also led to the sheriff court for Tarbertshire being moved to Inveraray where the Campbells held the court for the sheriff of Argyle.
Tarbertshire was subsequently abolished by an Act of Parliament in 1633,
Being absorbed into the Shire of Argyll.
The Act also confirmed the town of Inveraray's position as Head Borough of the Enlarged Shire.
In 1667,
Commissioners of supply were established for each shire,
Which would serve as the main administrative body for the area until the creation of county councils in 1890.
David II had restored MacDougall authority over Lorne in 1357,
But John MacDougall,
Head of the MacDougalls,
Had already renounced claims to Mull in 1354,
In favor of the MacDonalds to avoid potential conflict.
The McClans were an ancient family based in Lorne,
Including Mole,
And following the quick claim,
They no longer had a laird in Mole,
So themselves became Mole's lairds.
Unlike the MacDonalds,
They were fervent supporters of the Reformation,
Even supporting acts of civil disobedience against King Charles II's repudiation of the Solemn League and Covenant.
Archibald Campbell,
Earl of Argyle,
Was instructed by the Privy Council to seize Mole and suppress the non-conformist behavior.
By 1680 he gained possession of the island and transferred Shreveville authority to the Sheriff of Argyle.
In 1746,
Following Jacobite insurrections,
The Heritable Jurisdictions Act abolished regality and forbade the position of sheriff from being inherited.
Local governance was brought into line with that of the rest of the recently unified Great Britain,
And the English term county came to be used interchangeably with the term shire.
In 1890,
Elected county councils were created under the Local Government Scotland Act 1889.
The 1889 Act also led to parish and county boundaries being adjusted to eliminate cases where parishes straddled county boundaries.
The parish of small isles straddled Argyle and Inverneshire,
With the islands of Muck,
Room,
Canna,
And Sanday being in Argyle,
But Ague in Inverneshire.
The whole parish was placed in a furniture in 1891.
The parishes of Ardenamerican and Kilmally both also straddled Argyle and Invernesshire.
The county boundary through Kilnally was adjusted to follow Loch Ale in 1891.
In 1895,
These two parishes were both split along the county boundary.
The part of Ardenamerican in Inverneshire became a new parish of Ayr-su-Saig and Moydard,
Leaving the reduced Ardenamerican parish,
Pooley in Argyle,
Whilst the part of Kilmally in Argyle became a new parish of Ardgore.
Argyle was abolished as a county for local government purposes in 1975,
With its area being split between Highland and Strathclyde regions.
A local government district called Argyle and Bute was formed in the Strathclyde region,
Including most of Argyle and the adjacent Isle of Bute.
The former county of Bute was more extensive.
The Ardenamerican,
Ardgur,
Alakalish,
Durer,
Glencoe,
Kinlochloven,
And Morvern areas of Argyle were detached to become parts of Lochaber District in Highland.
They remained in Highland following the 1996 revision.
In 1996,
A new Unitary Council area of Argyle and Bute was created,
With a change in boundaries to include part of the former Strathclyde district in Dumbarton.
The historic county boundaries of Argyle are still used for some limited official purposes connected with land registration,
Being a registration county.
