The beginning John Russell (1795-1883) was born December 12, 1795 in Darthmouth, South Devon. In the year 1814, John Russell, who was called Jack in everyday life, was admitted to "Exeter College" in Oxford, where he bought his first dog from a milkman as a student in 1819. This bitch Trump was the founder of John Russell's own working line terriers. These terriers had to meet the specific working characteristics that he stated: * the dog had to be able to walk with the pack, * be good to use on the fox and * bark and chase the game out of the burrows without killing the game. the terriers also became popular outside of the hunt and that soon led to changes in the appearance of the dogs. John Russell and many other 'working' terrier people strongly opposed this and continued to breed and select the terriers in their own way, namely for work ethic and character. From these 'working terriers' emerged, among others, the Parson Russell Terrier, which was recognized in 1990. From the late 1800s, these 'Parson Russell Terriers' have been bred almost exclusively by hunters. These are therefore responsible for the emergence of our contemporary two varieties, each with their own purpose, namely: * the 'normal legged' Parson Russell Terrier, who must be able to walk in the pack and * the 'short legged' Jack Russell Terrier that can be carried can be placed in a saddle bag or on the front of the horse. The facts Because the contemporary Parson Russell Terrier is still close to the original type and our breed is mainly bred for work, character and good health, we do not yet have many character and health problems. The Parson Russell Terrier is a wonderful asset if it suits you, consider its great temperament when choosing. Due to its willful, courageous character, necessary for independent work underground, the Russell is not made for a small one. People who only rely on the nice appearance, sometimes feel cheated if it turns out that the dog is interested in completely different things than sitting on your lap (although many Russells like to do that too). The Russell is and remains a working dog and although not every Russell can and should hunt, it is quite possible to find other 'work' for him, such as agility, flyball, races, handling and so on. A dog with this level of work ethic and intelligence will be bored to death if he can't do anything with it, all in all reason enough to look around and think carefully before purchasing. You have the best chance of a healthy dog if you choose a breeder who sets strict requirements for himself, with which this breeder attaches great importance to the health of the breed and of your puppy. It is advisable to visit several addresses and to find a puppy from a breeder who will socialize the puppies well. Beware of backyard breeders and puppy farms !!