Discover 8 Interesting Things About the Biewer Terrier
If you haven’t heard about Biewers before, don’t feel bad – they are literally one of the newest dog breeds to be recognized by the AKC and other kennel clubs. Yet, when you look at the Biewer, a strangely familiar muzzle looks back. Why is that? To find out, let’s go over the following 8 fascinating facts about the Biewer Terrier.
1. One of the newest breeds to be recognized by the AKC
The Biewer Terrier – pronounced like “beaver” but with a harder “e” - was the 197th breed to be recognized by the American Kennel Club. At the time of writing this, there are only two newer breeds – the Hungarian Mudi and the Russian Toy at # 198 and #199 respectively.
This novelty of the breed doesn’t mean that it’s not also familiar, however. In fact, it’s quite familiar if you look closely. That’s because the Biewer is actually an off-shoot of the Yorkshire terrier with a slightly different coat.
The first instance of these dogs was recorded in 1984 when the German Yorkie breeders Werner and Gertrud Biewer stumbled upon some strange Yorkies in one of their litters – Yorkies with white in their coloring. The white spots interspersed with the traditional Yorkie steel and bronze colors were due to the very rare Piebald gene S locus. This genetic variation is more common in quite a few other dog breeds but is almost never seen in Yorkies.
So, the Biewer family did one many other breeders would have done in their place – they started working to preserve and develop this genetic variation in a healthy and responsible manner until their Piebald Yorkshire Terriers would become sufficiently different from standard purebred Yorkies that they’d be categorized as a separate breed.
And that’s what happened in 2021, at least as far as the AKC’s rankings are concerned. Some would argue that the breed became officially purebred even sooner, however – it was in 2007 that genetic testing done on 10 Biewer/Yorkie terrier blood samples determined that these tri-colored Yorkies can officially be seen as a “separate purebred dog” and not just as a “tri-color Yorkie”.
2. While technically a “terrier”, the Biewer is really a toy companion breed
As fascinating as the trivia above is, what does it actually tell us about the Biewer Terrier? Well, for one, it tells us that these dogs have a lot of the same qualities as Yorkies. And one of the big ones to note is that, while both Yorkies and Biewers are technically terrier breeds, they are more accurately described as toy breeds.
This is a very important distinction as toy breeds serve a different function than terriers. Both can be looked after as family pets but terriers are still used as hunters too whereas the main purpose of toys is to be family companions. As a toy breed, Biewers are more affectionate, obedient, and cooperative than you’d expect from a terrier breed – that, together with the tiny size is what makes them a toy breed.
3. Like Yorkies, Biewers are affectionate and loving dogs, perfect for any family
As a toy breed, Biewers are a near-ideal family companion. These dogs are loving, attentive, and very gentle, especially when the same attention is given back to them. While they are energetic too, once that energy is expended, Biewers love nothing more than to snuggle in their human’s lap and to be petted on the belly.
This makes them fantastic or indoorsy people and families who love to spend time at home with their pets. Biewers get along swimmingly with kids too – they are small enough not to present a real danger to children and they are both affectionate and social enough to be a great companion for a child. The actual risk in that scenario is actually for the dog and not for the kid – Biewers are fragile given their small size so you need to teach your children how to play with and behave around such a tiny animal.
4. Biewers are very active and playful for their small size
With a height of about 7 to 11 inches at the shoulder (18 to 28 cm) and a weight of 4 to 8 pounds max (2 to 4 kg), you wouldn’t expect any major feats of athleticism from this breed. Yet, Biewers are pretty athletic, energetic, and playful for their size. These dogs need regular playtime every day as well as a couple of fulfilling walks outside.
Fortunately, their small size does mean that said playtime can be done indoors and the two walks can be about 20-minutes long each. Still, it’s important not to neglect those needs if you want your dog to stay healthy and well-adjusted.
5. Like other terrier and toy dogs, Biewers aren’t the most trainable breed but are not impossible to deal with either
Terrier breeds aren’t famous for being very trainable and, truth be told, neither are toy breeds. Still, it’d be unfair to the Biewer breed to say that they are, therefore “untrainable” as that’s just not the case. Proper obedience training early in a Biewer’s life can make all the difference and can actually raise this dog into a very obedient, cooperative, and trainable pet – just as is the case with Yorkies!
So, unlike many other terrier breeds, Biewers are very much recommended even to first-time owners. Just remember that obedience training and potty training are different things – as is the case with most small breeds, potty training a Biewer can be a bit time-consuming sometimes. It’s far from impossible, of course – with enough patience and persistence any Biewer gets the hang of it sooner or later – but it does take a bit more time than it does for larger breeds.
6. Some socialization is still a must, especially if you want to keep your dog’s volume down
As affectionate as they might be, Biewers do need excellent socialization early in their life. This is to negate the risk of growing asocial and “yappy” at strangers – something that both terrier and toy breeds often do.
Often called Napoleon Complex in many small breeds, the tendancy to bark at any dog and person larger than them actually stems from poor socialization and training. So, all you need to do is introduce your Biewer puppy to as many other people, dogs, kids, and animals as you can early in the pup’s life. Do this right, often, and both at home and outside, and you should avoid all behavioral issues typically associated with small dogs.
7. Grooming this breed is fun but vital even though Biewers don’t shed much
Surprisingly, given how their coats look, Biewers don’t actually shed much. This, together with their small size, makes them excellent for people who don’t want dog hair all over their apartment.
Don’t take this to mean that Biewers don’t need brushing and grooming, however – they absolutely do. Regular, ideally daily, brushing is a must to keep your dog’s coat and skin healthy, as are monthly baths, ear and eye cleanups, toothbrushing, and the occasional nail-trimming.
8. Health-wise these dogs do have the same risks as Yorkies
As a new breed, the health risks and specifics of Biewers are technically not “fully known” yet. However, as an off-shoot of Yorkies, it’s pretty clear that the Biewer’s health risks and outcomes are near-identical to those of Yorkies – and will be for quite some time until the breed becomes more and more different over time.
Doesn’t the Piebald gene introduce any additional health risks, however? No, not in this breed at the very least. In some breeds, having more than 80% of the coat be white-colored either due to piebald or dapple/merle genes can be associated with increased risks of blindness and deafness. That’s not the case for the Biewer, however, nor does this breed have that much white on its coat anyway.
So, the health issues you’d need to watch out for Biewers are the same as for Yorkies – stuff such as Legg-Calve-Perthes syndrome, Patellar luxation, tracheal collapse, Brachycephalic syndrome, bladder stones, portosystemic shunt, and others.
While the Brachycephalic (flat-faced) syndrome is obviously inavoidable, the other issues can be either avoided or mitigated with good care, quality food, regular exercise, and routine vet visits.
With all that being said, it’s easy to say “Oh, they are just Yorkshire terriers but with a different color!” And, from a technical point of view, we can even say that’s correct, in a way. Yet, that can virtually be said about any other breed if we go back in time enough. So, functionally, the Biewer is very much a separate breed, both from a genetic standpoint and officially, according to kennel clubs.
What’s even more important is the simple fact that these dogs make for fantastic pets. Small, easy to handle, adaptable, playful, lovable, and fun, these dogs can live with and love any family as long as they get plenty of love back.
