The Russian Toy (previously known as the long-coated Moscow toy terrier and the Russian toy terrier) was approved by the FCI on a provisional basis in February 2006 when the breed was assigned to FCI's Group 9 or Companion and Toy Dogs and named the Russian Toy (Russkiy Toy).
The history of the breed in Russia varies depending on the historians. What is known, however, that the breed evolved in the late 19th century when small, prick-eared English Toy Terrier -type black and tan dogs, based in part on imported Manchester Terriers, gained popularity. At the turn of the century, this small, prick-eared toydog with a keen guarding instinct gained favor especially among the Russian nobility and became one of the most popular toydogs in Russia. Soon the puppies were so highly priced that ordinary people could not afford them.
After the Russian revolution, dog breeding declined and ceased almost entirely until, in the mid-1950's, breeders began to revive this previously popular breed. Very few dogs had pedigrees and many were not pure-bred, and it became soon apparent that a new breed had been established. When the breed standard for the breed was written, based on the available dogs, it contained significant differences to, e.g. the English Toy Terrier standard.
In 1958, two smooth-coated dogs produced a male puppy, Chiki, who had ear fringes and feathering on its legs, leading to an establishment of a long-coated variety which was added to the breed standard in 1966. Today, the breed is shown and judged as two varieties, the smooth and the long-coated Russian Toys, although interbreeding between the two varieties is allowed.
The first imported long-coated Moscow Toy Terrier, Black-Champion-Bonaparte, was registered by the Finnish Kennel Club in 1988. It was followed shortly after by a long-coated female, Ste-Shi, which was imported from the Estonia, then part of the Soviet Union. Both dogs were completely black which was an accepted color in the breed standard at the time. The breed was shown in the Companion and Toy Dog group before being moved to the Terrier Group and then transferred back to Group 9 in 2006. The first smooth-coated Russian Toys were imported into Finland in 2000.
The Russian Toy is a small, lively dog with fine bone and lean muscles. Despite its small size, it is a strong-willed and active terrier who needs plenty of exercise and good basic training. It can also be a noisy dog, fulfilling its old role as a guardian who will alert its owner to intruders.
Eye and patella examinations before breeding are recommended by the breed club. Since health results have only been recorded since 1999, the statistics are not conclusive. Based on these results, no serious patellar problems have been discovered and only one PRA -affected dog has been found. However, the breed can be accident-prone because of its fine bone structure, and accidents can cause fractures.
The Russian Toy is numerically a small breed in Finland. In 2006, 70 dogs were registered in Finland, of which 31 smooth-coated and 39 long-coated. These included 8 smooth-coated and 10 long-coated imports.
The breed has its own breed club affiliated with the Finnish Toy Dog Association, the the Russian Toy Association of Finland.
For more information on the breed, please visit the club's homepage .
On the left, a smooth-coated Russian Toy, on the right a long-coated variety photographed by David Dalton.
