# Chihuahua or Russkiy?



## lyredragon (Jul 28, 2010)

Taggert's body mystifies me. the pound said he is a chihuahua mix, but I disagree very much. He doesn't look like a mix. What he looks like to me is a russkiy. He's leggy, his nose is way more pointy than I have ever seen in a Chihuahua. he doesn't have an overbite, his nose is just long. plus he does some things that foxxy cant do, like curl himself into a tight ball. I've only seen manchester terriers and minpins curl up like he does. 

The problem is that I've never seen an actuall russkiy outside of photos. When I look at pictures of the two breeds side by side i could put in a case for either, but what do you all think? Can you all tell the difference?

Foxxy is definately chihuahua, albeit deer headded and a bit too fluffy and slightly too big to be breed standard. 

PICT0142 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!










this is a picture of the two of them together. I can't get tag to stand still long enough to get a standing profile


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## ExoticChis (Jun 20, 2010)

I cant really tell I see so many they claim to be a chi mix, but you just never know. Do you have a pic of a Ruskiy? I have never seen the breed


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## Reese and Miley (Jun 24, 2010)

I had to google the breed as Id never even heard of it! Frankly I cant tell you because all the Russiky images that came up looked verrrrry chi like to me, not the chi "breed standard", but very similar dogs. Miley has a weird body type too, leggy and big chested, much like a mini IG. To me those breeds look so similar that they could be in many BYBs lines and they wouldnt even know it, although Im assume Russikys arent common?


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## Tyson's Mum (Dec 26, 2010)

Don't know if I am allowed to put this link in but....they do look very chi like.


deleted due to it is a breeders site.


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## Tyson's Mum (Dec 26, 2010)

Forgot to say Tyson curls into a small ball on my lap when he is sleeping


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## Reese and Miley (Jun 24, 2010)

Theyre really cute! The only real difference I can see is the very long legs, otherwise the look very chi!


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## glyndwr (Dec 4, 2010)

Crikey never heard of this breed but really look like Chi.s


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## FireFox (Jun 4, 2009)

I have seen many Russian Toys (smooth and long coats), few of my friends have them and I know many good show breeders too.
Taggert could be a Russian Toy not bred to standard, but he could be a Chihuahua not bred to standard too, or Chihuahua Mix. It's hard to tell. He is very cute, no matter what breed  

Chihuahuas and Russian Toys look very similar in pictures, but when you see them in real life, there are many diferences.

There is a Russian Toy breed standard:

*FCI-Standard N° 352 / 12.06.2006 / GB
RUSSIAN TOY
(Russkiy Toy)*

The male was mated with a female which also had slightly long hair. Thus the longhaired variety of the Russian Toy appeared. It was called Moscow Longhaired Toy Terrier. 
A dog breeder from Moscow, Yevgueniya Fominichna Zharova, played an important role in the creation of this breed variant.
It was during a long period of development, in an isolated context, along with a specifically conducted selection that a new breed was created : the Russian Toy with two varieties:
Longhaired and smooth-haired.

*GENERAL APPEARANCE:* A small elegant dog, lively, long-legged, with fine bone and lean muscles. Sexual dimorphism only slightly defined.
*
IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: * Square build. The height at elbows is only slightly more than half of the height at withers ; the chest is sufficiently deep. 

*BEHAVIOUR/TEMPERAMENT:* Active, very cheerful, neither cowardly nor aggressive. The behaviour is significantly different between males and females.

*HEAD: * Small compared to the body.

*CRANIAL REGION: *
Skull: High but not too wide (width at the level of zygomatic arches does not exceed the depth of the skull).
Stop: Clearly pronounced.

*FACIAL REGION:*
Nose: Small, black or matching the coat colour.
Muzzle: Lean and pointed, slightly shorter than the skull.
Lips: Thin, lean, tight- fitting and dark or matching the coat colour.
Jaws/Teeth: Small, white. Scissor bite. Absence of 2 incisors permitted in each jaw.
Cheekbones: Only slightly pronounced. 
Eyes: Quite large, rounded, dark, slightly prominent, set well apart and looking straight ahead. Eyelids are dark or matching the coat colour, tightly fitting.
Ears: Big, thin, set high, erect.

*NECK: *Long, lean, carried high, slightly arched.

*BODY: *
Topline: Gradually sloping from the withers to the root of the tail.
Withers: Slightly pronounced.
Back: Strong and straight.
Loin: Short and slightly arched.
Croup: The croup is somewhat rounded and slightly sloping.
Chest: The chest is oval, sufficiently deep and not too wide.
Underline and Belly: Tucked up belly and drawn up flanks, forming a nicely curved line from the chest to the flanks.

*TAIL:* Docked (only two or three vertebrae are left), carried high. In countries where tail docking is prohibited by law, it is left in its natural state. Undocked: sickle tail. It should not be carried lower than back level.

*LIMBS FOREQUARTERS:* 
Thin and lean; seen from the front, the front legs are straight and parallel.
Shoulders: The shoulder blades are moderately long and not too sloping.
Upper arm: Forming an angle of 105 degrees with the shoulder blade. The length of upper arm is approximately equal to the length of shoulder.
Elbows: In line with the body.
Forearm: Long, straight.
Carpus (Wrist): Lean.
Metacarpus (Pastern): Almost vertical.
Forefeet: Small, oval, turning neither in nor out. Toes well-knit and arched. Nails and resilient pads are black or match the coat colour.

*HINDQUARTERS:* Seen from the rear, the hind legs are straight and parallel, but standing a little bit wider than the forelegs. Stifles and hocks are sufficiently bent.
Upper thigh: Muscles are lean and developed.
Lower thigh: The upper and lower thighs are of the same length.
Hock: Sufficiently angulated.
Metatarsus (Rear pastern): Vertical.
Hind feet: Arched , a little bit narrower than forefeet. Nails and pads are black or match the coat colour.

*GAIT/MOVEMENT:* Easy, straightforward, fast. No noticeable change in the topline when moving.

*SKIN:* Thin, dry and tight-fitting.

*COAT HAIR: * 
There exists two types for the breed: smooth-haired and longhaired.
• Smooth-haired: short, close-lying, shiny hair, without undercoat or bald patches.
• Longhaired: body is covered with moderately long (3-5 cm), straight or slightly wavy hair, close-lying, which does not hide the natural outline of the body . Hair on the head and on the front part of limbs is short and close -lying. Distinct feathers on rear side of limbs. The feet have long, silky hair which completely hides the nails. Ears are covered with thick, long hair forming a fringe. Dogs of more than 3 years have such a fringe, which should completely hide the outer edges and tips of the ears. Body hair should not look tousled nor be too short (less than 2 cm.).

*COLOUR:* Black and tan, brown and tan, blue and tan. Also red of any shade with or without black or brown overlay. Richer shades are preferable for all colours.
*
SIZE AND WEIGHT:*
Height at withers: Dogs and bitches: 20 – 28 cm (tolerance +/- 1 cm)
Weight: Dogs and bitches: up to 3 kg.

*FAULTS:* Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.
• Timid behaviour.
• Level bite or incisors sloping forward.
• Semi-pricked ears. This condition in longhaired dogs with heavy fringes is permissible but not desirable.
• Low set tail.
• Presence of bald patches in smooth-haired dogs.
• Too long or too short hair on body of longhaired dogs.
• Small white spots on chest and toes.
• Solid black, brown and blue colours. Tan markings too large or with dark shadings.

*ELIMINATING FAULTS:*
• Aggressive, overly shy.
• Overshot, pronounced undershot. Absence of 1 canine; absence of more than 2 incisors in either jaw.
• Hanging ears.
• Short legs.
• Many bald patches in short-haired dogs.
• Longhaired dogs: absence of fringes on ears and presence of curly hair. 
• White coat, white spots on the head, abdomen and above metacarpus; large white patches on chest and throat, presence of brindle markings.
• Size over 30 cm or under 18 cm.
• Weight less than 1 kg.

Any dogs clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.

NB: Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.


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## lyredragon (Jul 28, 2010)

these are russkiys


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## glyndwr (Dec 4, 2010)

I really like them ....


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## lyredragon (Jul 28, 2010)

here is a couple of quick photos I took with my new camera to try to compare him to these guys versus a pure chihuahua
the big problem is it's the humane society that said he is a mix, and if they don't know of a breed, or don't realize the variations in a breed they just guess. he was found at large in a more affluential part of my town. The climate here is humid continental and he was overweight when they found him, so he couldn't have been stray for very long


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## Eclipsica (Nov 23, 2010)

I have no idea what your dog is, but you've got my interest with a breed I've never known existed. This is an attractive dog.


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## FurKidMommy (Nov 13, 2010)

Your baby is cute. I've never heard of the breed either, but they're cute. The only thing is that many times mixes look just like purebreds, even rare breeds. We fostered an Australian Shepherd once that had pups. One of the pups came back due to a major change in the new owners life. I had people literally trying to argue with me telling me that this dog was a purebred bi-black (black and white) Shetland Sheepdog. I knew he wasn't because I fostered his mom who was a red merle Australian Shepherd. My point is that unless you have a pedigree to back it up, chances are any rare breed or uncommon breed ending up lost or in a shelter is very slim. Regardless, you have an adorable dog.


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## Smith (Jun 7, 2010)

I would guess he is a chi, just because russkiys are still such an uncommon breed in the states. Still, you never know...


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

FurKidMommy said:


> Your baby is cute. I've never heard of the breed either, but they're cute. The only thing is that many times mixes look just like purebreds, even rare breeds. We fostered an Australian Shepherd once that had pups. One of the pups came back due to a major change in the new owners life. I had people literally trying to argue with me telling me that this dog was a purebred bi-black (black and white) Shetland Sheepdog. I knew he wasn't because I fostered his mom who was a red merle Australian Shepherd. My point is that unless you have a pedigree to back it up, chances are any rare breed or uncommon breed ending up lost or in a shelter is very slim. Regardless, you have an adorable dog.


I agree completely. I think it would be almost impossible for a rare breed like that to show up in a shelter, but I guess anything is impossible!! He still looks like a chi mix to me.


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## HollieC (Dec 29, 2009)

Someoen once asked me if Feodore was a Russian Toy Terrier (aka Russkiy Toy). He is a Chihuahua/ terrier cross, but when I googled it I did see a coincidental resemblence!

I think they are gorgeous, especially the long haired ones with the fringing on their ears. The breed was created from the English Toy terrier and developed in isolation in russia. In some pictures of Russkiy's you can really see the English toy heritage in them. To me he looks like a chihuahua or chi cross (possibly a Jack Russell cross like mine, as he has a longer body like a terrier. The black Russian Toy's have a similar coat to the English toys (aka same coat as the Manchester terrier) Completely slick, single coat, flat to the skin, and often have alopecia or very thin fur on the underside of the neck and the chest and belly, so their skin can be seen. They tend to have more narrow skulls than chihuahuas (again a trait from the English Toys). Yours looks more like a chi cross to me. Beautiful though I must add! xx


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## catz4m8z (Aug 28, 2008)

Once Chis get off breed standard they seem to resemble alot of breeds. (that black and tan russian toy terrier looks very simialr to my Heidi!)
Someone near me breeds them and I do love the long haired variety. They have the most gorgeous ear fringes.


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

I think the Prague Ratters are adorable and they look very much like non-standard Chihuahua's!

Prague Ratter's Club of America


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## rubia (Jul 3, 2008)

I think that your chi mix looks like he has a bit of a terrier in there...very nice looking dog he is !!


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## Terri (Aug 21, 2009)

Oh havent heard jeard of Russkiy or Prague ratters, but they are both gorgeous.
Wonder what their tempraments are like.
Will google them. lol
No more dog for me though. haha!!


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## Lin (Jun 7, 2006)

FurKidMommy said:


> Your baby is cute. I've never heard of the breed either, but they're cute. The only thing is that many times mixes look just like purebreds, even rare breeds. We fostered an Australian Shepherd once that had pups. One of the pups came back due to a major change in the new owners life. I had people literally trying to argue with me telling me that this dog was a purebred bi-black (black and white) Shetland Sheepdog. I knew he wasn't because I fostered his mom who was a red merle Australian Shepherd. My point is that unless you have a pedigree to back it up, chances are any rare breed or uncommon breed ending up lost or in a shelter is very slim. Regardless, you have an adorable dog.


Years ago I had a little mixed breed dog. When we took her to the vet, he said she looked like a Whippet! I was so surprised and did the "oh really?" thing. The vet went on to say that the likelihood of her being a whippet out of the breeding she came from was virtually non-existant. So yeah I agree that the likelihood of your most lovely baby being a rare breed is less than probable. But if you are not showing, it doesn't matter. This little baby is gorgeous, just love him all to pieces.


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