History

As the name of the race already says the Wheaten originally comes from Ireland.

The first records of wheat-coloured dog race in Ireland are about 200 years old. The records however do not concern the nowadays Wheaten. The dogs mentioned there were a bit smaller and had mussed up hair the colour of wheat. Wheatens were owned by landowners, villagers, who did not care about them much but made use of them. Wheatens ran around the farms and killed rodents by the granaries. They also accompanied their masters when hunting for rabbits, badgers and otters. The badgers are strong and brave animals, therefore the dog has to be of the same character. The hunters dog must have been able to make decisions by itself, must have had a temperament and courage.

A purposeful selection of breeding dogs had not been started till the beginning of the 19th century. A group of enthusiasts strived to have the breed officially recognized and they managed to accomplish that in 1937. As the Irish are known for being patriotic, the Wheaten breed was first introduced on the occasion of traditional Irish holiday, the St. Patrick’s Day. The official recognition gave base to the spreading of the breed from Irish homeland to other countries, first to continental Europe and later to other countries all over the world.