The Decker Terrier is considered by most to be a strain of Rat Terrier with a distinctive look, a regal demeanor and carriage, and well preserved hunting ability. The term "Decker Giant" is a bit of a misnomer as most current dogs are within the accepted height range of standard Rat Terriers and do successfully compete with standards in competition shows as Rat Terriers. Only a few exceed 40 lbs. in weight and 18" high at the withers. They are generally more muscular and larger boned than many lines of Rat Terrier, and may have a larger, more flat topped head, and more squared off muzzle. They have an intensity to their expression that exudes confidence about who they are and what they are about. Temprementally they are very affectionate and have a laid back and happy personality. They are playful and intelligent. In the field they are very alert to any movement, range close to the hunter in a sweeping pattern to flush out any unseen prey, and stop to scan for movement often. They hunt primarily by sight but will pick up on hot scents. They return quicky to the hunter after striking up a chase with a yipping bark and will identify the location of any animals that tree up or go to ground. Recently, the standard Rat Terrier has come to look more and more like the Decker, as Deckers have been crossed in to give the standards more bone and muscle. The Heritage Decker Registry is striving to win separate breed status for the Decker with the major all breed registries, and the Decker Hunting Terrier Registry works to continue their development as a hunting dog.
The Decker Terrier was developed in the 1970's by Milton Decker from his dog Henry, a cross between an old line Smooth Fox Terrier and a terrier type dog of unknown ancestry. The Rat Terrier is a true "breed of breeds" and this is especially true of the Decker line. Milton Decker's breeding plan incorporated dogs obtained from across the United States, always with good hunt and temprement as top priorities. Most inputs were Rat Terriers of hunting lines but one cross (Decker's Zack) was thought to be mostly Basenji. (source: Ellis Decker). Another dog (Porter) added by Rosalie Rinear, was reported by her to be mostly Basenji. The Decker's additions were perhaps some of the final hunting specific outcrosses into the Rat Terrier, as many Rat Terriers have been consistenty bred smaller in recent years by the addition of Chihuahuas and Toy Fox Terriers and their purpose has drifted away from that of the rat hunting farm dog (Fiest) from which they came. The Fiest lives on today in many hunting lines, but the dedicated hunting rat terrier programs are nearly gone.
When Milton Decker's children grew up he stopped breeding in about 1991. Tim Brown caried on a pure line for several years. Other dogs commonly found in pedigrees today went to Jim Johnson (Sycamore Flats), Stan Simon, Ina Kleinsmidt, and Rosalie Rinear (Fire Mountain). Dogs from all these kennels are found in current Decker pedigrees with the major genetic differences in these lines today being the different rat terrier outcrosses they contain. The Tim Brown dogs are perhaps best represented by four dogs bred by Barry Clark in Florida, with Pharoh being the most widely distributed in current animals. Despite what you may have heard, the final cross of the 100% old line deckers was between Mylets Creek Road Claude and Simon's Lucy. It was made about five years ago by Kim Seegmiller. Two dogs from this cross, Axle and Bullet, both males, are living today. So an era has ended, but several breeders continue to produce dogs very true to the original type. Milton Decker saw the need for some new blood when he quit breeding, and in some sense he got it, but the remaining high percent dogs descend from only a few animals, indicating a need for further outcrossing and backcrossing to broaden the genetic base.
The Decker Rat Terrier community has experienced a great deal of turmoil in 2009. Briefly, the scandal with the fake 100% dogs produced by the Seegmiller Kennel has prompted a reevaluation of what we are about. The falsified pedigrees indicated a smaller gene pool for these dogs that was previously assumed in the case of Brown's Grit, now removed by the National Rat Terrier Association as a sire. In the case of the Clark's line Deckers (Pharoh, Raz, Cindy, and Flint of Clark), a known outcross (Clark's Duke) was misrepresented. The motivation for this was apparently to charge up to $1500.00 for a rare "100% Decker". Pedigrees from UKC, UKCI, and the Heritage Decker Registry still contain incorrect entries of Brown's Grit. With the start of the Decker Hunting Terrier Registry, started by Milton Decker, Ellis Decker, and George Palmer, a group has formed with ethics and the continued development of the Decker Terrier as a utility hunting dog and great family companion as top priorities. Attention will be paid for breeding for hunt, temprement, and genetic health, and not just looks. Selected outcrosses will be utilized to expand the gene pool and reinforce additional hunting and good temprement traits. Breeding back into the main line will continue to reinforce the look, size, and characteristics that have made this bloodline notable, and provide a more diversified genetic base for their future. We are fortunate that DHTR will be continuing the legacy and breeding plan of Milton Decker. And we are in fact fortunate that the scandal came to light, as it has replaced the focus from inbreeding for higher original percent with breeding for type.
For a forum where members are not censored and made to conform to the strict party line of the Heritage Club, I reccommend the Decker Hunting Terrier Forum managed by Clyde Green of Wildwood Deckers. Clyde has been in the forefront of breeding for hunt in the Deckers. All Decker enthusiasts are welcome, not just hunters. You might say it's just dog politics, but honesty and ethical behavior translates into ethical breeding practices. Incorrect pedigrees give a false indication of the genetics of the Decker Terriers. Some sites still avertise false percentages of Decker blood. Ethical breeding practices have been sorely lacking among some, as the expulsion of Ms. Seegmiller from the National Rat Terrier Association this year attests. I won't tell you not to purchase a dog from these lines. They have been instrumental in the resurgence of the Milton Decker bloodline, and many will make fine dogs. However at this point I don't reccommend acquiring one without personally meeting the pup, the sire, and the dam, to evaluate temprement. The Decker strain of Rat Terrier is typically a calm and well mannered hunting terrier when selected for these traits. There have been some reports of agressive, hyperactive, or nervous dogs in the high percent deckers and I suspect that some dogs should not have been bred but were just because they had a high percent of original decker terrier blood. They are terriers of course, but generally are a terrier with an off switch. Properly selected they love to lounge around with you just as much as they love their field work.
