Also known as the Nippon or Nihon Terrier, this rare breed is strong and athletic for its size. Its ancestors are thought to include the English Toy Terrier and the now extinct Toy Bull Terrier. The Japanese Terrier has been kept as a lapdog, ratter, and retriever, and makes an adaptable family pet as well as a good watchdog.

Although it is a native breed, the Japanese Terrier is very rare even in Japan. A small dog, Ait is commonly thought to have been developed with the Smooth Fox Terrier as the base and incorporated such dogs as the Toy Manchester Terrier and the Italian Greyhound through crossbreeding of these dogs with small native Japanese dogs (about whom little is known today). In fact, however, there are also several other theories about the dog’s origin involving areas as far apart as Nagasaki Prefecture (in Kyushu), Kobe, and Yokohama -and no one is certain of the dog’s history. 

If the Japanese Terrier did originate on the island of Kyushu, the place where it first became fixed as a breed, after years of improvement, was probably the Kansai region. At one time this dog was known by various names: the Mikado Terrier, Japanese Fox Terrier, Kobe Terrier, and Short-Haired Terrier Planned breeding for improvement started being carried out around 1900, and completion came in 1930. With the founding of the Japan Terrier Club, a Standard for the breed was established. 

Its coloring is the Japanese Terrier’s most distinctive feature: the entire facial area is black, like a mask, but the body is white. In Japanese this is called menkaburi donuke, or “face masked, body exposed.” The coat coloration must include three colorsblack; brown, and white. A black saddle on the back is known as binomaru (“rising sun,” a reference to the Japanese flag), while a black patch at the base of the tail is called odome (“tail stop”) and makes a dog especially prized. The smaller the dog, the more beautiful it is considered. The tail is docked during puppyhood and is carried high. 

A distinguishing feature of the breed is that it has either a “bamboo-grass” (sasa) ear or a rose ear. The bamboo-grass ear folds over in a V shape, while the rose ear bends over and forward slightly so that from the side you can just see inside the ear; the rose ear is often wider. The dog’s outline is square in appearance, while the fur is extremely short, only a few millimeters long at most, and smooth and glossy, with a velvety texture. While this makes grooming an extremely simple task, it also makes the dogs susceptible to cold. The dog does not need a great deal of exercise. 

It is thought that there are now between one thousand and fifteen hundred Japanese terriers in Japan and only about two hundred in other countries. 

The Japanese Terrier was bred to be a companion dog, and it is sensitive and very alert. It is also wary and cautious, and a bit shy. It presents a strong hand or too much scolding. It can take a little time to get used to people other than its master: Despite its small size, it makes an excellent guard dog (even when apparently fast asleep it will hear the slightest sound), and it is also charming as a pet. It is best raised apart from more rambunctious breeds.