Cairn Terrier History from
American Kennel Club - Cairn Terrier History
In 1909, the show at Inverness offered classes for Short-Haired Skyes. At a meeting of the Skye Terrier Club, fanciers protested the use of the name. The confusion over the classification of these "Short-Haired Skyes" was once again apparent when they were entered in classes for Skye Terriers at Crufts in 1910, even though classes for Short-Haired Skyes were provided. The judge refused to judge these dogs as entered and marked her book "wrong class." A change of name to the "Cairn Terrier of Skye" was suggested for the Short-Haired Skye. (Cairns were piles of stones which served as landmarks or memorials. Common throughout much of Scotland, cairns were frequent hiding places for small mammals. Farmers used small terriers to bolt the animals from their rocky lairs.) The shortened name, Cairn Terrier, was agreed upon and in 1912 the breed was permitted to compete for chal-lenge certificates.
The Cairn Terrier standard in England permitted white as a color until 1923. The interbreeding of Cairns and West Highland White Terriers had occurred in both England and the United States. However, the AKC (who had given the breed official recognition in 1913) in 1917 barred any Cairn from registration if it was a product of "such a mixed breeding practice."