Linsey breeds Parson RusselI Terriers in her home.

F.A.Q. Where did the name Auldtoby come from?


Linsey has bred Parson Russell terriers at her home for many years and wanted to establish a web site to show her puppies. Our breeding stock are tested for SCA,  PLL and LOA and found clear.

We also wanted to register a kennel name with The Kennel club and abide by their rules and those of the The Parson Russell Terrier Club.The application to the Kennel club required us to submit a list of seven preferred names, from which the Club Committee would select and approve a Kennel name.

 As you know they did select Auldtoby, to our delight. Especially as James our youngest son, suggested the name should be put on the preferred list. James  found the name in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, though it was used as two words, to describe a tobacco. Meanwhile, I also favoured auldtoby  as a joined word for use as Linsey's website name.

So we  acquired the domain name ' www.auldtoby.co.uk ' at the time of application to the Kennel club.
However, to fully answer ' where did the name come from' in addition to the explanation  above we need to explore the meanings of the two joined words.

Firstly, 'Auld', and I quote wikipedia, is an ancient spelling of the word ' old'. Used as a Scottish reference to the 'auld enemy', which in those days was England. 'Toby' was known and used as a dog's name for centuries in England. Also, it was the name given to 'Punches' dog in Punch and Judy shows, again centuries ago.The name also seemed to fit the breed made famous by the Rev. Russell, and the known fact that, Punches' dog Toby, was small enough to appear with  puppets during a live show.

So for us,  'auldtoby'  means old dog, or an old breed of small dogs! Lastly,it is interesting to note that, Linsey's scottish family name is 'Doig', who are descended from the Dog clan. Linsey, by genetic inheritance and her nature has an empathy with dogs in particular that few of us ever achieve.

We also believe that we have a responsibility to our community. Because we are sad to see how many unwanted and abandoned dogs are put to sleep every day, we encourage our customers to adopt dogs from a local shelter or animal welfare group or to purchase one from a reputable breeder. Come to AuldToby Kennels for your puppy and let us help you take care of your new family member.

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