Terriers - what do you know

[Mrwoofington]

We are currently deciding between an Irish terrier or a Manchester terrier.

We've spoken with breeders and got lots of info, and have a pretty good idea of what we're getting into, but we haven't gone to meet them yet as wanted to wait till we had made a final decision

I would love to hear some first hand experiences since they're not easy dogs to come across (vulnerable /at risk breeds)

Does anyone have either?
What's their temperament like generally? - the only ITs I've met were lovely and the MTs were standoffish and incredibly barky(you expect some of this with a terrier of course)

How do you find grooming routines (the ITs I've met absolutely reeked which surprised me!)

Can they go off lead? Obviously with training

Anything else you know about either breed?

Thanks!

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

I know an IT who doesn't reek - he's stripped regularly which might be part of it. Very pleasant dog, generally chilled (can be a bit iffy with other dogs but recalls away). Decent recall, off lead on walks. He's not very 'terrier' compared to the farm ratter JRTx we had, so a much easier and less prey-driven dog.

Don't know about Manchester's: have only met one, fleetingly.

[Mrwoofington]

That's good to know
DH has completely gone off the IT if they are naturally a stinky dog (I mean I washed my hands no less than 5 times before the smell would go, and my MIL made a comment when she saw us hours later about how we smelt after just 5 mins with one.)
I keep saying it was just that one, a little dog smell is fine but that was another level!

[Mrwoofington]

Just a hopeful bump to see if anyone else has any experience of Manchester or Irish terriers?

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

Are there breed pages for either on FB?

[PookieDo]

No I have a Maltese x Yorkshire and thankfully he is not stinky and has a great coat!

IME terriers tend to be laws unto themselves they can be trained but often pretend they have no idea what you are talking about

[Mrwoofington]

@GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman yes, I've spoken to a couple of people, just keen to get as many perspectives as possible

@pookiedoo yes, that's kindof their charm isn't it absolutely love a Morkie too

[PookieDo]

I would recommend either dog, or the mix to be honest. Very companionable dogs. Mine is 6 but still plays like a puppy
Depends what you want in a dog?

[Thewolfsjustapuppy]

I have the pleasure of sharing my life with two ITs. They are, however, completely different characters so I'm not sure that there really is a genuine IT character that shines through. One is quiet, calm, loving, gently and all round the sweetest dog you could ever meet. I trained her and socialised her well as a pup and as an adult she is simply perfect - she just never does anything wrong. The other is a menace! But it the funniest possible way. The second one I train regularly in pretty much any discipline that comes to mind at the time, if we don't work together daily she comes up with her own amusement and that can end in disaster. She is a lot of fun to have around and she makes me laugh everyday but, oh my, is she hard work.
Neither of mine are remotely pray driven and are very easy off lead. They are generally unreactive, although the naughty one is not one to back down from a challenge and has been know to goad other dogs into a scrap (she is a joyful scrapper, not remotely aggressive and would never fight if the other dog wasn't keen).
They are amazing with children of all ages.
Grooming - they are not smelly! They do need regular daily brushing and preferably hand stripping at least twice a year. Mine have no interest in rolling in smelly shit so I hardly ever bath them.

[Thewolfsjustapuppy]

Mine are age 3 and 2 years BTW.

There are some great IT facebook groups. The Irish terrier association group on FB is mostly UK based but all the groups tend to be quite multinational.

I found my puppies though serendipity. But I know that both litters were on the KC website. They sell very fast and are normally all sold within a few days of going on the site so its easier to get to know breeders then wait.

[Mrwoofington]

Thank you @Thewolfsjustapuppy I've been lurking on a few Facebook pages!
Good to know they're not smelly! I was so surprised the ones I met smelled so bad!!

@PookieDo I think we're just looking for something that doesn't shed a huge amount or collect a ton of dust and dirt (allergies)
A bit more of a robust dog, Happy to be out walking and running with us when they're old enough
And generally able to be part of family life - including some snuggles on the couch!

[frostedviolets]

I'm not a terrier fan myself, have never met any IT's or MT's but known a lot of jacks and an old friend of mine bred wire haired fox terriers which seem similar to Irish Terriers.

The fox terriers were very stubborn and self assured dogs, no biddability/desire to please whatsoever.
Very very highly prey driven, very territorial and very barky.

They strike me as a bit 'specialist' and not for me, I like an easy train and non barky dog myself but lots of people love them.

[PookieDo]

Morkies do not seem to moult at all, need some clipping but I do mine every 4 months pretty much
They aren’t the largest animals, but mine is 5.5kg so not exactly ‘toy’ breed, mine also will walk for 2+ hours if it’s somewhere he wants to be... 😂

[Wombleish]

I've had a border terrier and currently have a JRT. Both suffer/ed from what I call 'selective terrier deafness'

[Stationeryqueen]

OP we have an Irish Terrier.

We have her professionally stripped once a quarter and bathe her regularly. We do give her a good brushing every couple of days, this keeps most shedding at bay. She does not smell but you do have to look after IT coats, this keeps their beautiful colour & water resistance. They are a hardy breed with few health problems.

Her personality seems to be contrary to most breed standards. She is very playful, friendly and funny. She loves being with people, especially children and is a great companion. She gets on the sofa for a cuddle and is affectionate.

She is not bold or aggressive, and can be a little timid in new situations, if anything our Whippet is bolder and certainly top dog of the pair of them.

She has been taken to puppy classes and now agility weekly and her recall and behaviour is very good on and off lead. She was very easy to house train and not a destructive puppy. She gets on really well with other dogs, and we have never experiences a starong prey drive with her.

IT do need plenty of exercise and they can keep going all day. They have buckets of personality and are very entertaining to have around.

As with all dogs, the more you invest in the them the greater the reward.

[Mrwoofington]

Thanks everyone.
Any one experience of an MT?

@Stationeryqueen she sounds lovely! I'm sure a photo would help me understand what she's like...

@Wombleish haha yes, I certainly expect a level of this from any terrier!

@frostedviolets is there a breed you would suggest instead that meets our other criteria?

[Stationeryqueen]

Here she is, Mrs Mischief.

IT's have the most beautiful eyelashes. This is a week or so after she has had her coat stripped.

[Mrwoofington]

Omg she's adorable 😍

[frostedviolets]

is there a breed you would suggest instead that meets our other criteria?

Depends what your looking for really?

Non shedding/allergy friendlier says to me wire haired breeds (if hand stripped), breeds with fleecy coats like poodles, bichons etc and breeds with no undercoat and fine hair like Yorkshire terriers.

Pretty much all healthy, decently bred, well socialised dogs should be fairly robust, happy to accompany you on walks and runs and hsppy to be part of family life

[itputsthelotiononitsskin]

I have a friend with an English Toy Terrier, which is for all intents and purposes a MT.

He's adorable, he is good on and off lead. He is a little standoffish, but very loyal and with discipline has been great at learning tricks.

He barks. A lot.
It is very high pitched and annoying.

She loves him, I love him and my JRT adore him (they are brothers of the bone). But his bark clearly grates on her nerves.

[Thewolfsjustapuppy]

Stationary, your girl sounds like mine. Not really very terrier like but so much fun to have around.
She is beautiful, by the way.
This is my absolute angel IT 😊

[confusedjuly2019]

IT all the way

[aweedropofsancerre]

I have a wire haired fox terrier. He was a nightmare . Poor recall and difficult to train.... took us until he was 18mths to be able to let him off the lead without him running off. He is aloof and will happily sit in another room in the house and ignore us . He will wander through when he fancies a back scratch. He can be barky and also grumpy with other dogs he takes a dislike too. Not aggressive but he does sound like he will eat them. He is actually a sweet natures dog but sounds like a lion..... we have him hand stripped as he has allergies and we finding stripping helps his skin. Terrier need everyone to be clear and consistent

[confusedjuly2019]

Have to confess to clipping (shock, horror) rather than stripping our IT!

[confusedjuly2019]

IT chilled on beach.

[PookieDo]

Here is my terrier baby if we are having terrier appreciation moments 😂