are terriers really trouble?

[sununu]

Looking at rescue sites I keep seeing phrases like 'experienced terrier home', 'typical terrier ways', 'like any terrier', 'terrier lovers only' etc. can you really generalise so much about their ways? I've also spoken to quite a few doggy people who shake their heads about them being hard to train, running away etc. becoming curious about what this terrier temperament really is!

Definitely!

Moose, I think that your phrase.. "probably one of the most 'terriery' terriers of the lot" sums it up. Like it

motherjack and snunu don't be put off by Patterdales! I have a 20 month old Patterdale. He's my first every dog and i LOVE him to pieces! We've had him since he was a pup, he's absolutely barmy but what we give hi in training and stimulation we get back in spades with love n entertainment!

As soon as he'd had his 2nd lot of jabs he was going training once a week and we went for about 10 months and we carried it on at home. And it's definatly paid off. He can be trusted off the lead (think he's more worried about losing us than we are of losing him!). He is stubborn though, actually i'd say curious. There have been times we've been out and we've called him back and he's like'i hear what your saying but this blade of grass just needs my undivided attention and i'll be with you in a minute'. He's fantastic around other dogs (and kids, we have young neices and nephews) and will play for hours with any, (his best mates where we walk are a SBT and an Irish Terrier)

The only thing to note is the destruction! We've crate trained him but now he's starting to calm down we've trusted him to be lose during the day. He has a set routine but there have been days i've come home to shredded bits of carpet, chewed bits of furniture, we're on our 3rd Sky+ remote, but that's boredom more than anything else.

But if you do your research, get to see the dogs mum/dad etc they make fantastic pets!

just put a pick of my patterdale on my profile

Hi another Pattie owner here - Molls is 14mths and I wouldn't change her for the world! (used to always have collies and labs but am now converted!) She is harder work than my other dogs have been but she has bags of personality. Agree with pps that they need a lot of stimualation and exercise. Our girl works on the farm as a ratter - and has managed to rid my lawn of moles too. Fine on her own but will go off hunting with the terrier down the lane if she can. Molls is crate trained too - still wouldn't trust her to be left alone in the house - too fond of chewing shoes! BUT she is fantastic with the dcs (aged 8,5,4 and 2).

If you have the time and energy (and the space) to put into a terrier then imo theres no better dog to have.

We have a gorgeous jrt/westie and he can be hard work (as others have said, you need to put in the hours) but he is wonderful. He is intelligent, affectionate and has character. He isn't fazed by anything whether its a small child or a big dog, he is difficult when out amongst hedgerow. That's when the training goes out of the window.

Our Patterdale is now 8. He is our first dog and we had no idea or no experience when we took him on. He was VERY destructive until he was about 2. Ate the furniture, the door frames, wallpaper off the walls and eventually the plaster as well. We didn't know about things like crate training etc. We took him to training classes and after a few weeks the trainer gave up and said "well, he is a terrier".

He is great with our children and lives harmoniously with our cat. Off lead he is a nightmare and despite a lot of effort and training attempts I really have to accept that he can not be trusted off lead. If something catches his attention he is off and away into the distance with no regard for traffic or anything else. A couple of weeks ago he was off lead in the woods and ended up head and shoulders down a fox hole barking at a fox.

He is very loyal and loving and life would be a lot duller without him, but he has been a handful over the years.

I can't believe the trainer just gave up an said 'he's just a terrier' that's aweful cos with a lot of perseverance they latch onto stuff really quick! Think my trainer likes the challenge more than n e thing and it helps my Patterdale is very food orientated.

I know what u mean regarding running off. Mine hasn't done it often thank god. But last week we were in out usual walk that we do pretty much every day n have done for the past year and 2 bloomin deer crossed our paths. Never sin that before and before we knew it the dog was off! Gone! Not to be seen! After fifteen mins of crying his name out we could hear him. I was in tears thinking what if he's stuck in a badger trap?! Then he came tottering over covered in grass n drool lookin at me as if to say 'what?!' didn't know whether to tell him off or give him a cuddle. Damn his cute lil beardy face

melliebobs, we had a similar experience with our JRT x on holiday a couple of weeks ago.

Normally, on our boring old walks at home, her recall is very good. On holiday we were in Skye doing this beautiful walk over mountains with lochs below us. The path was wide and grassy and there were no livestock so I let the dogs off the lead.

Within seconds, Poppy had spotted something and suddenly just tore off. Running away from her was this enormous rabbit - double the size of any I've seen round here! This was just too much for Poppy. Nothing, but nothing, was going to make her come back. We called and called in dismay as we saw her run over the adjacent 6 or so mountains, fading into the distance.

DD1 and DH started running after her and DD2 was screaming and crying. We were getting nowhere and in the end I called them both back because I could see DD1 losing her footing and falling down a cliff into the loch. I was terrified Poppy would get stuck in a burrow somewhere or fall off the edge.

Then about 15 minutes later, back she comes, smiling like I've never seen before, pleased as anything with herself. We were all so glad to see her, but I put her on the lead straight away and she wasn't allowed off lead again for the duration of the holiday. There's no way I was going to risk losing her on a lonely mountain 700 miles away from home.

Now, back at home, she walks over our familiar fields as good as gold and her recall is fantastic. I guess the excitement was just too much! But the point is, our Sheltie would never do that. We can trust him 100%. But I think a terrier will do what a terrier wants to do, if the temptation is strong enough!

I have a border, she is definatly a terrier and you know it, she has been easy to train, but then \i have never ttrained another dog so dont know the comparison, she is doing her kc gold exam tonight. She thinks she is a german shepherd or something. she got bitten once and turned quite snappy, we called a behaviourist in immediatly and it was fine, however I can see that if we had not done that we would have ended up with a dog aggressive dog. terriers will not do anything unless there is something in it for them, so despite being at a good level of obediance training \i still have to use a lot of treats.
I think the most important thing about terriers is they need a lot of excercise and a lot of stimulation, people seem to think becaue they are little cute dogs they only need a quick lap of the park. I think this is why they get there bad name.

From my experience if excercisd well and trained properly they are the most fun pets.

Ive got a Parson JRT who is so laid back hes horizontal, he is fourteen though, and a fat stumpy JRT bitch who is evil (well to the poor old other dog anyway). Due to absolute lack of training she doesnt come off the lead, the older dog just looks bemused when you take him off and sits down. They arent snappy or yappy. They will both walk for miles. But, they are very clever and sneaky and conniving! And we did have an issue with the older dog pacing a six foot fence for two days and on the third day calmly clearing it in one leap, catching next doors rabbit and licking it for ten minutes before getting bored and waiting for someone to pass him back over the fence ! If you want an exciting non boring sort of dog, get a terrier !

All Dogs can be lovely pets if well trained and socialised from a young age.
However, you do need to look at the original purpose of the breed.
Terriers were originally bread to be out all day, in all weathers, hunting and killing vermin; rats, mink, foxes etc.
Therefore, they have a lot of energy to keep then active all day, and a desire to at least chase, if not kill, small to medium sized animals. They will also have a digging instinct, to hunt the vermin.
This means they will need at least two very active long walks every day to tire them out. They may not understand the difference between small children and something to hunt, unless well socialised at a young age. They could run off down fox holes on walks. They may also dig up your lawn.
Talk to your local rescue charity, a good breeder or the Kennel Club about what dog may be suitable for you and your lifestyle. It may be anything from a Terrier to a Great Dane!