Patterdale Terriers

[Chickchen]

I am considering a patterdale pup and am finding lots of conflicting stories so I wondered if anyone has any experience of them?

I have cats and a 4 year old, but the breeder says that the pups are in a house with cats at the moment and are fine with them and children, as are their parents. I like going out for long walks and also live round the corner from a park and lots of fields, so once they are trained to go off lead I am prepared to take them out daily to blow off steam. I do have a garden too.

I want a dog for obvious reasons, grown up with them, love them and miss having them. But also want one for peace of mind as I live alone, so I don't want anything tiny or yappy, but also can't have anything too big as my house isn't huge. I've read patterdales are fiercely loyal if they need to be.

I work shifts, but only 3 per week maximum. However, my parents live round the corner where someone will often be home and they have another dog, they have said they'd be happy to take the dog. I'm also happy to pay a dog walker.

I'm also planning puppy training classes and perhaps looking into agility.

So does anyone with experience think this would be right for me or have any recommendations?

I have one, I adore her of course but she has been 11 years of angst and trouble. Easily trained, clever and can be left all day, but is super aggressive to other dogs (as in, will try to get out of her harness just to attack a dog 150 yards away), not good with children, will take chunks out of a cat given the opportunity, just generally untrustworthy. She was surprisingly alright with our chickens. Only came in with an innocent expression and a mouthful of feathers twice.

We have a complex system of doors to ensure no visitors to the front door get bitten. If we want to have anyone round that she doesn't know, or more than a couple of people at a time, we have to send her somewhere else for the night as its too risky. She has bitten me and one other person, nipped several others, and would have had another mark on her card except thankfully she was wearing a muzzle and didn't hurt them. She has burned through 2 trainers, 3 behaviourists and one vet behaviourist. She is extremely vocal, controlling the screeching is difficult.

She's a lunatic, I love her and I will cry for weeks when she finally goes but it will be a release! We have some loving moments together but everything has to be on her terms, you might get a few seconds for a cuddle but she'll eventually roar and leap up to bite your eyebrows, the big tit.

They're a great working breed, they're supposed to be fast and predatory and aggressive - but they make shit first dogs and rubbish pets unless they can live a 100% working life all day (which is how mine started, but she had an accident and was forced into full time pet-territory - not good).

You can borrow her if you wanna try her out. You might need some of those giant gauntlet chain mail gloves...

I have a patterdale x ( most likely jrt) who we got as a rescue at 15 weeks . He is the most fabulous dog with people , he is a nightmare with anything small and furry and also birds . He goes off lead in selective areas and to be at his best needs at least an hour off lead per day . He has some small doggy friends but can be very offish with larger or simply heavier set dogs and if there is a scrap to be had he is in like a shot . Personally I wouldn’t trust a patterdale with a cat even if they were bought up together as I think the temptation is too great and they have such a high prey drive .

Wow! Poor Patterdales, never seen a dog get such a roasting on here!

I don’t think it is a roasting. Like most people I adore mine, but she is in a home where she gets lots of interaction, lots of walks, no children and no other animals.

They were bred as hunting dogs and therefore their temperament is not always suitable for quiet domesticity. I would definitely have another, but my home life is the total opposite of @Chickchen. Putting a dog in an unsuitable home is misery for both the dog and the family,ily.

As others have said, patterdales can be fantastic little dogs but are phenomenally hard work and not for the inexperienced dog owner.
I would personally never consider buying a patterdale for a home with a 4 year old and cats. That is an absolute recipe for disaster.

I don't think it's a roasting either - I love mine so much and will definitely get another when he dies.. but I have no children in my household and no small pets, and limitless time to walk him off-lead where it's quiet to tire him out.

Not really a roasting, just a realistic interpretation of the type (it's not a breed, as someone has already said).

As with all types and breeds, there will be those that are lovely, and those that are not. But because Patterdales are working-bred, hard temperament, rufty-tufty, 100 mph, turbo charged killing machines, a fair number of them can be hard work and are not for the faint hearted (or a first time owner with young children and small pets).

I love the bones of mine, of course I do, but I wouldn't have another.

I have a Patterdale/Border cross who's great with people and really chilled out indoors (i.e. lazy!) but hugely reactive to other dogs. Only barking though, he'd never bite, but I've put it down to him protecting me and a trait of the breed, as one of my neighbours has a Patterdale and she barks like hell at other dogs too.

I'm trying distraction training when out and about, using treats to keep his attention on me when other dogs approach and pass us, which is helping (mainly because he's ruled by his stomach, the greedy little git!). What does piss me off is other dog owners who let their dogs run up to mine, even though I always call over that he's not friendly and for them to recall their dogs, as they then take offence to mine barking at theirs even though I warned them!

I used to have one, he was a rescue and tbh I had no idea what i was letting myself in for.

Positives: very affectionate, excellent with children, good watchdog.

Negatives, hated other dogs, terrible recall, ran away more times than i can count, impossible to wear out, barked all the time, dug massive holes in the garden, nipped a few delivery men

He could be lovely and I was fond of him but I really think they are a working breed who are not best suited to pet homes. Someone described them to me once as the SAS of the terrier world and i thought that was a very good description.

After he died I said never again and got a whippet, apart from his dodgy recall he is 1000 times easier.

@Monkeybunkey. yes yes yes. I honestly believe that some people think they and their dogs have a special gift (a sort of dog whisperer)

Me, “He is not very friendly,,she does not like dogs or people”
Them bending down over the dog “ ooooo are you not very friendly”
Dog snarl snarl snarl snap snap snap
“Oh you are not are you”

I like the owners who when they see me in the park, give me a wave and call their dog over.

She seemed to change sex in my rant there.

@florentina1 I agree with you there! Mine's fine with people, particularly a lady I see most mornings who always carries treats. My dog totally ignores her dog (old, slow Labrador) and sits at her feet waiting for a treat! On the other hand, people have crossed the road to avoid us when he's barking at their dog!

My mum has a patterdale JRT cross (a mutt from a farm ) and she's gorgeous, but really not typical for her breed/s. Only barks at the post (she did bite my dad when he put a finger through the post box once ), adores my toddler, keeps away from my cats, scared of mice and flies Isn't remotely interested in other dogs and only interacts with her sister from the same litter who my parents friends got at the same time. Recall is quite good but will throw herself into any body of water she can if she's off the lead

Our neighbours have one. I take it home at least once a week when it escapes. It is never off lead either for the same reason. She's a gorgeous sweet dog but a total houdini!

We have a rough haired Patterdale x Parson Russel and she is adorable. The sweetest girl who has changed our lives. 2 1/2 years. High energy and needs a good off lead run every day but loves chasing her ball. Loves other dogs and people - plays nicely with all breeds. Recall is a bit hit and miss but will do anything for treats and her ball. Definitely a hunter and if she sees a pheasant or squirrel there's no holding her but you get to learn the signs and keep her on the lead in those situations. Such an alert dog and extremely interactive - she communicates verbally with different gnorps for different situations so we know exactly what she is asking for. She is extreme melt affectionate and such an entertaining little dog. Perfect size too - not a rat and not too big. Great watchdog and barks at the postman but would never nip anyone . I could go on but we just love her to bits. Based on the above she doesn't seem typical for the breed so maybe more Parson than Patterdale but both are bred as working dogs.

Aunt and uncle had a patterdale. They adored him, everyone else hated him. He was hard work, very demanding, very loud and barky, overly territorial, hated being left, would only walk where he wanted to walk, tried to fight all other dogs. Frequently left with me when they went on holiday and I dreaded it to be honest, in the end I had to refuse to take him because life was such hard work with him. Compared to other family dogs (Labradors, Jack Russel terrier, spaniels- all highly energetic dogs) he was a nightmare.

I’ve got a Patterdale cross, adore her but she’s a complete handful.

Temperament is 100% she’s great with people, kids, cats and other dogs. Recall 100% but she’s a working type and never “off” - totally intensely tuned into you 100% of the time, has a hair-trigger frustration level and barks like you wouldn’t believe. Needs a lot of training for mental stimulation, but of a very particular type otherwise you just end up getting her even more tightly wound. Sulks and hides when we go out, even if left with family. Can run all day and come home with even more energy, and more exercise makes her worse. 5 now and showing no signs of calming down.

As a puppy she was a complete nightmare, absolutely feral and the naughtiest little thing you’ve ever met.

Bit late to the party sorry but I would not get a Patterdale. We had one some years ago she was actually the most beautiful little dog I've ever seen but she was too much for us she needed endless exercise and still never laid down on your lap she was always on the go. Very vocal, barked at herself I think! She was also very cat like she could climb like I didn't know dogs could. A very good friend took her from me in the end, she is still crazy to this day but my friend has a farm so the dog is out all day working.
I don't think they make good pets.
I will add though that there was not a nasty bone in her body.

So o/p, still like the idea of patterdale?

The Patterdale and the cat. Not all dogs hate cats.

Our Patterdale is a lovely character at home, never happier than when snuggled up on a knee of sofa. Loves people and although does bark, quietens on command. He’s a great size and looks like a mini Labrador. Seems to slob out happily when we are out, and now he’s out of adolescence is never destructive.

However, and this is a big however, out of the house he’s a different character. He escapes from the garden - nothing is a barrier, so cannot be let out other than in the dead of night for his last wee. On walks he is constantly looking for prey, and he doesn’t care if it’s bird or mammal he’s going to attempt to get it. Let off the lead he’s in a field in milliseconds, quite unconcerned by sheep netting, barbed wire or walls. Once the prey has escaped he does come back, but that is no comfort if there are livestock in the field. Therefore he can’t be let off unless it is completely free of any stock for number of surrounding fields.

With other dogs he used to just want to play, now I’m not so sure. He’s very boisterous and loves to run and tumble and play tag rugby with sticks or balls. Big dogs seem to cope with this, and if they don’t want to play he fully understands their body language and stops bothering them. Spaniels and crosses hate him and cower, which makes him bark frantically at them, which they hate even more, and of course so do their owners. Terriers either happily play or decide to fight, and he then fights back, no backing down. On the lead he’s reactive, and although I can distract him when we meet dogs he vaguely knows, those he doesn’t there is no way to distract him.

The thing to remember is that Patterdales were bred to kill foxes and badgers, and so for that hey need to be incredibly brave/tough. They are no mere ratters, rather truly hardcore killing machines.

Consequently I spend many hours walking across lonely moors in bad weather where I know I won’t meet too many othe dogs or livestock.

The upside is I’ve never been fitter, and I have a lovely, faithful dog. Just not one for the first time owner. Here he is looking very angelic.