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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

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Original poster

Border terriers

29 replies

Bridgetina · 14/02/2022 09:01

I am very keen on getting a border terrier pup. Wondered if someone with experience could say whether they would be a good fit for us.

Currently have a 10yo whippet who generally gets on well with other dogs. Kids are 18 and 16. We live in London with a small garden (enclosed) but spend part of the year in the country where we have lots of space (not enclosed). I’ve had spaniels before but never a terrier. I wfh part time.

Any advice v gratefully received!

OP posts:

Thread gallery

lastqueenofscotland · 14/02/2022 11:56

My ex in law had a lovely bitch.
Friendly, funny, good natured. Didn’t need hours and hours of walking but had a very stubborn streak - recall was either excellent or non existent so off lead walking is out.

LittlePearl · 14/02/2022 12:10

I've had two BTs, our vet told me he recommended them as an ideal family pet.

They have a reputation for not being good with other dogs but if you work hard with socialisation when they're little that will help. My first didn't like any other dogs but current BT loves other dogs once he's been introduced and has got to know them.

Recall will likely be dodgy because at the end of the day they're terriers and bred to be independent, to go off and do their thing, so you'll always be working against 'type'. Mine has good recall......as long as there isn't something he'd prefer to do! I rarely let him off the lead unless it's on the beach and fairly deserted.

Affectionate, people loving, like exercise but not obsessive / demanding. We have to drag ours out for a walk some days, especially if it's wet. Very stoical, generally healthy, but can sulk .

Grooming needs low, just a hand strip twice a year. I'm always amazed when I go out with my friend and her cockapoo, her dog comes back filthy and mine just needs a bit of a paw wipe - his coat seems to repel dirt, it's brilliant.

I love 'em.

LittlePearl · 14/02/2022 12:12

Oh, and very greedy, so easy to train with food rewards but buggers for wolfing the biscuits on the coffee table if you turn your back for a second.

HelterSkelter224 · 14/02/2022 12:28

I have a lovely wee 4yo female BT. She's absolutely brill, they're such lovely, affectionate, friendly wee dogs. They're also very gentle around kids and very lovable. They do need training early though as they have quite strong personalities and will push their luck but once they know their place they're fantastic.

They're extremely intelligent and easy to train, and keeping them mentally as well as physically busy is important. They're also very robust dogs and don't tend to get ill.

My dog's parents were both farm dogs so recall's a challenge as the prey drive is so strong, she's allowed off the lead on the beach or in enclosed fields etc. but she'll go after squirrels / deer / rabbits etc. so we have to be careful.

Whitney168 · 14/02/2022 16:00

Worth point out here, just in case the OP doesn't appreciate the difference - hand stripping will make a big difference here.

Clipping might be cheaper (although done more often it probably balances out) and it will definitely be easier to find someone to clip - but you won't have a weatherproof coat on a clipped dog.

You can learn to do it yourself too, a bit at a time.

Dozycuntlaters · 15/02/2022 13:26

I have an 18 month old BT and she's just brilliant. Great with other dogs, very chilled and as long as she gets her walk every day (she can miss one every so often) she spends a lot of time just pottering about and sleeping. I take her to work with me everyday and she's great in the office, she's really no trouble at all.

Recall can be a bit dodgy sometimes if she's off chasing a squirrel but she's always close by and if I change direction she will follow me. As PP has mentioned, they need hand stripping twice a year but apart from that they are pretty low maintenance re grooming. She loves swimming in dirty ponds, streams etc, but not keen on a nice luke warm bath but she will tolerate it. BT's are great dogs with lovely natures and are quite easy to train although to be fair they can also be very stubborn and go deaf quite a lot!

Love my girl, I would never be without a BT now.

Original poster

Bridgetina · 15/02/2022 14:26

Thank you all so much for this info. Feeling very excited now!

OP posts:

islaviolent · 15/02/2022 14:53

I have a 11 month old female border.
She's just amazing . She's super friendly with other dogs . The kids adore her . Took her less than a week to toilet train .

Took 3 days for her to sleep through the night . She's not crate trained as she hated it . Recall is on and off at times , but comes back with a squeaky ball .

She's not a massively greedy dog . She's never chewed anything .

She's the best thing we ever did. I can't imagine life without her .

LittlePearl · 15/02/2022 20:42

Make sure you come back with photos OP!

DobbyTheHouseElk · 15/02/2022 20:46

Everyone I know who’s had BT’s have had dogs who are very prone to fitting. Having witnessed it several times it would put me off.

userxx · 15/02/2022 20:51

Love a border terrorist, big personalities in a smallish body. My boy is 13.5 now, love the bones of him.

Palmfrond · 15/02/2022 21:22

Lovely dogs! I’ve met a fair few who make a horrible screeching sound when they see other dogs that could be mistaken for aggression but isn’t. Worth noting. Years ago I knew a couple with a border terrier who’d never let it loose with other dogs because of this, turns out it was just a weird thing they do and I’ve seen it a few times since, not sure how prevalent it is.

2DogsOnMySofa · 15/02/2022 21:34

I have a female border, we also have 2 other terrier crosses and she's fitted in really well (she's the youngest). I've had dogs all my life and she's the happiest dog I've ever had the pleasure to own. She's got an amazing personality, loves people and other dogs. She's as happy with half an hour around the block walk, as she is with a 20 mile hike up a mountain. She'll go for as long as you want her to, but is equally as happy to snuggle up with you on the sofa all day.

You'll need a very well enclosed garden as they are escape artists and can be vocal - but my other terriers are worse. She needs hand stripping twice a year, and likes to rip stuffed toys apart, so keep any soft toys off the dog shelf. She's never chewed furniture or anything she shouldn't have

They do have a high prey drive and can be stubborn, a friend told me her border can either sniff or listen, never both, so early training for recall is a must. Mine disappeared down a fox hole for 20 minutes once, it was the worst 20 mins of my life. I now have a tracker on her collar in case she gets a scent and is off. We live rurally so it's nice to have her off the lead, but if we spot any wildlife in the distance she goes back on her lead, just in case, as she will chase pheasants.

They are hardy dogs, but the best breed imo oh and yes, as other pp have said, they are governed by their stomachs

Wolfiefan · 15/02/2022 21:35

Met far too many reactive ones. Would avoid Im afraid.

PattesDuRhino · 17/02/2022 10:24

I have a 2 year old male border terrier, and compared to my old Patterdale he's a dream!

The good points are that he's super-friendly and sociable with dogs and people, he has amazing doggy language skills and will avoid trouble or stand up for himself if another dog gets bolshy. His recall took a while but has improved greatly as he's got older, we let him off the lead everywhere now and he's great at coming to call food. Toilet training was hit and miss initially but we got there, he just hated peeing in the rain until he was 8 months old and was so stubborn about it.

Bad points are the endless whinging, he's very whiney as are many BTs - they talk a lot. He doesn't bark "at" much apart from horses, but if bored he'll go out in the garden and bark just for kicks. His prey drive is not massively strong - he sniffs around flocks of birds on the beach without chasing them - but in the fields if he gets the scent of a hare, pheasant or partridge he WILL run and no amount of food will bring him back. But he's rarely gone for more than a couple of minutes, he does a lap and then he's back.

He has a lot of digestive issues and food allergies, but any dog can get that. He's all but vegan! The "fitting" mentioned up thread might be CECS (you need to Google), it's specific to BTs and can be unpleasant but I'm not sure it's all that common so don't let that put you off.

Compared to 12 years with my savage feral patterdale, he's the easiest dog ever.

Ole99 · 18/02/2022 20:21

We had a Border terrier - sadly he passed away in 2020 aged 18 but he was a wonderful family dog.
Very obedient and the easiest dog I’ve ever owned - house trained in less than a week; brilliant with the children; very social with other dogs and his recall was perfect every time, could walk him off lead anywhere anytime and he’d come back to command instantly.
As others have said he needed hand stripping 2 or 3 times a year but wouldn’t really call that a downside.
I’ve seen a few posts on Mumsnet saying Borders aren’t good with cats due to their high prey drive but here’s a pic of mine with his felines and as you can see they got along perfectly well

hapagirl · 18/02/2022 20:40

Borders are the best! We have a female one, and we have 3 DCs, 10, 13 and 15. She fits right in with the family She loves her walks but is equally a slob and sleeps in when we sleep in at the weekends. She has days when her recall is brilliant and I'm so proud of her, and then days where she doesn't listen at all. She loves other dogs. Also, borders have the cutest teddy bear faces.

MrsElf · 18/02/2022 21:00

Ours was a dream - friendly, chilled, pretty obedient…
Ran off a few times, but the longest was about an hour, and he came back to where he last saw me. He was a serious mouser, once managed to corner a fox, and also had a thing for badgers, which could have got him into much more trouble than it did… ! Quite vocal, so luckily the neighbours cats never ventured into the garden while he was outside. He was very independent and self contained - apparently it was only in his last few years he started getting at all cuddly, which coincided with me and my Velcrodogs moving in. He liked a bit of a fuss when you came home - he used to sit and squeal at the door when DH pulled up outside. He wasn’t mad keen for walks, but used to happily spend hours pottering nearby DH in the yard. Never very keen on going out in the rain, but zooming around the house with a new toy, or the little Elfpup, he was like the Tasmanian devil, utterly hilarious.
We never did much with his coat, but lots of brushing (he loved it). Unlike baths, nail clipping and teeth cleaning! He loved shredding soft toys, but we had to stop buying them as he started eating the stuffing. That was the only thing he ever did destroy, though.
I think DH is hoping to hear of a puppy…

MrsElf · 18/02/2022 21:08

Sorry, that needed a photo!

MrsElf · 18/02/2022 21:12

Ha hapagirl ours wasn’t a morning dog either

PieonaBarm · 18/02/2022 21:16

Mine is 13 this year and has started to show his age with arthritis and Cushing's but he's flipping old now! He is simply the best dog ever and has given us so much love and joy over the years. He is absolutely hilarious, an out and out clown, but just gets humans and particularly teenagers, despite never having lived with any.

Mine was handstripped but we clip him now, he finds standing for a full strip hard and is happier being clipped.

Do it, you'll not regret a BT! And as a previous poster says, they have teddy bear faces!

NanooCov · 18/02/2022 21:21

They're amazing. Had them as a youngster and when we are in a position to get a family dog it will almost certainly be a border.

I still miss my childhood BTs and it's been over 25 years since I had one last

Fastforwardtospring · 18/02/2022 21:26

Love seeing everybody’s BT’s, we have a six year old female - she’s only dinky, still gets mistaken for a puppy as also very playful, we love her, good all round family dog, no issues except few tummy problems but that’s because she’s a scavenger and will eat anything. She’s as happy curled up on the sofa with DD as she is going out for long walks, she’s a very happy little dog. Needs an enclosed garden though.

savvy7 · 18/02/2022 21:29

Mine is the loveliest teddy bear. Unlike some of the descriptions here, he has zero prey drive, rarely barks and is very friendly with other dogs. He loves food though and is very clever. Best dog ever.

MinglingFlamingo · 18/02/2022 21:32

Ours lived to a ripe old age of 16. He was lovely dog. He was rather stubborn but was a part of the family. Miss him to bits

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