About The Breed

Lifespan 12-14 years

Weight 5-7 kg

Height 28-40 cm

Temperament Affectionate, cheeky, confident

Border Terriers are plucky dogs with a love for people.

They make awesome pets even for a family, and can live almost anywhere.

This easy going dog is as happy to go hiking with you as they are content to stay inside cuddling you all day.

Cheerful and confident, Border Terriers make both beloved pets and hardy working dogs.

Their affectionate and even temperament and their adaptability means that they are just as content living in a flat as they are in a country estate.

As long as they get to stretch their legs and spend plenty of time with their humans, they’re happy little dogs.

It also makes them a super choice for a family dog, or as a companion for active older folk.

They’re just an all-round good dog!

Considering they are a working terrier, Borders are a surprisingly laid back breed and usually just want to join in with whatever their humans are doing.

That means your Border Terrier will be excited to join you for a run or a walk but equally would be paw-fectly content to spend plenty of time lazing on your lap and having a love.

Their nature and the fact they are not a high-maintenance dog makes them paw-fect pets for a variety of homes.

They have pretty low grooming requirements, only needing a weekly brush and very infrequent baths. 

Borders also have bags of energy and character without being overly boisterous, and they’re more sociable with other dogs than most terrier breeds, so they make fun fur-iends.

One caveat though is that Border Terriers do have quite a lot of energy and a high prey drive. This means that you will need to provide plenty of enrichment for them to keep them occupied, and to prevent bad behaviour caused by boredom.

Border Terriers are one of the most pup-ular and oldest breeds of terrier, emerging sometime in the 18th century, making them a well-established breed.

In 1914 they were pitched to the Kennel Club but were rejected, but in 1920 breeders tried again and were successful and the Border Terrier was finally recognised as a distinct breed by the Kennel Club.

Because Border Terriers were kept for hunts and pest control for decades, they weren’t pup-ular pets right away.

It means that even today a Border Terrier must be “essentially a working terrier” who is active, able to follow a horse, and showing gameness.

However, despite their drive and zeal as a working dog, Borders are much more laid back at home.

This is a dog that seems to understand that there are different times and places for different things, and in the house, they’re pretty easy-going.

As the name suggests, they originated in the land on the border of England and Scotland, and they could originally be found on farms and estates throughout the Cheviot Hills which form the national border.

The region of their origin and utility lends itself to their thick, coarse double coat which helps to repel dirt and water to keep them clean and dry even on cold and drizzly days.

They weren’t always called Border Terriers though.

Once upon a time they went by the names of the Coquetdale Terrier or the Redesdale Terrier.

Again, these names are taken from the breed’s home turf.

Redesdale is in west Northumberland in the northernmost part of England, and Coquetdale is the area around the river Coquet, also in Northumberland.

Although they don’t look very alike, the Border Terrier has shared ancestry with the Bedlington Terrier and the Dandie Dinmont Terrier which also grew up in those parts

The breed was developed to be a versatile vermin hunter.

Their most common role was hunting foxes, rather like a Jack Russell.

Borders are longer legged than most terriers because they were bred to have the stride and stamina to follow horses on a hunt.

They were then used to “go to ground” and chase foxes out from their underground dens and lead them back out into the open where the hounds could begin the chase again. Because they needed to head into tunnels, the dog had to be small and flexible enough to follow a fox into their hidden dens.

Foxes weren’t their only prey though and these pooches were also used to catch rats and they were even used to hunt badgers and otters.

Because the Border Terrier was used on hunts and often kept in kennels alongside the hounds, these dogs were bred to have an agreeable temperament. Hunters wanted dogs that would know their place and not cause trouble with the rest of the pack, which is why Border Terriers are surprisingly sociable with other dogs when compared to other terrier breeds.