Looking for a Working Terrier?

In the world of working terriers, there seems to be quite a few more dog dealers than terrier diggers.

"Kennel reduction" sales seem to be as common as ticks in August, and "Bay Dogs Online" always seems to have a perpetual advertisement up from some Patterdale or Jagd Terrier person anxious to sell off another dog to a gullible public. Perhaps the dogs are all fantastic. Who knows? Caveat emptor, is all I can say!

The folks I know that work their dogs do not have massive kennels, as it takes too long to make an honest worker in the field, and a pregnant dog is a dog out of commission for too long. Plus, everyone has a real job these days, don't they? There are not too many professional terriermen and game keepers left who dig on their own dogs three days a week and muck out 20 kennel runs at night! Here in the U.S., there are none!

Of course, in this world of one-minute rice, most dog dealers cannot be bothered with actually working their own dogs, can they?

Why work a dog yourself when you can simply buy two dogs from some "name" and then claim your own excellent stock is descended from so-and-so?

And why dig on the dogs at all, when you can simply live-trap a raccoon and toss it on to a barn floor where you can snap a picture or two of it being ripped at by two, three, or even six dogs?

What is fascinating to me is that this reprehensible behavior seems to be centered around a few owners of only one particular terrier breed: the Patterdale Terrier.

You do not find wannabe dog fighters in the Jack Russell Terrier community, among owners of working Teckels, among Border Terrier owners, or among Plummer Terrier breeders. Most Patterdale terrier owners and workers are fine upstanding people too, but if you do find a twisted person in the world of working terriers, you can be sure they will be selling Patterdales.

What is the attraction of the Patterdale Terrier? The answer, I think, is that it is different. Everyone wants to be different, and in this way everyone is exactly the same. You can walk a Patterdale on a leash and no one at the park or coffee shop is going to know what it is. When asked, you get to tell the tale of how special your dog is -- a certified fox killer that can bore through cast iron on will power alone.

Then, of course, there are the get-rich-quick folks and the rosette chasers, both of whom have been anxious to get in early "before the market gets flooded."

But, of course, the market is already flooded isn't it? Patterdales are now being swapped for replacement auto parts by guys like this fellow, who so very clearly wants to be a dog-fighting man. This numskull proudly shows off a picture of his daughter's pet pig, killed by his own incompetence as a kennel manager. Below that he shows off three of his terriers baiting a live raccoon caught in a trap.

This is the legacy of Joe Bowman, Cyril Breay, Frank Buck and Brian Nuttal? I don't think so!

People sometimes ask me for breed or breeder recommendations, and I am generally noncommittal.

You see, I am less interested in the breed of terrier or kennel name, than I am in the size of the dog, its demeanor in the field, and what kind of real work its dam or sire has done. Size is particularly critical: If the dog is too big, I could care less what breed it is, who bred it, or what storied names are claimed in the pedigree.

People who value paper pedigrees seem to think you can buy a working terrier, but I know that the provenance and track record of the sire and dam only tell part of the story. The rest is determined by how the dog is entered and how much experience it is given in the field.

I do not require an exceptional and storied lineage to get decent results. After all, terrier work is not all about the dog, is it? But you would think so to listen to the theorists. If a dog does not work out, they complain about how they bought a crap dog. You never hear the slightest introspection about themselves as being crap terriermen.

Which brings me to the real problem in the world of working terriers: Too few people are actually digging on their dogs, and too many people are peddling puppies. Why is this?

Perhaps it is because working a terrier is suspiciously like work. There are tools to be bought, farm permissions to be obtained, and basic knowledge to be acquired. All of this is easier now than it was a twenty years ago. At least one working terrier book has practical advice, but it still requires some effort, doesn't it?

And how many people will stick with it? Not many!

For most, the theory of terrier work is more romantic and interesting than the reality which comes with freezing winds, scorching sun, sore muscles, muddy boots, and lots of scratches and bug bites.

And then, of course, there is the rare, but big, veterinary bill. Spend enough time in the field, and you will find that terrier work will eventually come with a veterinary tag attached to it. Are you prepared for an expense that could easily tip past a $1,000 due to a run in with barbed wire, a skunk, a porcupine, or a very serious bite? If not, then terrier work is not for you.

You see, if you are taking a dog into the field, then you have a duty to the dog.

Just as a terrierman does not expect his dog to cut and run at the first sign of difficulty in the hole, neither should the dog see its owner cut and run as soon as there is an out-sized veterinary expense.

If you are serious about terrier work, then you need to be prepared to stand with the dog with your credit card in hand if that is ever needed. Will you need to do that very often? No -- not if you learn some basic veterinary skill. That said, when push comes to shove, everyone who digs will eventually have to reach deeper into their pocket than they are comfortable with. Be willing to pay up when needed, or get out. It's that simple.

OK, now for some advice. You say you are looking for a working terrier? Fine: Here's a guide to how to think about breeders and (perhaps) where to find a decent dog:

1. Consider an adult dog, especially one from Jack Russell Terrier Rescue.
   4With an older dog, you will actually know the chest size of the dog, which is critical. Most of the time there is nothing wrong with a terrier in rescue other than the fact that it is an honest working dog with real energy and prey drive. In short, Jack Russell Rescue probably has what you want!
   
   
2. Focus on chest size. If the person trying to sell you a dog does not know the chest size of his or her dogs, keep looking.
   4Only chest size is verifiable by sight alone, and nothing else is more important to the success (and health in the field) of a working terrier. You want a dog with a chest of 14 inches (the same as a fox). Most properly proportioned working terriers with correct chest sizes will stand between 11 and 12.5 inches tall at the shoulder. Females will almost always be smaller than males.
   
   
3. If the person trying to sell you a dog does not own a locator collar, a $60 shovel, a digging bar, and a veterinary box, keep looking.
   4If you must get a puppy from a breeder, that breeder should be regularly digging on his or her own dogs. Anyone who claims they are selling working terriers, and who does not have proper digging tools, is a liar. Never buy a dog from a liar.
   
   
4. If the person trying to sell you a dog is putting a lot of emphasis on show ring rosettes or the "brand names" to be found on a paper pedigree, or on the work he or she claims the sire or dam did for someone else "long ago and far away," keep looking.
   4A working terrier is not defined by rosettes or scraps of paper, but by the work it has done in the field for the current owner.
   
   
5. If the person trying to sell you a dog does not have pictures of his or her dogs working dirt dens in the country you live in, and on the quarry you intend to hunt, keep looking.
   4The work of a terrier is underground, and real work is done close to home, not across an ocean in a land far away. You are looking for real work, not romance. If you do not intend to work brush piles and barns, stay away from brush pile dog dealers.
   
   
6. If the person trying to sell you a dog has a web site which shows pictures of his dogs staked out to massive chains, keep looking.
   4Dogs staked to heavy chains are a sign you have run into a wannabe dog fighting man who is starting a get-rich-quick scheme. Run (don't walk) away from such people.
   
   
7. If the person trying to sell you a dog tells you his dogs are mute or "as hard as iron," keep looking.
   4An honest terrierman (or woman) is not digging three times a year, and has no use for a dog that will not communicate and that will get wrecked in the hole. Terrier work has more to do with nose, nerve, voice, and brains than it does with teeth, muscle and aggression.
   
   
8. If the person trying to sell you a dog tells you the breed or color of a dog matters, keep looking.
   4Working terriers come in all colors and many breeds; anyone who says different is selling you nonsense. There is more variation within working terrier breeds than between them.
   
   
9. If the person trying to sell you a dog will sell it to you sight unseen, and with no knowledge of your home or kennel set up, keep looking.
   4A true dog man or woman cares about his pups and is not doing a mail-order business to nameless, faceless people.
   
   
10. If you demand that your dog be a puppy, and you are also serious about work, the first dog to consider is a Jack Russell Terrier or working dachshund (i.e. a Teckel).
    4There is nothing wrong with a good Patterdale, and if that is your heart's desire go with it. Just be aware that there are too many people breeding these dogs now, and as a consequence the delicate balance needed in a successful working terrier is too often absent. Caveat emptor! As for Border Terriers, most are too big to work and even fewer actually do work. If you are looking for a small working terrier out of working stock, a Border Terrier that fits the bill will be exceedingly difficult to find. Jack Rusell Terriers have one advantage: the Jack Russell Terrier Club of America which keeps a track record not only of the size of terriers in their registry, but also of the work that at least some of the dogs are doing. Working Teckels are rare in the U.S. but a miniature dachshund from working lines always has a chest small enough to get to ground, and they are blessed with fine noses and good voices as well. Their only drawback is that short legs can present problems in certain situation (most notably very tall and thick grass or very steep rock).

• Related Links
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  ** Working Terriers: Their Size, Sex and Quarry
  ** The Chest Size of Working Teckels
  ** A Challenge to All Breeders