The Dandie Dinmont Terrier
 Montizard Kennels |
 Montizard Kennels |
The Dandie Dinmont Terrier was bred from selected specimens of the rough native terrier in the Border country between England and Scotland during the late 17th century. A direct line of these dogs descended to the farmers in the Teviotdale Hills where Sir Walter Scott chanced upon them and made them famous in his 1812 novel "Guy Mannering". His character, "Dandie Dinmont", a farmer, kept the immortal six - "Auld Pepper", "Auld Mustard", "Young Pepper", "Young Mustard", "Little Pepper" and "Little Mustard". The breed soon became as popular as the novel, and was known thereafter as Dandie Dinmont Terriers.
The dog was originally used for hunting the otter and that badger. Today the hunting qualities of the Dandie are not as often required, but his other fine qualities make him an excellent house dog. They are very intelligent, fond of children, and an excellent guard dog.
The Dandie has a rough double coat, made up of hard and soft hair in the proportion of about double the amount of hard to that of soft. The hair feels crisp to the touch, but doesn't have the harsh feel of the wiry coated breeds. Their head is covered with a soft silky hair. The color of the hair is either pepper or mustard.
Dandies should be between 8-11 inches and weigh between 18-24 pounds. The standard for the Dandie Dinmont Terrier was written in Melrose, Scotland in 1876. There was great debate among the breeders about the correct size, when the Dandie standard was written, due to the disparity in size of some of the specimens. The Dandie of the 1800's ranged in weight from under 10 lbs to almost 40 lbs. The smaller ones were used for weasels and other small animals, the large ones for the otters, foxes and aggressive badgers. However, as in all things human, an intelligent compromise was reached, and the written standard called for Dandies to range between 14 - 24 lbs, eliminating the tiniest and largest sized dogs.
The Dandie Dinmont is affectionate and fun-loving. It makes a great companion dog. Lively, plucky, determined and willful. Independent and intelligent. Bold yet dignified. Reserved with strangers and protective of family and home. Good with all well-behaved children and babies as long as they are raised with them from puppyhood. Dominance level varies greatly. Some males can be aggressive with other male dogs in the household. It is best not to keep two intact male dogs together. It should not be trusted with non-canine pets. It will be okay with cats that it is raised with from puppyhood. This little dog has a big bark for its size. They are not difficult to train, but allowance must be made for the fact that they can be very stubborn and not keen on obedience.
