Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Temperament, Price, and Puppies For Sale

The Dandie Dinmont Terrier is a small-sized dog that as a cheerful and smart appearance.

The Dandie Dinmont Terrier comes from Great Britain and has the body build of a weasel. It has two layers of hair, a fluffy undercoat and a rougher and thick overcoat that is not wired. Its coat is perfect for its lifestyle, because it loves being outdoors and its hair keeps it safe from cold temperatures.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Origins

The Dandie Dinmont Terrier takes its name from the main character of a Walter Scott’s novel (a well-known Scottish writer from the British Romanticism), author of the famous “Ivanhoe”. This is the only Terrier whose name is not related to its country of origin.

This Scottish Terrier is the result of local hunter’s selection, who mixed intuition with scientific methods in order to obtain a dog with great courage, tenacity and hunting skills.

Since the beginning of the 17th century, these Terriers took the name of the places they lived; there are several theories about crossings to create unique dogs, and given the lack of documentation in the matter, we cannot jump to any conclusions.

Some experts assure that the Dachshund is the ancestor of the Dandie Dinmont; this can be seen in their morphological similarities.

Besides, we are almost sure that this dog breed was part of the creation of “Rothbury”, the ancestor of the Bedlington Terrier.

The official debut of the Dandie Dinmont was in a dog show in 1877 in Carlisle; and its first Club was founded two years earlier. The first specimens of this dog breed were registered in the Kennel Club of London in 1880. The Dandie Dinmont Terrier has been part of the creation of several dog breeds, but unfortunately is not a wide-spread Terrier outside Great Britain.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Physical Characteristics

The height of this little British dog can be of 9 inches (25 cm.) and its weight can be of 17-24 lb (8-11 kg), it is important to get its diet under control so it does not gain much weight; keep in mind that overweight could cause joint pain and movements difficulties, especially during adulthood.

The Dandie Dinmont Terrier has a light but strong back, short extremities and well-muscled extremities, well-developed thighs which give it firm, fluid and loose gait.

The tail is short and thick, and also, it has a weasel-shape head, which means it is wide with a strong and well-developed jaw. Besides its typical coat, it has an adorable and peculiar lock of puffy hair in the top of its head; the nose is big and black-colored, impossible to get unnoticed. From its head, two separated ears hang to the cheeks. The eyes are round and generally hazelnut-colored.

Talking about colors, the allowed color of the standard are:

• Pepper (from blue-black to silver-gray)
• Mustard

As we mentioned before, its overcoat is not very soft; to clarify: it has two layers of hair, a soft undercoat, and a rough and woolly overcoat.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Temperament

Nowadays, hunting is nothing but a memory of the Dandie Dinmont Terrier, which is now used as a companion dog. Its temperament makes it the perfect dog for this task, because it is a playful and cheerful dog of small proportions, perfect to live inside the house in the company of older or lazy people.

If we compare it to the brave-hearted hunter it used to be, we can certainly assure that the current Dandie Dinmont Terrier is a lot calmer, well-mannered, docile and affectionate with its owner. Moreover, it is independent and you must take it on walks at least three times a day, not only so it can enjoy its freedom, liveliness and adventures, but also to prevent obesity and overweight caused by lack of exercise.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Club

The Dandie Dinmont is part of the group of Terriers, but also belongs to its first exclusive Club founded in 1875, shortly after the first two specimens were registered by the Kennel Club of London. We can say that this is not a widely spread dog breed, not even in its motherland, despite the fact that it has a very peculiar name.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier, took its name from a novel of Walter Scott (author of “Ivanhoe”), the main character gave name to this adorable Terrier without knowing it. This is the only Terrier on the face of the Earth that is not named after its country or region of origin.

Dandie Dinmont Terrier: Breeders, Price, and Puppies for Sale

It can be difficult to find a specimen of this dog breed, and even harder to establish its price.

A Dandie Dinmont Terrier puppy purchased in a breeding establishment could cost around 1400 dollars, 1100 English pounds, or even more. The fact that it is not a widespread dog around the US, Canada and UK, does not make it cheap.

You can ask for a pedigree certificate, which allows you to check your dog breed’s purity. An animal with pedigree has certain characteristics that distinguish it among the others.

Now that we have mentioned the most important aspects, you can go to your new four-legged friend, who is certainly waiting for you.