Terrier group · United States
Rat Terrier
Also called American Rat Terrier, Ratting Terrier, Decker Giant.
What makes them remarkable
This American farm ratter comes in miniature and standard sizes, both developed for practical pest control.
- Intelligent
- Alert
- Lovable
- Inquisitive
- Lively
- Size
- Small
- Weight
- 5 to 11 kg10 to 25 lb
- Lives
- 12 to 18 years
- Energy
- High
- Trains
- High
- Barks
- Moderate
Training
Training a Rat Terrier
Terrier breeds. Impulse control and a rock-solid leave it. Short, high-value sessions; they bore fast.
Highly Trainable
Start here
Rat Terriers are more eager to please than many terrier breeds. Take advantage with consistent positive training.
Socialisation
Can be suspicious of strangers without proper socialisation. Expose to many people and situations early.
Mental Stimulation
Very intelligent and need mental challenges. Bored Rat Terriers become destructive.
The app turns this into five to fifteen minutes a day.
Add your Rat Terrier and it builds the plan around their age, where they came from and what they already know, one step at a time.
Free to start. iPhone. No card needed.
At home
Living with one
Bred to go to ground after vermin. Fearless, quick, and not built to back down.
Gets on with
- ChildrenHigh
- Other dogsHigh
- StrangersModerate
- CatsLow
Breed averages. Early socialisation and the individual dog matter more.
- Exercise
- 45-60 minutes daily. Active exercise with play and mental stimulation.
- Grooming
- Low maintenance. Weekly brushing to control shedding.
- Drool
- Low
- Coat
- Short, Smooth, DenseWhite with Black, White with Tan, White with Chocolate, Tricolour, Blue, Lemon
- In a flat
- Can work, with enough exercise outside it.
Health
Things to ask a breeder or vet about
Luxating Patella
Moderate
Kneecap displacement common in small dogs
Hip Dysplasia
Moderate
Joint issues, especially in larger variety
Primary Lens Luxation
Severe
Eye condition that can lead to blindness. DNA test available
Where they come from
History
Developed in the United States from various terriers brought by English immigrants in the 1800s. President Theodore Roosevelt is said to have named the breed. Originally farm dogs used for pest control. The breed includes both miniature and standard sizes.
- Skip · The title character in the heartwarming movie My Dog Skip
Similar breeds
All breeds
American Hairless Terrier
The breed began with a hairless puppy born into a Louisiana Rat Terrier litter in 1972.
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Welsh Terrier
Before its modern name, this Welsh hunter was known as the Black and Tan Wire Haired Terrier.
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Australian Terrier
British terrier ancestry met Australian working life in a dog used against rodents and snakes.
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Border Terrier
Bred to keep up with horses yet fit into a fox’s den, the Border Terrier had to balance leg length with a small body.
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