The breeds · terrier
AKC Terrier · UKC Terrier · FCI standard 168
Dandie Dinmont Terrier.
AKC: originally bred to go to ground; a long, low-stationed working terrier. UKC: descended from the rough native terriers of the border country between England and Scotland; first recorded as a distinct type around 1700 and used to hunt otter and badger. FCI 168: utilization Terrier, Group 3 Section 2 (small-sized terriers), without working trial; a game, workmanlike terrier. RKC: the breed was developed in the Border counties and Scotland and gained its name from Sir Walter Scott's Guy Mannering; RKC lists it as a vulnerable native breed (UK)..
Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.
The body
What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.
Height at the shoulder
AKC, UKC and FCI agree. AKC: length from shoulders to root of tail is one to two inches less than twice the height (FCI: preferably 2.5 to 5 cm less).
Weight
Span of AKC/UKC and FCI. FCI states the lower weights are preferred; AKC states overall balance matters more than any single specification.
Coat
AKC, UKC and FCI agree.
Shedding
AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.
Heat tolerance
Derived from the standards' coat (medium double coat = 3). A long, low dog; no measured data.
How long they live, and what they cost
Measured on real dogs, with the sample and the spread. Never a guess.
Median lifespan
UK dogs, Dogs Trust table, accessed Oct 8 2026. Small sample, hence the wide interval.
The dog at home
What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.
Exercise need
RKC band 'up to 1 hour' mapped to 60 minutes per library rule. AKC bands shown as text, not mapped.
Energy
AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.
Grooming load
RKC 'more than once a week' mapped to 3.
The work
What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.
Role
AKC, UKC, FCI and RKC wording.
Primary game
UKC states the quarry; the RKC line is for terriers generally, not the Dandie specifically. Wikipedia is editorial.
Also used on
Single editorial source.
Search pattern
Earth terrier: single work at the den; no source prints a voice or cry statement.
Field trial standard
FCI classification only; AKC Earthdog eligibility not read.
Water work
Otter work implies water, but no source states water ability; shown as what the sources say.
How common the problems are
Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.
Most common disorders
Editorial summary of cited studies; the shunt paper (Tobias and Rohrbach 2003, JAVMA) was not read.
More
akc bands
Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.
How to read this page
Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.
Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 7 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.
- Also called
- Dandie, Dandie Dinmont
Every breed, read the same way.
The breed index grows as entries clear the standard. Gun dogs first.
All published breedsYour dandie dinmont terrier, on the record.
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