Dandie Dinmont Terrier

I'm a dog named after a fictional human, the rough-but-friendly farmer in Sir Walter Scott's (anonymous) 1815 novel "Guy Mannering or the Astrologer." The fictional Dandie Dinmont's farm dogs were actually Basset Terriers. But since my breed had been around since the 1700s (a mix of Scottish and Bedlington Terriers and Otterhounds) without a dandy name, we got one thanks to the wild popularity of the book. Today we're smallish (8-11 inches at the shoulder) with a crisp-textured coat of mustard or pepper color and a silken topknot.

• Affectionate, devoted, loyal family friend
• Always alert
• Confident and self-assured
• Courageous canine
• Even-tempered and good-natured
• Perfect protector

• Adaptable to apartment life -- with ample exercise
• Coat is high maintenance
• Independent thinker
• Intelligent and ready to learn
• Caters to country, tolerates town
• Stubborn streak
• Wary of strangers
• Training must be firm, patient, consistent

I need you to remember my need for daily exercise. Leashed walks would be fine, since you probably don't have otters and badgers in your neighborhood to chase (and I shouldn't, even if you did). Speaking of chasing, I used to hunt polecats, which is Brit-speak for skunks. Please don't let relive those days -- or my coat will need more than a daily brushing.

Possible hip dysplasia and elbow or shoulder problems, Cushing’s disease, canine lymphoma, and slipped kneecaps.