Deadgame Patterdale Terriers

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Fell Terriers have always been bred as working terriers. Frank Buck together with Cyril Breay, must be credited with the creation of a strain of black and red, smooth or rough coated fell terriers known as the Patterdale terrier. The Patterdale does show physical variation, since mating is based on working ability and gameness, instead of looks. The patterdales size can be smaller than 8 pounds or larger than 30 pounds. I prefer my dogs to be no bigger than 12 inches at the shoulders and "hand spandable". Touch your thumbs together and then bring your hands around the dogs chest until your middle fingers touch on the other side of the dog. If the dogs are any bigger than this it is hard for them to move around under ground. The Patterdale was bred to cross the tough terrain of the Fells, and then ''go to ground'' enter into a hole where the larger dogs had chased a fox and try to persuade the fox to ''bolt'' run out of the hole. If the fox could not be persuaded to bolt, the tough little terrier would eliminate the fox in the ground.

The first Patterdales were brought to the United States in 1978. They are used here to hunt raccoons, groundhogs, fox, squirrel, rabbit, and badgers. This is not a complete list, Patterdales will usually hunt and attack just about anything. Patterdales are also usually very smart and can be used to hunt in pairs. I have a fifteen pound female named Kori, that has tracked down and captured a boar that weighed over a hundred pounds. There was a seventeen pound male that helped her, but I no longer have him. The dog in the picture barking up the tree is Kori. These dogs are also used to protect chickens and other livestock. I keep a few chickens here so that my dogs will be used to them. I have not lost a chicken to an animal attack since Kori was five months old. If an animal tries to get my chickens she will either kill it, or chase it up a tree and bark until I come out or home, or she will chase it into the ground and kill it there. She has caught and killed Raccoons, Opossums and a skunk that was after my chickens and she will worry big dogs that come around until I come out and run them off. She has also brought squirrels, snakes and groundhogs home that she caught without me.

Although patterdales love to hunt and will usually not back down from a fight, my patterdales have a very nice temperment, and They are not "yappy" like a lot of other small dogs.

I will be providing more information about these dogs in the near future. If you have any questions

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This is an application to join the Patterdale Terrier Club of America. Print Page 1 of 2 fill it out and mail it in.

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