Border terrier puppies for sale

Coat Attributes & Care for Border Terriers

The Border Terrier has a double coat: a hard, wiry outer coat over a soft, fluffy undercoat. Like most double-coated breeds, the Border sheds seasonally. Most of the time, a quick brushing every week or two is enough to keep the coat in good shape. During shedding season, owners can expect to spend a half-hour or so every day stripping out the dead hair, either with their hands or with a rake or stripping tool. The outer coat repels dirt, but bathing compromises this ability. Usually a dirty Border Terrier can be cleaned up with a towel and a brush. As with all breeds, the BT’s nails should be trimmed regularly.

Grooming:

Border Terriers have a double coat, consisting of a tough waterproof top coat and a soft undercoat for warmth. There are a few Borders which have either one or just a sparse undercoat. This is incorrect for the breed. A few also grow a very long rather sparse top coat. These are often blue and tans. Border terriers need little grooming. They should be brushed every day for a few minutes. This will remove any dead hairs, and also loose undercoat. Brushing will remove any dry dirt on the coat.

A Border should never be bathed unless in a dire emergency, like rolling in a cowpat. Most ordinary dirt once it is dry will brush out. The top coat is waterproof and shampoo, even the mildest can remove the oil. Once the oil is removed, the coat will not be water resistant and will pick up dirt far more easily. Far better just to use luke warm water with no shampoo or detergent at all.

Nail Clipping:

The directive for nail clipping is ‘little and often’. From the age of three weeks, puppies should have their nails clipped regularly. Just about a mm a time, taking great care not to cut into the blood vessel or nerve. This is painful to the puppy and once it has happened, the puppy will be reluctant to let you touch its paws again.

The amount of natural wear on the nails depends upon how much road walking the Border does, and also how much digging in the garden. Do not forget the dew claws, as they do not get any wear and tear. Whether the new puppy has the dewclaws or not, depends upon the breeder. Some remove them when the puppies are a few days old, others do not.

Stripping:

Eventually the top coat will stop growing and die and will need to be removed. The undercoat often grows at a different rate and the normal everyday brushing will remove it.

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