West Highland White Terrier Breed description: Character & Co

The typical character traits of the West Highland White Terrier

The little white terriers bring joy into the house! The West Highland White Terrier is usually in a good mood and loves to entertain. It likes to be the center of attention and loved by its family. Quite unlike many other terrier breeds, the Westie is not prone to nervousness or yapping. It is alert and will let you know if something unusual is around, but will then calm down.

You should not underestimate the strong hunting instinct of this dog. Its days as a hunting dog are not so long gone. The breed has remained very original and so your Westie can quickly disappear into a foxhole on a walk if you are not careful.

It is always friendly with other dogs, people and children. A West Highland White Terrier must be accustomed to small animals in the house. Usually these intelligent animals understand very quickly who belongs to the family and cats or rabbits are spared.

If you train your West Highland White Terrier puppy lovingly but firmly from an early age, you will have a loyal friend for life and will also be able to control the hunting instinct well.

• happy little dog and usually in a good mood
• wants to be the center of attention
• needs a lot of attention
• solid education necessary
• can have strong hunting instinct

Breed typical diseases of the West Highland White Terrier

In the West Highland White Terrier breed pathological changes of the skull bone and the jaw appear more often.

These include

• Cranio-mandibular osteopathy
• Jaw misalignments
• Dental problems

Patellar luxation is considered another breed-specific condition. It leads to various forms of lameness depending on its severity.

Breeding, acquisition and keeping of the West Highland White Terrier

Keeping a Westie is not difficult. It can easily be happy even in a city apartment. However, you should have time or find someone to take care of your dog when you are not around.

You can get a West Highland White Terrier puppy from a registered breeder or from hobby breeders. A purebred with papers costs from 1000 Euro upwards.

This dog is quite common. If you don't want to buy a West Highland White Terrier, but rather adopt one, you might find one at an animal shelter.

Please never buy a dog just because it is cheap. Puppy traders from Eastern Europe breed the most popular breeds on a large scale and then offer them for sale at motorway service stations or at the roadside.