Temperament
The breed is tough but usually friendly, and are suitable for older children. It makes both a good companion and a guard dog, but are among the most docile of the terrier breeds and are usually quite undemanding of their owners. However they are known for their ability to dig large holes in a short space of time. They can be trained to be good with cats, but should not be trusted around smaller animals such as hamsters or rats. They are described as being "very game", in that they are prone to challenging other animals including foxes, and in some cases other dogs.
Read more about this topic: Dandie Dinmont Terrier
Famous quotes containing the word temperament:
“Temperament is the primary requisite for the critic—a temperament exquisitely susceptible to beauty, and to the various impressions that beauty gives us.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“These philosophers dwell on the inevitability and unchangeableness of laws, on the power of temperament and constitution, the three goon, or qualities, and the circumstances, or birth and affinity. The end is an immense consolation; eternal absorption in Brahma.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Temperament is the natural, inborn style of behavior of each individual. It’s the how of behavior, not the why.... The question is not, “Why does he behave a certain way if he doesn’t get a cookie?” but rather, “When he doesn’t get a cookie, how does he express his displeasure...?” The environment—and your behavior as a parent—can influence temperament and interplay with it, but it is not the cause of temperamental characteristics.”
—Stanley Turecki (20th century)