My lovely cat sadly passed away about 6 weeks ago and for the last three weeks I’ve started to look into finding a puppy. (I know it’s quick but we have wanted a dog for a long time coming from doggy home backgrounds and only held back for the sake of my cat having a peaceful end of life, so really we’ve been planning this for a couple of years already).

That said, I know my emotions are steering me a little as for the first time in twenty years we have an enormous emptiness in the house. I miss the companionship, the responsibilities, the tippy tap of toes. The reason to get out of bed on the weekends.

I know I’ve really only just started looking but I’m already feeling simultaneously overwhelmed and flattened by the process.

I’m in the UK for context.

Our primary concern is obviously having a healthy and SLEM free pup that comes from a good line. We also want to make sure we avoid puppy farms, poor breeding practices/unethical breeding, and scammers.

We started with kennel club but there’s only a few listings there and the only one remotely local said they are long gone (so I suspect the rest are dead ads too).

We’ve reluctantly been looking on pets4homes but it feels like the ads either seem a bit off, don’t provide enough info, or are in the far north (we are in Hampshire).

I enquired over one ad and my gut is something is off. They mentioned a deposit to hold before we’d even arranged to see the pups. They didn’t ask any info about me (though I offered it willingly and got a ‘oh that’s nice’ kinda response like they didn’t care). The ad says they are microchipped but not vet checked, surely you would do that at the same time? They moved the conversation to WhatsApp quickly. Their ad says something about having bad signal but being able to receive WhatsApp messages fine (my gut says that they want to avoid requests for video calls). The pictures seem… clean. Just the mum and pups either in a crate with a couple of toys or in a bed on a sofa but the surroundings don’t look super lived in. I am sure that some people have sparse decorations or perhaps they just didn’t want their house on show so angled each photo to show little idk.. but something tells me it’s not right. When I contacted them they said ‘Both mum and dads parents are slem clear so therefore puppies will be. Puppies are pedigree but do not come with kc papers.’ But offered no further info for me to verify.
And what really irked me a bit is I said we could come up next weekend to view (intending on just sussing the situation and asking more questions when there, asking to see paperwork etc), they agreed then later messaged me saying they were on their way home if I still wanted to come - when that was never the agreement. What do you guys think? Does it sound dodgy?

I know about champdogs - only two litters listed and not feasible distance. I’ve tried looking up breeders from there and have reached out to one but no response.

I’ve contacted the secretary of the southern border terrier club to ask for advice on how to approach this properly, and no response.

I’ve googled this to hell but keep getting offered crappy advice like ‘go to club shows’ (which aren’t open to public as far as I’m aware or in my mind would be terrible to network because anyone who does breed will likely be busy showing their dogs). Or the advice I’m following isn’t yielding results. (I know I’m being impatient).

Does anyone have any advice for me at all on how to go about this? I feel like you need to know people, like introduced by word of mouth to get anywhere near a reputable breeder. I’m worried about bringing a pup home only to have to euthanise because of slem. I’m worried I won’t spot the warning signs of poor breeding practices when seeing litters.

I’m honestly happy to wait this out to find the right pup under the right circumstances, and I’m wondering if I’m just looking at the wrong time of year or need to have more patience. We’ve carefully considered this breed based on our lifestyle and their characteristics and don’t want to give up and try for a different breed if possible.

Any help would be appreciated 🙏🙏

Left this crazy world a week ago & we miss you like crazy. Your legacy & wonderful temperament lives on!

We said goodbye to Winston today. Heaven has another good boy.

Remembering him as the best companion and play mate for all of us.

RIP my boy. We will miss you.

RIP Lola - miss you more than words can say

My goodest girls, Scout and Daisy

This is Sequoia, she's about two and a half. I adopted her back in January. Best dog I've ever had the pleasure of caring for. Great temperament, happy and full of energy. She chases anything that moves and runs like the wind. I was told she's a Border Mix, but I do not know her lineage. She does look like a lot of what I see here. Taking her to her first grooming appointment this weekend. She does not enjoy water.

My boy was born Oct 17th. The breeder just sent me an image of mom, Anna, with her pups. Not sure which is mine yes but my heart is so full 💕

We gotta deal with this bad weather some how.

hey! looking for some advice with our border. this is my family’s third border and she has a bit of a personality! she is very different to the other two we’ve had.

she turned two over the summer. in the past few weeks, her hunting drive has gone crazy. she won’t stop tracking squirrels and birds around the garden - we’ve had to keep her on a long line/stop her sitting outside because she gets so fixated. she recently caught and killed a pigeon, and today caught and attacked a rabbit (she’s getting vaccines now).

looking for any advice dealing with this escalation in behaviour! we do stimulating play during the day, plus one or two long walks a day, and cuddles on the sofa - she’s very sweet most of the time! she gets very wound up over people coming to the front door, but is very sociable with people, children and other dogs. any ideas/solutions would be very welcome :)

Hello everyone!

When I posted here asking for advice about getting a Border Terrier, I was amazed by how many people took the time to respond and help us make our decision. I’m so grateful for all the advice and support we received. What a lovely community! ❤️

We’ve now contacted a family expecting a litter at the end of November, and we’re hoping to be selected to welcome one of their puppies into our family! 🤞

In the meantime, I’m trying to prepare as much as possible to give our future pup the best start in life. I’d love to hear about your experiences, especially since there aren’t many terrier specialists in our area.

A few questions for you all:

🐾 Training: I plan to do most of the training at home and probably attend a local puppy class in a small group. How did you train your Border Terrier? Did you follow an online course or a specific training schedule, or did you mostly learn as you went along?

🎾 Commands vs. games: Did you focus mainly on basic commands, or did you use lots of games and play-based training? Are there any online resources, books or courses you’d recommend, especially for first-time Border Terrier owners?

🐕 Early priorities: What were the most important things you taught your Border Terrier as a puppy? For example, recall, loose-leash walking, settling down, being comfortable alone, or learning to ignore distractions. Is there anything you wish you’d focused on earlier?

🥣 Food and sensitivities: I’ve also read that some Border Terriers can have food sensitivities, including issues with certain ingredients. What do you feed your puppy or adult Border? Do you recommend any particular foods, or is it best to start with the breeder’s food and see how things go?

I know every dog is different, but I’d love to learn from your experiences and hear what worked (or didn’t work!) for you.

Thank you so much in advance for helping us prepare for our little Border Terrier adventure! ❤️🐾

Took Milo for a photoshoot the other week and I'm sorry but LOOK AT ME LITTLE LAD 😭😂❤️

Usually looks like he's been dragged through a hedge backwards, now he's a bloody supermodel 🤣

Massive thanks to Neil and Diane at New Beginnings Studio for being so patient with him and making the whole thing such a lovely experience! 🐾

They are so cute when not biting lumps out of eachother!

He is doing ok, a little nervous and lots of sitting down, the cold weather probably isn’t helping. A little reactive in his own way with other dogs and people, no lunging but attention is firmly fixed on them. We are working on this

High fellow BT lovers.
I had a border previously, and while nothing would replace my girl, I am at the next stage of life where considering another.

While my BT will be with my 24/7 I do have a property with free ranging chickens.

Does anyone have any experience with have a border and chickens living together? Possible or …. Stressful?