Small Terrier Breeds
This page opens the small breed table searched for terrier: 17 breeds, each with its typical adult weight and height, coat, how much the coat is described as dropping and how much the breed moves. Twelve are registered in the Terrier group, from the Border, Cairn, Norfolk, Norwich and Scottish Terriers to the West Highland White, the Welsh, the Bedlington, the Dandie Dinmont, the Russell, the Rat Terrier and the Miniature Schnauzer. Five more carry terrier in the name but are registered elsewhere: the Yorkshire, Silky, Toy Fox and Toy Manchester Terriers in the Toy group, and the Boston Terrier in Non-Sporting. Cap the weight, keep the low-shedding coats, sort the rows, or clear the search to see every small breed.
Showing 17 of 46 breeds, sorted by weight, lowest first.
| Coat | Energy | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toy Fox TerrierToy | 3.5 to 7 lb | 8.5 to 11.5 in | Short, satiny and fineSheds: moderate | high |
An American toy taken down in size from the Smooth Fox Terrier, with large erect ears and a satin coat. | ||||
| Yorkshire TerrierToy | 4 to 7 lb | 7 to 8 in | Fine, silky single coat, steel blue and tanSheds: low | moderate |
Steel blue and tan, with a single coat that can grow floor length over a body under seven pounds. | ||||
| Manchester Terrier (Toy)Toy | 6 to 12 lb | 10 to 12 in | Short, dense and glossy, black and tanSheds: moderate | high |
The toy variety of an old English rat-catching terrier, with erect ears and sharply marked tan points. | ||||
| Silky TerrierToy | 8 to 10 lb | 9 to 10 in | Flat, glossy, silky single coatSheds: low | high |
Australian in origin, blue and tan, with a silky coat parted down the back and shorter than a Yorkshire's. | ||||
| Russell TerrierTerrier | 9 to 15 lb | 10 to 12 in | Smooth, broken or rough, all of them weatherproofSheds: moderate | high |
A short-legged English working terrier, rectangular in outline, in three separate coat varieties. | ||||
| Rat Terrier (Miniature)Terrier | 10 to 18 lb | 10 to 13 in | Short, dense and smoothSheds: moderate | high |
An American farm terrier in its smaller size, smooth-coated, with ears carried erect or tipped over. | ||||
| Miniature SchnauzerTerrier | 11 to 20 lb | 12 to 14 in | Wiry outer coat over a close undercoat, with beard and eyebrowsSheds: low | high |
| Norfolk TerrierTerrier | 11 to 12 lb | 9 to 10 in | Hard, wiry and straight, lying closeSheds: low | high |
| Norwich TerrierTerrier | 11 to 12 lb | 9 to 10 in | Hard, wiry and straight, with a ruff at the neckSheds: low | high |
| Border TerrierTerrier | 11.5 to 15.5 lb | 12 to 15 in | Harsh, wiry topcoat over a dense undercoatSheds: low | high |
| Boston TerrierNon-Sporting | 12 to 25 lb | 15 to 17 in | Short, smooth and fineSheds: moderate | moderate |
| Cairn TerrierTerrier | 13 to 14 lb | 9.5 to 10 in | Harsh outer coat over a short, soft undercoatSheds: low | high |
| West Highland White TerrierTerrier | 15 to 20 lb | 10 to 11 in | Harsh white outer coat over a soft undercoatSheds: low | moderate |
| Bedlington TerrierTerrier | 17 to 23 lb | 15 to 17.5 in | Crisp mix of hard and soft hair that tends to curl, in a lamb-like outlineSheds: low | moderate |
| Dandie Dinmont TerrierTerrier | 18 to 24 lb | 8 to 11 in | Crisp topcoat over a soft undercoat, with a silky topknotSheds: low | moderate |
| Scottish TerrierTerrier | 18 to 22 lb | 10 to 11 in | Hard, wiry outer coat over a soft undercoatSheds: low | moderate |
| Welsh TerrierTerrier | 20 to 22 lb | 14 to 15.5 in | Hard, wiry, dense double coatSheds: low | high |
Common questions
- Which small terriers shed the least?
- Twelve of the 17 are marked low shedding, most of them with the harsh wire coat terriers were bred for: the Border, Cairn, Norfolk, Norwich, Scottish, Welsh and West Highland White Terriers, the Bedlington, the Dandie Dinmont and the Miniature Schnauzer, plus the silky-coated Yorkshire and Silky Terriers. Set the shedding control to Low to keep only those.
- Which are the smallest terriers?
- The Toy Fox Terrier at 3.5 to 7 lb and the Yorkshire Terrier at 4 to 7 lb are the lightest rows, followed by the Toy Manchester Terrier at 6 to 12 lb and the Silky Terrier at 8 to 10 lb. Sort by weight, which orders rows by the low end of each range, to see the rest in order.
- Why is the Boston Terrier not in the Terrier group?
- Registries group breeds by the job they were bred for, and the Boston Terrier is registered as a Non-Sporting companion breed despite its name. The search reads the name as well as the group, which is why it appears here.
- Which terriers are not marked as adapting to a flat?
- Four of the working terriers: the Border, the Russell, the Rat Terrier and the Welsh. Press Adapts to a flat to leave them out.
Typical adult ranges from published breed-standard descriptions, filtered and sorted exactly as you set them. An individual dog lands inside or outside these ranges, so this describes a breed and never predicts a dog.