About Beth Adams Expertise I have 10+ yrs rescuing Cairn terriers. Ask me about rescue work and re-homing rescued terriers. I am also proudly owned by a Jack Russell Terrier rescue. I am also keenly aware that terriers are significantly different from other kinds of dogs, and often not the best choice for some owners.
HOWEVER I AM NOT A VET! PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME IN-DEPTH MEDICAL QUESTIONS THAT SHOULD BE DIRECTED ONLY TOWARDS MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS. I WILL BE HAPPY TO ASSIST WITH BASIC MEDICAL QUESTIONS/NEEDS THAT I CAN OFFER MY PERSONAL OPINION ON. If you ask me questions about breeding, please expect me to be direct about my opinion on this topic.
Experience 10+ yrs owning and rescuing cairn terriers. Proudly owned by a Jack Russell Terrier rescue. My JRT is active in being a foster brother, and earthdog and agility events and we're having a blast
Question Hello and first of all thank you very much for your help.
Two days ago I found a female dog wandering around the avenue. She seemed afraid and her hair quite neglected, I took her to the vet and she had no identification micro chip and no one has reported a missing dog. We think she is a cairn terrier. She has been here for only two days and she is already very much bond to me. That's a little bit of the problem, she will follow me around the house every single minute, she won't stop crying and barking if I close the door and leave her out (even when I'm in the toilet), she won't even go away for a minute to eat or drink if I'm not in the kitchen. This goes worst at nights as she wants to climb up my bed and sleep there (which is a bit annoying to my partner), should I leave her out of the room and no one will sleep (including the neighbours). She also pees and poos in the house, never outside, even if I walk her three or four times a day. Another thing that is strange to me is that everytime I walk her and we see other dogs she doesn't seem to care, she is not curious to their smell, she is not afraid nor curious, it's just like she didn't realize. However I'm sure there's nothing wrong with her sense of smell (she surely can smell my lunch!!). As a result of this she won't pee anywhere along the area where we go for walks like the other dogs do. She is young but not a puppy (from 8 months to one year, the vet said)and she is extremely friendly to people, specially children. Do you think is just a problem of stress due to her being lost or abandoned or she has some kind of behavioural disorder?
Thank you very much as I'd like to keep her.
Answer Laetitia -
She sounds like she's pretty traumatized from being lost. That said, many cairns are what we call "clingons" or velcro dogs. They follow you everywhere including the bathroom. I often have them waiting for me all lined up when I open the shower curtain in the morning ! In my case, I've just learned to let them follow me. With time most of them will stop doing it 100% or at least follow a few feet away instead of right under my feet.
As to the poyying, I recommend using a crate when you're not home and at bedtime. Take her out as soon as you let her out of the crate and about 10 minutes after each meal. That is the times that she will most likely have to potty.
If her coat is thin, missing or she has blackened patches of skin, I recommend feeding her only food with no corn, wheat or soy. Other than fleas, these food ingredients are the most common causes of bad coats on cairns.
Here's a website with tons of information about cairns, taking care of them and addressing problems:
www.cairnrescue.com
Hope this gives you some ideas of where to start with your new kiddo.
