HISTORY OF THE RAT TERRIER

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The Rat Terrier is an American breed that orginated from a mixture of crosses by early immigrants of this country using old time Fox Terriers and other European Terriers common in the 19 century; the Old English White Terrier, Manchester Terrier, Bull Terrier, etc., and later crossed with Beagles, more Smooth Fox Terrier, Toy Fox Terriers, Whippets, Italian Greyhounds and other available Feist breeds.

 

During the 1910s and 1920, the Rat Terrier was one of the most common farm dogs. The breed comes from the occupation of its earliest ancestors brought to the US by working class British migrants as these quick, tough little dogs gained their fame in rat pit gambling.  However they were, for the most part, bred for speed. Controlling vermin and hunting squirrels, hare, and other small game are their specialty.  After the 1890s, as the breed type became popular in America, other breeds were aded to the mix, Beagle, Italian Greyhounds and Minature Pinschers,.Many of the foundation Rat Terriers were indistinguishable from small mixed-breed hunting dogs known as "feists".