Thank you for visiting Brentwood Border Terriers (online).  If you clicked on “Puppies” first, this is *not* the place to start in your quest for a Border Terrier; first, you need to make sure and then doubly sure this is the right breed for you, your family and your home.  After you have done that, you need to select the breeder you feel comfortable working with; who is going to stand by the puppy they produced, and “be there” for you to answer questions and help you raise your first Border Terrier?  The best breeder for you is not necessarily the closest one; nor is the best dog the one you imported from farthest away.  Please bear in mind we receive a LOT of inquiries, so it just made sense to save my vocal chords and typing fingers and put a lot of information on this website for you to read *before* you call or email — please take advantage of this opportunity and browse the informational page on the breed, the grooming, and our breeding philosophies.

The Border Terrier has historically remained a rather healthy breed; this is because it’s breeders have been ferociously protective of it and have not sold or given intact dogs to just anyone who shows up at the door with the money.  This has kept the breed, for the most part, out of the hands of the puppy mills and back yard breeders, and those that do have breeding rights strive to breed correct dogs (proven by showing) and healthy dogs that have extensive health clearances done before breeding (x-raying of hips, cardiac, knee and eye exams, etc.).

Therefore, ALL pet & eventing puppies sold at Brentwood Border Terriers are sold on a limited registration; even so, there are those individuals who think they can outwit a breeder and change a registration form with “white-out” and other dishonest methods; therefore, all registration papers are held until Brentwood Borders receives proof of spay/neuter (a form from your veterinarian).  A limited registration does NOT prevent the owner from participating in any Border Terrier-eligible event such as Obedience, Agility, Tracking or Earthdog… the only thing the limited-registered dog cannot do is breed Conformation showing (and of course, register any offspring).

If you are looking for a show prospect, I need to know you or you need some references!  I do not hand over full registrations and show prospects to people I don’t know… sorry!

Please do not call and ask for “a female puppy in June” because you are a school teacher and it is convenient to train a puppy  in summer.  We can only breed a female dog when it comes in heat (twice a year, based on hormones) and have no control over that; therefore, we cannot keep nine-week old puppies in a box on a shelf for convenience when someone calls.  Border Terriers are not a common breed and as small dogs, they have small litters; if you make an inquiry and we have room on our waiting list, consider yourself very lucky whatever the time of year!  Having a 6-12 month wait for a pup from a breeder you want, or from a particular dog you want, is not uncommon.

Yes; Border Terriers are expensive.  It’s impossible to show dogs to their championship (a very costly hobby), do health clearances that cost hundreds of dollars, plan breedings, pay stud fees, travel, risk a bitch, cover the cost of the occasional emergency c-section (and sometimes lose the litter), and not have the costs reflected in the price of the puppies.  Quality animals cost more than inferior animals; it’s just a fact.  The upside is, you likely won’t be turning around and spending it at the vet’s office having hips replaced and medicating for who-knows-what.  When I wanted to buy my first Border Terrier, I was a stay-at-home mom with two kids and there was no money in the budget for a show dog; we didn’t believe in day care, so I took a job as a grocery clerk evenings and weekends for two years to buy my dog.  Guess how sorry I feel for people who say the dogs cost too much?

All that said… our puppies are raised literally in our kitchen; we don’t have a kennel or a barn.  All of our dogs live in the house as family members, and the pups start out in a spare bedroom (Mom wants some privacy at first), but around three weeks or so they get moved to the kitchen, where they are raised as the center of attention among the whole family and anyone who comes over until they go home at nine – ten weeks.  They play with the other dogs, and meet our cat.  I expose them to as many situations and surfaces as possible; we even have a wooden earthdog tunnel for them to explore and play in.  We want our puppies to be well-socialized little people when they leave here; vet-checked and cardiac-certified.

(LtoR) Pups napping; the Foxhunt.
Maybe the dishwasher isn’t such a good toy; “Gus” follows the treat path in the tunnel