Cairn Terrier Care

The Cairn Terrier is a cheerful, active, toy-sized breed that makes a great companion dog for those willing to deal with its "Triple T" (typical terrier temperament). Overall Cairn Terrier care and maintenance won't take a ton of work, but will need to include some early training and a little daily exercise.

Below you'll find plenty of details on caring for a Cairn Terrier, including info about puppy development, exercise needs, diet and nutrition, and more. For answers to your questions about raising these enthusiastic little dogs, read on!

Though active, these dogs are small--so Cairn Terrier exercise requirements aren't very high. Breed members will fulfill a lot of their daily activity needs just running around being their curious little selves, but they'll still benefit from a couple of short walks and a brief period of play each day.

The typical adult Cairn will only need about 30 minutes of proper exercise per day. You can start exercising your Cairn puppy at 2½ months of age by taking it on short walks, then you can increase the walks' length as the puppy grows.

Precautions with Cairn Terrier exercise:

• Don't exercise puppies too hard before they're eight months old
• High prey drive means a leash is required when exercising in public
• Yards should be securely fenced to keep the dog from running off
• Possible separation anxiety; exercises should be done together with people

It's important to exercise your Cairn every single day. As terriers, these dogs have propensities to bark, dig, and chew--and without consistent activity they'll do all these excessively, and become behavioral nightmares in general! Regular exercise will be great for both the dog's and your own peace of mind. A few exercise ideas:

• Walking: Two 10-minute walks per day is a good target
• Fetch: Can be played indoors or out; use the dog's favorite toy
• Hide-and-Seek: Excellent indoor activity for these curious dogs
• Canine Sports: Cairns can excel at obedience or agility trials and other events
• Laser Pointer: These dogs will go nuts chasing that "little red dot"

When indoors, give your Cairn access to balls or toys that will allow the dog to burn excess energy. It's also good to have a regular daily exercise schedule for the dog, such as walks after breakfast and dinner and playtime in the afternoon.

Overall, these dogs don't require too much maintenance. Cairn Terrier shedding is pretty light, and drooling isn't an issue.

Cairns have medium-length, wiry, double-layered coats. Does a Cairn Terrier shed at all? It does, year-round--but the shedding isn't heavy at all. Owners will only need to brush their Cairns once a week or so with a pin brush to keep the coats in good shape; hand-stripping the coat every few months will also help to keep it looking fresh. Hair cleanup--vacuuming the floors, and lint rollers on clothes and furniture--won't be necessary too often.

And a Cairn Terrier almost never drools. If your Cairn is drooling excessively, it might be a sign of a medical issue, in which case a veterinarian's care is needed.

The Cairn Terrier diet will need to include animal proteins and carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, and omega fatty acids--nutrients every dog needs to sustain its health in the long term. This means the best Cairn Terrier food is premium dry kibble, as it has balanced portions of the above-listed ingredients.

Adult Cairns will only need about a cup of premium food per day, divided into two meals. Cairn puppies will need a bit less: depending on age, about ¾ cup per day, divided into three meals (not two) until six months old.

For more info on feeding a Cairn Terrier from puppyhood through maturity, see this chart:

*--Around this time, transition to adult food by first mixing in a bit of adult formula with the puppy formula. Over the course of a week, with each meal add a little more adult food to the mixture, until the dog is eating it entirely.

Try if possible to stick to the above-listed portions. If constantly overfed (and under-exercised), these dogs can become overweight--and a fat Cairn Terrier will have numerous health problems and a potentially shortened lifespan. You can help control your Cairn's weight by having consistent feeding and exercise schedules, by not feeding the dog table scraps, and by not leaving food in its bowl all the time.

If you're worried your Cairn Terrier is overweight, try this simple test: run a hand along the dog's side, and if you can't feel any ribs, it's diet time--which means less food and more exercise!

Though opinions differ, most veterinarians, breeders, and owners agree that the best food for Cairn Terrier dogs is premium dry kibble, as it is most nutritious. Cheap, generic food is not recommended for this breed, because it contains mostly empty "filler" ingredients that are unhealthy and are harder for the dog to digest.

These little dogs do best with premium food formulated for extra-small and toy breeds. Royal Canin, Blue Buffalo, and Nutro are three recommended brands that carry excellent lines of premium toy-breed food.

The Cairn Terrier is definitely an indoor dog. Though breed members will enjoy some outdoor walks and playtime, they'll be much happier living inside with their human family members. And since they're small, Cairns can adapt very well to apartment living.

In regards to climate, these dogs are also very adaptable, and will be equally comfortable in hot or cold weather.

Cairn Terriers are rugged little dogs that are adaptable to both indoor and outdoor living. They hail from the rugged Scottish coasts that had climates ranging from warm to very cold and rainy so there is very little they couldn't handle.