Toy Fox Terrier puppies

About the Toy Fox Terrier

The Toy Fox Terrier was developed in the United States from small Smooth Fox Terriers crossed with toy breeds, giving a ratter in miniature that also earned a living as a circus performer. This is a tiny, square, fine boned dog with a short smooth coat, erect ears and a surprising amount of leg speed. The temperament is pure terrier scaled down: bold, curious, quick to bark at anything new, and unusually easy to train for a toy dog, with one of the highest trainability ratings on the scale.

Energy is high but a small home suits them, since a lot of the exercise happens indoors between walks. Grooming amounts to a shedding comb or hound glove through the coat, plus nail trimming started young so the dog accepts it. They are bright enough to enjoy obedience and trick work, which also takes the edge off the barking. Because they are so small and so game, they are not a match for toddlers. Go carefully with food, because weight sits badly on this frame and treats add up fast.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Toy Fox Terrier puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A toy breed puppy at eight weeks is small enough to be genuinely fragile. They can be hurt by a jump off a sofa and by being stepped on, and toy breeds are prone to low blood sugar, so they need frequent small meals rather than two big ones. This is a high energy breed. At eight weeks that shows up as intensity rather than stamina, and they will need a job to do long before they need long walks. Grooming needs are moderate, so build the brushing habit now while the coat is still short and easy. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Patellar luxation, found on a routine patella evaluation
• Eye disease including lens luxation and progressive retinal atrophy, picked up by an ophthalmologist evaluation
• Legg Calve Perthes disease, a degeneration of the hip joint head in young dogs, confirmed by x-ray
• Congenital hypothyroidism with goitre, detectable by DNA test
• Obesity, which is a serious issue in the breed and is tracked by regular weighing and body condition scoring
• Periodontal disease, found at routine dental examination and kept down by tooth brushing

Your Toy Fox Terrier puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Toy for a Toy Fox Terrier.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 1.8 to 4.1 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 22 inch (22 x 14 x 16 in, 56 x 36 x 41 cm) for an adult of up to 4.1 kg; chew toys made for small breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Puppy pads: are they a good idea, and how to pick ones that do not leak
• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other toy breeds

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Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type, country of origin and health notes
• Health notes from Toy Fox Terrier breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/toy-fox-terrier/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Photo: Terry Best, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.