Boston Terrier

Boston Terriers have quite an active and playful nature and are usually friendly. Even though the Boston Terrier is a small breed, they can be very intelligent and can participate in dog sports such as agility, tracking, flyball and obedience as sport. They have also been used as animal-assisted therapy dogs. Their small size and striking colour make the Boston Terrier attractive to children; however, as with all dogs, extremely close supervision is advised to prevent accidental injury to the dog and its subsequently developing fear-based defensive aggression.

Boston Terrier History:

The Boston Terrier origins date back to 1865 in Boston, Massachusetts. In the breed’s early history, coachmen for the wealthy residents of Boston cross-bred many of their employers’ dogs for pit fighting purposes. One of these well-known crosses was between an English Bulldog and an English White Terrier which is now extinct, called Hooper’s Judge. Additional cross-breeding with the English Bull Terrier, the Boxer, the Pit Bull Terrier and the French Bulldog in the 1890s contributed to the creation of the Boston Terrier’s modern traits. Pit fighting, for the most part, became illegal in many states since then and the popularity of the “sport” dwindled. At that time, breeders began to look at the possibility of the Boston Terrier as a companion animal and the breed proved to have a notable devotion to their masters and family.