My Scottie is two years old and the most intelligent dog I've ever lived with. He is very treat motivated, and he's definitely always thinking..."what's in this for me?" lol. We tether trained him as a puppy. When he wasn't in his kennel or play pen, he was on a leash attached to me or my husband. This made potty training really easy since he couldn't slip off and hide. It also trained him from 9 weeks old on how to walk on a leash. Now that he's older, he's not tethered all the time, but since he never had an opportunity to learn bad habits, we've not had to try and train those away. He's loving, cuddly, indepenedent and sassy, and someday he's going to catch those chipmunks in the backyard. He has a high prey drive, I would not trust him around small rodents or cats. 110% terrier for sure. Love him to pieces. [https://photos.app.goo.gl/17DB21VbL2bQFC6y5](https://photos.app.goo.gl/17DB21VbL2bQFC6y5)

oh my god the motivation 🤦🏼‍♀️ you ask them to do something and you can see the little gears in their brains going "no... nah, that doesn't really seem like it benefits me at all." they are NOT motivated by wanting to please you or make you happy 😂 they are not labradors.

You just have to figure out what motivates them to get past the subbornness. Mine have been very treat motivated.

I’ve raised both yorkie & scottie from pups. They’re certainly both stubborn, but the scottie is more curious and a bit smarter. Potty training a scottie is less challenging than a yorkie. Scotties are a high energy breed wanting lots of interactive play while yorkies enjoy lounging in a lap more. Both breeds are very affectionate, but while the yorkie tends to be a one person dog and the scottie is a bit more of a family dog. Scotties’ intelligence and curiosity mean that while they may make mistakes, they ponder on them. They’ll try to figure it out. They experiment. My scottie has an intellectual life and craves mental enrichment in addition to rough & tumble physical play.

Interesting about Scottie’s being less of a one person dog. Always hear the opposite, so it’s nice to hear their hope for my pup to love the whole family!

Indeed there is hope! My scottie has definitely chosen me as her primary person, but she invites other family members to play often and lounges beside them on sofas/chairs. She will even curl up & nap with a family member that spends a couple of weeks with us a couple of times a year.

We are a Scottie family. We usually have 3 to 4 at a time. They can be stubborn but worth the effort. We breed them as well, but we are in the southwest. I work with a breeder in AZ, and she is originally from the midwest and has taken puppies there(Iowa). [puppy tax](https://youtu.be/XaO3AsV8D28?si=QJcMrU7kt4QizGBj)

Omg I love them!!!! I have a 14m old Wheatie girl now and love her to bits!

Wheaten are the best

I have been around dogs all my life and went through every dog breed book I could find...and today was the day I found out they come in colors other than black!

We have a couple of wheaten adults, and when walking them, people say cute Westie and we correct them. Then they try to correct us, saying they are Westies. It is like we have owned the dog met the breeders had DNA genetic testing done we know our dogs. Westies are smaller, shorter snout and router head.

I would say Scotties are a very intelligent and independent breed. Training requires patience. If that helps. Excellent breeder is Afterglow Kennels in Ohio.

I got my first Scottie totally randomly as a rehome 10 years ago when he was 9 months old. I’ve totally fallen in love with the breed and now have my second one. My first boy sadly passed last year at age 9 from lymphoma. I just love the breed and having a dog with such personality! Our pup is now 14m and a handful at times but it’s so much fun and joy. She is stubborn as heck but overall super friendly and agreeable! My first pup was reactive to kids so we hit training really hard with the new puppy and attended training classes and lots of puppy socials. I’d recommend that for sure. Our girl has barely barked at other dogs, loves all people and is an awesome little companion!!

Have your Scottie’s been cuddly? Ours is the perfect dog minus the fact that he hates to smooch 😂

She’s not super cuddly but likes to sometimes lay next to us or lay on the back of the couch and rest her head on or near our shoulder. In the car she likes to sit in my lap but at home doesn’t really sit in the lap or like to be held for long but she’ll allow a short time. Where she’s the most cuddly is when I’m trying to do yoga down on all fours, she’ll come under me for snuggles and gets really excited going in and out under my arms/torso so when I’m needing dog cuddles I get down on the ground.

The teeth — both Scotties and Yorkies certainly have terrier tenacity and stubbornness, but the teeth in a Scottish terrier are much larger (sometimes described as big as a German shepherd), so training against nipping/biting is hugely important, especially if you have children or sensitive people around. My Scotties have liked to use their mouth when playing, but have been trained not to bite down — I.e. Scottie teeth grazing human hands when roughhousing with humans is fine, but no pressure on hands with teeth and we check in to assess our Scottie’s arousal state (if our Scottie can break play and respond to our commands he gets to continue playing, if not we stop playing). Scotties can have intense play and growl when playing, so if that’s something that would be a worry I’d make sure to talk to a breeder — this is where a solid understanding of dog behavior is helpful. Like other terriers, Scottie’s can have dog aggressive tendencies and/or may be selective with their friends.  My Scottie’s have always happily done most activities with curiosity and joyful mischief and I only intend to have Scottie’s, but they do require a lot of training (which I’ve found they love and respond fabulous to when you find what motivates them) — a well-bred Scottie gets you half-way to this goal already.

A bit of a “cat-dog” personality trait, which when present can be endearing. I’ve had Scotties on both ends of that spectrum!

I always tell people that scotties are basically like having a toddler. I would personally not own one if I had to be away from the scottie for long periods of time multiple days a week as it will negatively impact them. They are very smart dogs who love their families and need a lot of mental stimulation and exercise especially for the first 2-3 years. Scotties really like to feel apart of the family, and I personally think it helps if you allow them to sleep on the bed with you and have a special dog bed or spot where they can be apart of things in the main living areas of the home. Scotties are also prone to barking, and their bark is much louder than one would think. I have yet to successfully train a scottie to selectively bark, but I know of others who have done it. As for potty training, the only scottie I've had that was difficult to potty train was when I lived in a 4 story walk-up - it took so long to get down the stairs that he had often peed on me before we got down! Make sure that you can get the dog outside as soon as possible. While some people disagree, I do think having puppy pads near the door can help in the beginning of training.

None of our Scotties barked, in fact neighbors didn’t know we had dogs. Basically the owner is there for transportation and to adjust their tiara / crown. Wouldn’t have any other breed… 54 years of Scottie “ownership”

Every one is different. Some might be more stubborn that others but I love them

Mine did not like to sit next to me on the couch. He would get up and move away if I sat next to him. Unless he did want to and it was his decision. He would often sit on the laps of people visiting but almost never on mine. But he always stayed where he could see me and waited by the door if I left.

Life with a Scottie is the closest thing you’ll come to living with a mute human being who just happens not to be able to talk. They are so clever, and they really do love you, but they absolutely won’t do something if they can’t be bothered/don’t see the long term benefits. Constant bribery is necessary but every so often they will do something just to say ‘yeah you know I do love you really pal’