Cairn Terrier

The Cairn Terrier is one of the oldest terrier breeds, originating in the Scottish Highlands as a hunting dog. Their name came from the cairns in the region that they would so often chase quarry between. Up until the early 1900's, the Cairn Terrier was lumped under the name Skye Terrier with a few other Scottish terrier breeds. In fact, Cairn Terriers began showing up at dog shows in the United Kingdom in 1909 under the name "Short-haired Skye Terriers". Opposition from Skye Terrier breeders lead to the official naming of Cairn Terriers as their own breed. One strange characteristic of this breed is that most dogs are left handed, which correlates to superior performance in tasks related to scent.