Small Dogs With a Big Personality

3 minutes

Last update: 23 April, 2018

They say that looks are deceiving. When it comes to our furry friends and their size, this is completely true. We’ve seen giant dogs, like the Great Dane, considered the biggest in the world, have a wonderfully noble, friendly, calm personality.

On the other hand, we have the medium-sized Schnauzer. However, despite their sweet, fluffy appearance, they sometimes have an unfriendly, independent personality.

Today we’re going to dare to make the claim that the smallest dogs have the biggest personalities. What do you think?

Dogs with a big personality and a small size

Here is a list of small dogs with the biggest personalities:

Australian Silky Terrier

This tiny dog, belonging to the Terrier family, is known for tenacious barking and being distant with anyone that they don’t know. They won’t be friendly with strangers, but they are very friendly in their daily environment.

Bichon Frise

If anything at all characterizes this dog, it’s their fur. They also have a rather extreme history; they started out as dogs of the nobility just to end up almost abandoned, which maybe has contributed to their distrustful personality. Just like with the Australian, for them family will always be first, so you can expect 100% from them at home, if not with strangers.

Poodle

Maybe when you read the name of this breed, you immediately think about a beautiful white, curly-haired animal (although there are some with other colors). They, however, fall into the category of small dogs with the worst personality — when it comes to strangers, of course.

It’s due to their overprotective spirit that will make them defend their family even when they aren’t in danger. So they don’t like seeing a stranger around their loved ones.

Chihuahua

Their bulging eyes and miniature size make them a very peculiar dog. However, most of them must be taught to socialize when they are puppies or else they will respond negatively to strangers. They feel like royalty at home, and even though they will love you unconditionally, don’t mess with their territory.

Dachshund

The dachshund is a small dog that appeared in Germany a few centuries ago. They are also commonly known as weiner dogs. They are intelligent and curious, maybe because of the job they carry out– looking for dens.

They have a strong personality and therefore need a leader of the pack to mark their territory and show them their place. If this is not done correctly, the animal may become aggressive with strangers and, in many cases, even with their owners.

Jack Russell Terrier

Coming from England, the Jack Russell terrier is a small dog with a big personality. They say that if you give them a finger, they’ll take your entire arm, showing just how smart they are.

They have excellent, strong hunting instincts, much more than other dogs. So good training is essential to avoid problems like biting people and even killing small animals, like birds.

Therefore, this dog is only recommended for people that have time to dedicate to them, for experts in training, or for those who can afford a professional to train them.

Papillon

Papillons are very active and playful dogs but distrustful at the same time. Even though they love to play, they won’t do it with just anyone. They will watch strangers from far away to decide if they like them or not.

Like we said at the beginning, this is a list that we’ve compiled by making some over-generalizations. But we understand that not all dogs of these breeds have this personality. A lot of times, personality depends on proper socialization when they’re puppies so that they end up as friendly adult dogs.