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Rat Terriers, also known as “Ratties,” can barely contain their huge hearts in their tiny bodies. Unlike the name suggests, these dogs are social, affectionate pups who love being around people. They crave your companionship and will be happy in any situation as long as you’re together. Full-grown, they typically weigh 8-25 pounds and stand 10-18 inches tall.

Rat Terriers are generally excellent with children of all ages. In fact, Rat Terriers love sleeping with people, especially kids. This breed is pack-oriented, so they enjoy the companionship of kids, adults, and other pets as long as they’re raised together. They're moderate barkers — they'll alert you when something's up but aren't excessive.

Rat Terriers thrive on activity and will be destructive if they get bored. Keep your Rattie busy with walks, runs, playtime, training, food puzzles, or sports. These dogs are particularly good at agility, rally, flyball, and tracking. Overall, their exercise needs are high.

Rat Terriers have short coats with a “pied” pattern (large patches of one or more colors with white). You may find Ratties with black, brown, tan, red, apricot, fawn, blue, white, or lemon coloring. Their coats tend to be low maintenance. Grooming-wise, this breed is low-maintenance.

Rat Terriers are best suited for apartments and smaller homes. Ratties need to live indoors and be surrounded by people. They are highly trainable and eager to learn.

A Dachshund may be short, but they’re long in body and personality. These dogs are stubborn and can be aggressive, but are extremely loyal, loving, and protective of their families. It takes patience to raise a Dachshund, but there are many rewards. Full-grown, they typically weigh 16-32 pounds and stand 8-9 inches tall.

Dachshunds are generally okay with older children who know how to handle dogs. Dachshunds fit best in homes where they can live indoors with their pet parents. Families with smaller children may want to choose a different breed, as Dachshunds can be a little too feisty and aggressive toward kids, especially if they don’t understand how to treat a dog with respect. They're very vocal and bark quite a lot.

Dachshunds need exercise a few times a day. They’ll enjoy a brisk walk, and their little legs can actually carry them for quite a distance if you’ve got time for a longer stroll. In general, plan on allotting about 30 minutes of exercise per day. Overall, their exercise needs are moderate.

Dachshunds actually come in three different coat types, wire-haired, long-haired, and smooth. For smooth-haired and long-haired Dachshunds, a weekly brushing will help clean their hair and cut back on shedding. For wire-haired Dachshunds, you’ll need to pluck or strip their hair about twice a year and trim their excess hair around their eyebrows and paws. Grooming-wise, this breed is low-maintenance.

Dachshunds are best suited for apartments and smaller homes. Dachshunds fit best in homes where they can live indoors with their pet parents. They will act out and dig even more if left to their own devices full-time in your backyard. They are fairly easy to train.