Rat Terriers were the most popular farm dogs in America in the 1920s and 30s, as they were bred to clear farms of vermin, but they lost their popularity in the 1950s when farmers began using poison to kill rats.

Teddy Roosevelt was said to be so fond of his Rat Terriers that eventually, when the breed split off into a smaller type, the smaller type was named after him: Teddy Roosevelt Terriers.

Legend has it that Rat Terriers are so good at their job that a single Rat Terrier once cleared an infested barn of 2,500 rats in a mere 7-hour period.