A typical Australian Terrier tops out around 18.8 mph in Fast CAT. The fastest one on record ran 25.22 mph. 3.9 mph slower than the typical dog (22.7 mph). Even a typical Australian Terrier would beat most people in a 100-yard sprint.
Based on the best Fast CAT run of 114 Australian Terriers, a typical Australian Terrier tops out at 18.8 mph, and half of them run faster than 19.1 mph. That makes the Australian Terrier the 173rd fastest of the 226 breeds that have run Fast CAT.
3 Australian Terriers have topped 25 mph, but none has reached 30 yet.
Among the most popular Terrier breeds, the typical Australian Terrier is faster than 3 of 8. The American Staffordshire Terrier is the quickest of the bunch at 24.0 mph, and the Miniature Schnauzer (18.8 mph) runs closest to the Australian Terrier. Over Fast CAT's 100 yards, the 5.2 mph gap to the American Staffordshire Terrier is about 2.37 seconds.
Amawalk Wish Upon A Star holds the fastest consistent run by any Australian Terrier: 25.22 mph at the Bayshore Companion Dog Club in New Jersey on June 4, 2021. That's 100 yards in 8.11 seconds.
AKC's results also show Dunham Lake The Heat Is On at 26.09 mph, but that dog's next-best run is 20.54 mph. A jump that big is usually a timing or typing error, so we flag it rather than crown it.
Not lately. The typical Australian Terrier ran 19.2 mph in 2022 (29 dogs) and 18.6 mph in 2025 (29 dogs). As more everyday pets join in, the average moves around.
New Jersey has the most Australian Terrier runs, 325 of them, followed by North Carolina, Georgia, Colorado. The fastest Australian Terrier run in New Jersey is 25.22 mph.
Any AKC-registered Australian Terrier over 12 months old can enter, and your dog runs alone down a straight 100 yards. Most dogs figure out the lure fast. Have someone your dog will run to waiting past the finish line, because a dog that stops to check on you can lose a second or two.
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Speeds from AKC Fast CAT results. Photographers: spotted your work? Tell us at [email protected] and we'll credit it or take it down.