In 1822, the U.S. Navy pruchased Terrier at Baltimore, Maryland, for service in Commodore David Porter's (1780-1843) "Mosquito Fleet" in conjunction with the campaign to suppress pirates in the West Indies. Outfitted at Norfolk, Virginia, during the latter part of 1822, she was commissioned sometime early in 1823 as USS Terrier with Lieutenant Robert M. Rose in command.