I have an 8 month old rescue jack Russell x fox terrier she will only listen to me when I have a treat in my hand but her behaviour is getting worse eg. Running away when off the leash, nipping, chewing when left alone. I desperately need help or I'm going to have to take her back to the pound
Hi I have 6 JRT's & yes they can be very stubborn but they also love to please you. Personally I would put your pup on a running lead (training lead these can be anything from 5 to 100 meters long) when on walkies, this will give pup some freedom but still allow you to be in control, once on park/field let pup run ahead (start with 3-4 meters) then gentle pull lead in & call pup back at same time praise her straight away (even if she's not completely next to you) then let pup run about again & call her back after 10 mins or so, (pull lead if necessary) again praising pup as soon as she comes to you & this time offer a small bit of cheese. (Some hunting/scent dogs unfortunately can never be let of their leads) (all 6 of my dogs do have excellent recall so are always off lead) If you need to leave pup for any length of time it might be worth considering buying a pen/cage - for a JRT/Fox terrier I would buy a large GSD/Labrador size pen/cage, this will allow the pup room to play in pen/cage as well as sleeping. Nipping yelp very loud or scream (not ear piercing scream) this is what pup litter mates would of done, then without making eye contact or talking to pup, place pup in timeout (not in pen/cage) I would use empty room or out in garden if weather permits.
Does the rescue that you got her from have a behaviourist? Many do have someone who is there to assess the dogs before rehoming, and could give you some first hand advice. Otherwise, do not let her off the lead unless you are in a safely fenced area until you have taught her a reliable recall. Don't be afraid to use bribery, carry lots of yummy treats, and praise and reward her for any attempt to please. Why not train her to use a crate to stop her from chewing when you are not there? She is still quite young, do you think the nipping could be an attempt to get you to play with her?
Normal puppy behaviour, You don’t say how long you have had her? If you don’t have a good recall then she shouldn’t be off lead unless in an enclosed area. I always start teaching recall at home first it can be done in the house or garden gradually progressing to outside on a long lead/line. First you have to make yourself interesting and get her attention crouch down to dog-height then using her name clap or whistle and in an uplifting voice call her, the moment she comes back reward with praise, food treats, playing a game or with a toy, use a high value treat for outdoors. You can do this on/off through-out the day for short spells only. To get her used to being left alone start when you are home by putting her in a room that has nothing lying about she can chew on, with a stuffed Kong if you freeze it beforehand it will last longer at first leave her for about 15/20 mins, then let her out gradually build up the time she is left.
Had an absolute turn around in attitude with the bribery (especially if she sees me put them in my pocket) haven't had any problem with retaliation. Thought I'd try the kong ball before I got a cage that's worked fantastic looks like she's got a reprieve thanks to everyone for their help
As already mentioned, all these behaviours are totally normal and especially so in a high energy little terrier. Dogs do not come ready trained, and unfortunately to get a good dog you have to put a hell of a lot of effort into them as youngsters. At 8 months she's more or less in peak adolescence, which tends to be the worst stage and the one which sends most owners a bit loopy. It's just a case of perseverance, patience, and daily training, which you sound like you're not prepared to take on?
I have been off work injured since before we got her. I'm home with her 90% of the day we have racehorses on acerage where she comes down and spends between 3-5 hours down ever afternoon and is walked and I (attempt) to train her every morning. Iv had working dogs my whole life in more then capable of training a dog I'm asking for advice because Iv never had a dog that seems to be spiteful and arrogant also Iv never delt with this breed before
Some dogs can be a little, 'too big for their boots', and that is typical small Terrier temperament. Dogs are not spiteful though - their minds just do not work that way. You say that you are more than capable of training working dogs, so what is going wrong? I think the most likely reason is that the methodology you are using is not suiting this little girl. Do you have a positive dog trainer in your area who could help to get you communicating more effectively with her? They may call themselves a clicker trainer, or a canine behaviour therapist, but the key point is that they show you how to respond to your pup's problem behaviour using gentle methods which make her want to learn. Have you done much reading around this subject? Karen Prior's, Don't Shoot the Dog, and Jean Donaldson's, The Culture Clash, are both a good place to start.
I thought well she's not a working dog so it may not suit her. Iv looked into various training methods Iv not found any over close by. That's why I started looking on these chat sites. The best I could find was the puppy preschool
You could try looking at some of the Kikopup videos on YouTube. Will give you an idea of the methods I am talking about.
