Will getting another dog help?

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Mongoose11

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Ok long story short. Had a dalmatian and a jack russel they got on fairly well most of the time. Had some corking scraps usually down to jealousy and I would have to remove little git jack russel from around the dalmatians neck. They walked off lead everywhere, terrier took his lead from the dalmatian and was sociable.

Dalmatian died three years ago :( since then terrier has gone from bad to worse. Yaps and snaps when people come into the house within 30 mins he is fine. Will not be around other dogs, a lot of noise and snapping and growling. He tries to get to other dogs when on his lead. We no longer let him off lead.

I have to say he has never ever bitten a person or another dog (except his dalmatian brother). When he has ever got to another dog there is an awful lot of snarling and snapping but I have then intervened so never really seen what would happen. He is a jealous dog. I can't let him on the bed in the evening as if my husband then goes to get in the bed the dog will fly at him. Jhas called his bluff before and he put his teeth on his skin but he 'gave up' if you like and was certainly not intending to do damage.

Sooooo should we get another dog? He seemed to take his confidence from the dalmatian or am I reading this wrong? Jealousy would be a problem I think but there would be other positives?

Choc Lab bred by my Mum has been picked out and tentatively called 'Bisto' 'Ahhhhh Bisto' :)

Advice please!
 
Give Bisto (ahh!) a go. May well help terrier to be back in pack situation rather than only child. Just make sure Bisto has dog cage that he can go in for some peace and make sure they walk together to bond. Good luck, have fun and lots of photos please.
 
no way...sorry.


i think he needs his issues dealing with before you bring another dog in the situation and have two potentially aggresive dogs....



my older dog (6) had separation anxiety - we got a puppy and them a crate each and it literally vanished over night

dont get me wrong...that comes with its own problems such as 1 cant be alone etc - so another dog isnt always the answer!!!

for my neighbours it is!! for us its a slight nightmare as 1 dog is under the vets and goes weekly - other is a monthly resident at the specialists!! which means i take 1 at a time...(i dont take both as its a PITA)


just a thought :)
 
Now I probably should have added..... When we went away on a family holiday last year we went to the beach with my mum and her five dogs and I let him off with them. There were some lovely play moments - he looked very confused and kept looking to me and coming to me for reassurance. If something came a bit too close he snarled but essentially wanted to get away. It was like watching a child who doesn't know how to play :(

Oh I don't know. Thank you so far.
 
All the more reason to get yourself off to a trainer, sounds like your dog is very insecure and you need to step up and take control. Not a good situation to bring a puppy into.
 
BillieBlitzen said:
Now I probably should have added..... When we went away on a family holiday last year we went to the beach with my mum and her five dogs and I let him off with them. There were some lovely play moments - he looked very confused and kept looking to me and coming to me for reassurance. If something came a bit too close he snarled but essentially wanted to get away. It was like watching a child who doesn't know how to play :(

Oh I don't know. Thank you so far.
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some dog's imo are meant to be an only dog... yes they are pack animals but some people hate others.... dog's imo are the same (some!)!


i honestly wouldnt add another to the mix yet - if his problems can be overcome (mabey a crate and a good trainer) mabey.....
 
I take it you had the Dally and added the JRT into the mix?

The JRT sounds really confused and insecure to me. I agree with the others who have said get a trainer and address his issues. If and only if you can sort our his dog aggression, and still feel he would benefit from company, then look to take a well socialized adult dog.

Puppies will pick-up bad habits as quickly as good and as the JRT is the older/establish dog it is more likely the pup will take its lead from the JRT, than the JRT follow the pup. Though in reality both should be taking their lead from YOU!;)
 
Thanks all, yes we had the Dally first. The JRT puppy was foisted on us really, I wouldn't have a terrier out of choice but now he is one of the family. Adorable to be around, plays with us beautifully, cuddles and really is a sweet boy but that is when it's just us, in the house, where he is King. I sense this is all my fault.

I think he has been used to replace a baby really and it isn't doing him any favours when we then want him to go out into the outside world. He is obedient in the house, he will sit, leave, go to bed, get down, wait etc etc.

Sigh. Lots of work to do.
 
and actually, once you have sorted him out, he sounds as if he has lost some of his doggy social skills. I personally wouldn't get a puppy. This is one instance where a good rescue would be better, because once you feel your JRT is a little more chilled, you have the opportunity to gradually introduce him to a potential housemate and see if they get on and the good rescues will normally have something like a 3 week cooling off period to be sure there are no major fall out or punch ups. If you are keen on labs, there do seem to be a lot of labs (and dallys) coming into rescue atm. I would perhaps try a breed rescue if you were keen on a particular dog. When the last (rescue) stafford bitch came to me, I had the luxury of the longest introduction time ever. She came to my yard twice to be walked with mine, then in my car, then last time all back to mine. Took a month of careful introductions before I felt really sure it would be alright, and it was actually the fact that she happens to be a very subservient little staff and my 2 were like a couple of OTT boisterous cocky school kids!
 
All very sensible suggestions. Thank you.

But the litter at my Mums house are SOOOOoOoOoOoOooooo cute! Yes, yes I know, I know.

I need to put more consistency and leadership into my terrier's life. I honestly look at him as if he is my child. Not good.
 
BillieBlitzen said:
in the house, where he is King.
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You just hit the nail on the head!

Dogs should never be 'King' (especially not a terrorist;))! Give and inch they will take a mile.:D My JRT has taught have the other livery owners to do his bidding:o..........me I'm immune to his doe eyes (I know an evil control freak lies beneath:rolleyes:)!:D

All is not lost , they are bright dogs, so get a trainer to help with the socialization, set some boundaries and with consistent training, he will come round. As he seems to disrespect your OH the most, I would probably also get him to do all the feeding (for now).
 
piebaldsparkle said:
You just hit the nail on the head!

Dogs should never be 'King' (especially not a terrorist;))! Give and inch they will take a mile.:D My JRT has taught have the other livery owners to do his bidding:o..........me I'm immune to his doe eyes (I know an evil control freak lies beneath:rolleyes:)!:D

All is not lost , they are bright dogs, so get a trainer to help with the socialization, set some boundaries and with consistent training, he will come round. As he seems to disrespect your OH the most, I would probably also get him to do all the feeding (for now).
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I know. I am the problem. I do treat him like a baby (not one of those princess puppies' but I call him baby, he spends a lot of time with me, I adore him blah blah blah.

How do you switch it off? Go from treating like a baby and cuddling in bed with him to treating him like a dog. I want him to have a full life and at the minute he can't.

If we ever do manage to have a child I worry for his future because he would have to be muzzled. The one and only time there was a baby in the house he wanted to kill it and I mean kill it.
 
Ok, imagine if he was the size of my dog. And what would you do? You would sort it yesterday! Being small and loved is not an excuse, get yourself a trainer in.

I love my dog, I spend a lot of time with him, he was away with me all weekend, I just sat cuddling him while I was on the phone to my dad - but he's a dog and he doesn't get to behave like an arse.
 
My terrorist has spent large chunks of her life being a spoilt princess, and being miserable.

She had the run of us :o she got what she wanted when she wanted it. She developed seperation anxiety (my fault for letting her be my shadow) and it made her miserable. She was stressed all the time. New dogs were super scarey because I was over protective. She had no recall... why would she have any?

The main thing we changed was the amount of time she got from us. She still has her walks / training / cuddles obviously but it isnt constant. For e.g I got in from work tonight and ignored her. Popped her into the garden to do a wee then once she had settled inside she got a belly scratch / fuss. Then she had to go and sit in her bed for a couple of hours with no contact from me. We have just been for a little walk and she recalled in the dark every time because she wants to be near me.

I'm not even sure if this is making sense :s Basically she is a far far happier dog now because she has clear rules and boundaries. She has to earn extra fuss with good behaviour and she does what I say.. when I say it. I did feel mean in the beggining but I now have a lovely dog that I can trust in most situations (still a terrier...).

She is our baby, but we treat her like a dog so she is a happy baby.
 
BillieBlitzen said:
How do you switch it off?
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I don't, but Ozzie is my dog not my baby (perhaps it helps that although I don't have kids, I have no desire for them either), but repeat after me HE IS A DOG, HE IS A DOG!!;)

Have boundaries and these must not move. Everyone in the house needs to know and work to the same boundaries to stop any confusion.

I have made mistakes (who doesn't?) - Oz has a crate that he goes in when I'm out (he had bad separation anxiety as a pup.............because I made him too needy:o........He would freak when I left and pee on my feet when I came home! :o). The door remains open these days and he just goes there when he wants his own space.

Oz is spoiled to a degree.....he is allowed on the sofa BUT if I (or anyone else) want to sit there he has to put up or shut up, the consequences of not are that he is immediately removed from the sofa.

He can be grumbly on a lead when meeting other dogs, so I don't allow him to meet other dogs while leashed, if one runs up while he is leashed I keep firmly moving forward. He is very sociable off lead and I have only once had to intervene off leash, when a bigger dog, bowled him over and stole his ball - Oz upturn the other dog (3 times his size) and had its back by its throat! This in itself I did not have a problem with as the other dog had been rude, but when Oz didn't release after a couple of seconds and I had told him enough, Oz was removed, leashed and walked to heel for the rest of the walk. He has flip a few other dogs for being rude (including a rather large Weimaraner :o), but always with just cause and always releases when told (he holds rather than bites, so no other dogs have ever been hurt).

He has 'taught' several liveries up the yard to give him biscuits by doing whingy begging noises (which escalate to a yap if ignored). All were warned what would happen if they indulged him, non heeded the warning, so he does the rounds collecting biscuits as they arrive!:eek: He is allowed to get away with this, as it would be confusing if I then tried to correct him, when they will just undermine me.

He will try his lucky whinning and barking at the biscuit tin at home every now and again, but he never gets a treat for doing so, as it would become constant and he would be a PITA to live with.

So basically Ozzie is not perfect, however he is well socialized, reasonably obedient and secure/confident in himself (in that he knows what is expected of him and where the boundaries are).

Not sure if any of that makes any sense at all! Others on her are much better advising re: training (I have learned via trail and error)!
 
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piebaldsparkle said:
I don't, but Ozzie is my dog not my baby (perhaps it helps that although I don't have kids, I have no desire for them either), but repeat after me HE IS A DOG, HE IS A DOG!!;)

Have boundaries and these must not move. Everyone in the house needs to know and work to the same boundaries to stop any confusion.

I have made mistakes (who doesn't?) - Oz has a crate that he goes in when I'm out (he had bad separation anxiety as a pup.............because I made him too needy:o........He would freak when I left and pee on my feet when I came home! :o). The door remains open these days and he just goes there when he wants his own space.

Oz is spoiled to a degree.....he is allowed on the sofa BUT if I (or anyone else) want to sit there he has to put up or shut up, the consequences of not are that he is immediately removed from the sofa.

He can be grumbly on a lead when meeting other dogs, so I don't allow him to meet other dogs while leashed, if one runs up while he is leashed I keep firmly moving forward. He is very sociable off lead and I have only once had to intervene off leash, when a bigger dog, bowled him over and stole his ball - Oz upturn the other dog (3 times his size) and had its back by its throat! This in itself I did not have a problem with as the other dog had been rude, but when Oz didn't release after a couple of seconds and I had told him enough, Oz was removed, leashed and walked to heel for the rest of the walk. He has flip a few other dogs for being rude (including a rather large Weimaraner :o), but always with just cause and always releases when told (he holds rather than bites, so no other dogs have ever been hurt).

He has 'taught' several liveries up the yard to give him biscuits by doing whingy begging noises (which escalate to a yap if ignored). All were warned what would happen if they indulged him, non heeded the warning, so he does the rounds collecting biscuits as they arrive!:eek: He is allowed to get away with this, as it would be confusing if I then tried to correct him, when they will just undermine me.

He will try his lucky whinning and barking at the biscuit tin at home every now and again, but he never gets a treat for doing so, as it would become constant and he would be a PITA to live with.

So basically Ozzie is not perfect, however he is well socialized, reasonably obedient and secure/confident in himself (in that he knows what is expected of him and where the boundaries are).

Not sure if any of that makes any sense at all! Others on her are much better advising re: training (I have learned via trail and error)!
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You managed to say what I was trying to!:o:p
 
No! I don't think you should introduce a new dog until you can control this one and esp not a puppy, you have clearly stated where you have gone wrong, (he looks to your for reassurance and he gets it) you admit he is like a baby replacement and for some dogs esp terriers this is very confusing and it commonly manifests into aggression and a lack of respect for some or all of the pack dogs and humans and as to how far this becomes an extreme is dependant on how the dog is treat and what it's allowed to get away with (lack of rules and boundaries) and guidance.
The bed scenario! (he should not be on the bed), esp when he is dicating if your OH gets on it:eek:, I would hope that you also stepped in to reprimand that, if not then ideally he should be banished from the bedroom (try a basket outside the bedroom door);) and this is where the boundaries begin!;)
Any behaviour you don't want, don't encourage and there should alway be a consiquence for a unwanted behaviour and this would depend on the behaviour, like the aggression on the bed = (no more on the bed) simples! replace ott cuddles and affection with exercise (on a bike) and getting him past dogs in this manner will do him the world of good takes way your ott reaction to his behaviour and his reaction (full stop) as he aint got an option to stand and gob off or brace himself for battle:p, and so flood him this way or use focus if you cant do the bike. Those are user friendly ways;) I personally would give him a firm reprimand. I have dealt with 5 dogs this week with lead aggression and each and everyone one like I prediced had the wrong gear on the dog hindering their control and where so stressed (understandable) and panicked and it was making the situation 10 times worse, lead aggression in dogs is very common an understandable from a dogs point of view but you would be suprised how handling plays a huge part in it;)

Work with him, either get a trainer or share all problems here and get solutions/tips/advice.
One of the dogs I worked with this week was as a GSD with heightened lead aggression, and they have approached us for non lead aggressive and bomb proof dog that he can mix with and exercise with and get some energy burnt off, lovely people and we will indeed give them a dog but we have first set them home work for their dog and we will gage his improvement for the new arrival.;) ps and at the training class he joined they made her and the dog spend the session in the "toilet":eek::rolleyes: due to his behaviour:rolleyes: his issue (he is a brat);):D
 
CAYLA said:
ps and at the training class he joined they made her and the dog spend the session in the "toilet":eek::rolleyes: due to his behaviour:rolleyes: his issue (he is a brat);):D
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What's that all about - I agree with isolating a dog but I'd not pay (like someone I know) to be shut in a cupboard with their dog for the entirety of a training class....
 
Our trainer hid a gobby GSD puppy behind a table for the whole class, every time. I would have been furious, paying for training cos I don't reckon that taught him anything, personally.
 
It depends on the dog, and I have done it myself (put the dog away if it is messing) but it can actually heighten the frustration when you do re-introduce the dog, especially if you don't immediately link the isolation with the undesirable behaviour...which can be hard to do in a strange training class. And if the handler is also isolated with the dog, it kind of defeats the point. Put the dog away in the car and come back and talk things through with the trainer and actually get your moneys' worth....

I've also found it can work fine at home, but not in a training class.
 
BillieBlitzen said:
I know. I am the problem. I do treat him like a baby (not one of those princess puppies' but I call him baby, he spends a lot of time with me, I adore him blah blah blah.

How do you switch it off? Go from treating like a baby and cuddling in bed with him to treating him like a dog. I want him to have a full life and at the minute he can't.

If we ever do manage to have a child I worry for his future because he would have to be muzzled. The one and only time there was a baby in the house he wanted to kill it and I mean kill it.
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I think you have answered your own question there - in treating him like a baby, you are not doing what is best for him, and you are limiting his life. His size does not excuse his aggression. He could conceivably hurt another dog - and although you say he's not aggressive towards people (apart from your husband), if the other dog's owner put their hand into the mix to save their dog, they could get caught in the crossfire quite easily. Knowing that - and knowing what the consequences might be for your dog if he did bite a person, accidentally or otherwise - should motivate you.

Taking a dog out of a class to work with someone on a one to one basis is fair enough, but locking someone in the loo does seem a little extreme;)
 
I used to walk a jr that was his owners baby substitute , he was pts by 6 for aggression to people and other dogs. They tried rehoming him via a rescue but the rescue said he was dangerous. Please treat him like a dog , for his sake
 
OP,

I have one of those too - a 10 yo JRT that I got 2 years ago from rescue.

He was fine with my old JRT bitch (the first time he came into the house he tried to hump her:eek: so nanoseconds later he was on his back with her teeth round her neck and never tried it on with her again!) and my rottie was a saint with stroppy terriers so just ignored him if he started on him...even the willy biting that is his favourite trick. Little git. At the same time, the two of them played a lot, chase and tuggy were the favourites.

Since I lost the other two, he has got worse. The lead aggression is unreal and he has to be muzzled as he will bite another dog and mean it. He's never off lead but there is always the dog that wanders up, isn't there? I think the problem is that he is actually scared of other dogs but being a typical terriorist he goes in giving it large. With selected dogs he is ok (just ok, not good) but he can't be trusted if unmuzzled. His saving grace is that he is very good with people and fantastically gentle if a touch over protective with children. His history is that he belonged to an older man who moved round a lot but was rehomed because the guy moved to a flat that didn't allow dogs.(Or it may just have been yappy dogs that weren't welcome) I suspect that he was rather spoilt in his previous home...

Does anyone recommend a good trainer in South Essex? I've trained quite a few dogs (fairly) successfully but this one has me stumped - I cannot get him to focus on me for any amount of time let alone if there is another dog within a mile... I really want to get another big dog and I can't until I sort this issue.
 
It can help, OP, to write down what you want to accomplish in the dog - perhaps in an email to a friend? My thing is horses not dogs but it's amazing how many times people email me with their problem horse problems and then at the end of the email say how much it helped them to clarify the situation to write it all down!

Perhaps give some thought to what you "want" from the dog (i.e not trying to bite you OH :eek:) and then how you plan to go about it. It's quite hard to make yourself be consistent and structured when you've not been previously but that, more than anything else, is what your dog needs from you.

I'll confess, my dogs are probably on the spoiled end of the spectrum! (Cobblers kids and lack of shoes come to mind!) But they have a pretty clear idea of where the boundaries are and when they consider pressing them it usually takes no more than a warning tone and a look at my face to resign them to the facts of life. The younger one had a horrible start and has really struggled with things like being sociable to strangers (I don't ask that my dogs be friendly - although the other one is virtually a politician - but they must be polite) and being in excitable situations. It can take a lot of time to reprogram but don't get discouraged. I'm sure you'll find the dog will be happier and better adjusted for it.

Once you have your pack sorted then you can think about adding to it. At this point I don't think it would be fair to a puppy, do you? From what you say you could not 100% protect a young dog from the one you have should there be a problem, not to mention that it is quite likely it will take its cue from him and one dog is tough enough to keep a handle on if things are not going well!
 
Thank you all for taking the time to write. I think it is a good idea to write down what I want to achieve with the dog so that I can try and focus on a clear path of how to get there.

In the past I have tried and then given up because I revert back to my old nature, I went to training classes with him and I thought he wasa frightened aggressive but the trainer told me no he was just aggressive. Over the period of a few weeks I managed to get him to focus on me beautifully, he still responds to the hand signals that we learnt for sit, down, wait. He didn't like to have another dog near him but in time would allow other owners to walk their dogs quite close while managing to keep a focus on me. The best day was when I trusted him to recall in the field off lead. I fully expected him to charge at the nearest dog but the trainer said he wouldn't and he didn't.

So I did a lot of reading, right now on my bookshelf I can see 'it's me or the dog', 'superdog', a couple of Ceaser Milans..... I took the tub of toys away, I fed am and pm etc but didn't persevere.

I need to do it again. Thing is I feel like I don't have OH'S support as he will just think (as with so many things in my life) 'oh here we go again'.

I will have a think and brace myself for change........ Thanks all!
 
Change is always hard! But the good thing is it doesn't stay "strange" for long, then it gets easier, and soon it's "normal" not "change" at all. ;)

Forgive me but I think this is quite a telling statement. . . .

BillieBlitzen said:
He didn't like to have another dog near him but in time would allow other owners to walk their dogs quite close while managing to keep a focus on me.
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Even my badly behaved dogs don't get a vote about stuff like that!! They can "not like" all sorts of things but if I say it's important for them to suck it up, then that's the end of the discussion. I don't always like going to work in the morning but I go because it's a necessity of life. :) Your dog did what you asked so yay! Well done. him. Whether he liked it or not is really none of your concern.

Within reason, of course. I do not asked my abused, fear aggressive dog to put up with strangers trying to pet her. I do insist she be able to stand around while I chat to someone. In return I always make sure she can keep herself to herself if she wants and I've tried to make sure people she sees regularly and even strangers if they seem nice, give her treats and know the things she likes, like chin scratches, so she starts to make pleasurable associations. But, for instance, at the vets she needs to let them do what they need to do. Her liking it is not imperative.

Same as a horse. I'm sure there are all sorts of things horses don't like but because they are big and dangerous we make a point of teaching them to tolerate what is necessary.

And eventually, as the whole anxiety about whatever it is dissipates, the dog stops caring so much, which then lessens the anxiety, which then allows the dog to realise that there might actually be some good aspects to doing what you have asked! My fearful dog is now much more confident with people and even entertains the idea that they might be fun once she gets to know them a bit.

You are doing what is best for him. He will be a happier, healthier dog for it. But change is hard for him, too, so don't worry if he's not always "happy" with your choices. After all, you would not let a child do unsafe or unpleasant things just because he/she wanted to, would you? ;)
 
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