Help! Dog getting too big for his boots! ;)

Chicken_Samosa

Hello there,

I'm having a bit of a problem with my 1 year Jack Russell, Bobby.

His latest (last couple of months or so) trick is to run and get something he knows he shouldn't have, such as a sock or a tissue or anything like that, run behind or under the sofa and proceed to destroy it.

Usually we could tempt him out with some sort of treat, a bit of ham, some cheese, pasta, etc however each time he does this it seems like he is getting more and more aggressive when you try to get it off of him.

Tonight for example he ran upstairs into the bedroom and grabbed one of my socks from the floor (my fault I know) and pegged it behind the sofa. As I went to get it back he ran under the sofa and every time I would move my hand close to him he'd growl and retreat further under it.

In the end I had to coerce him out with some cheese then grab him by the collar to drag him into his area to cool down. This didn't go down well with him and he gave several warning nips to my hand, not hard enough to draw blood or anything like that however hard enough to cause welt like bumps where his teeth dragged.

As the wife and I have a new baby in the house there will be more and more opportunities for him in the coming months to grab stuff like bibs, towels, clothes, toys, dummies etc which isn't ideal for us.

All other times he is pretty much perfect, he plays well and is reasonably good when on walks. He hasn't been neutered.

To cut my exceedingly long story short, what can we do to either a) stop him picking up stuff like that and destroying them (probably impossible lol) or b) give it up without going into attack mode?

Cheers,
Indy

Milford_Cubicle

Hmm. I reckon having him neutered for starters might calm him down. Also, you might want to consider classes for him?
Does he interact with other dogs at all?

You may just have to go down the route of anything you don't want him to have, keep it out of his reach...?

Raksha

Is he still getting the attention he was used to before the baby (walks and lots and lots of games).

You might want to look at getting a house line to put on him, so removing him is easier. Keep doors shut and things off the floor that you don't want him to get (good practise for when the baby is crawling ) And actively teach a 'leave' command.

If you ensure his natural needs are met in a controlled way, this uncontrolled behaviour should become less frequent.

supermezzo

It's harder work in the short term but a 'leave' command is the easiet thing to do forever once they've mastered it. Teaching it to them also makes a good game and a good bonding experience too - I suspect that you have a combination of testosterone and a little bit of insecurity/jealousy as regards the baby, which is why he is a) seeking your attention by stealing things and then b) being so possesive with them.
If it were me, I'd start to teach the leave commmand asap and at the same time, ignore any stealing and guarding behaviour and he'll soon learn that leaving stuff is far more beneficial to him.

user55

You need a bombproof "Leave!" command, and also make sure that when you are trying to get him to come out from behind the sofa you aren't coming across as aggressive, scaring him into growling and retreating.

I saw this exact issue on Dog Borstal and the owner was yelling angrily at the dog to come out and of course it didn't help!

A good recall would be essential too, if you don't already have that sorted.

foreign_correspondent

Is he getting plenty of exercise and stimulation? (games, training etc etc) - people often underestimate the amount of exercise and stimulation a JRT needs, but they are little workers and if not kept busy enugh they will find themselves some 'work' to do... eg sock hunting!

suki1964

Milford_Cubicle wrote: »

Hmm. I reckon having him neutered for starters might calm him down. Also, you might want to consider classes for him?
Does he interact with other dogs at all?

You may just have to go down the route of anything you don't want him to have, keep it out of his reach...?

Neutering wont help here, neutering is really only helpful when you have a dog that has a tendency to roam for b1tches in season or dog on dog aggression.

What we have here sounds like a dog whos having less attention then he needs (still a teen and we know how stroppy they are) and perhaps the training has been eased up (getting ready for baby) just when it really needs reinforcing

Rakshas advice is spot on (as usual)

xxlaurissaxx

The way i see it you have to be firm and let him know your the boss. I had this problem with my westie and i let her know that if she took anything all i did was walk up and although she was growling and showing teeth I got hold of the item and took it away and said no or leave when getting the item. This also happened with my aunties dog - staffiexlab so as you can imagine he is big and very powerful but i can still get items off him (sky remote) most of the time and all you have to do is be firm, dont show your scared by hesitating, dont scream at him but simply take the item away and say no.
But i have to agree with the above and ask is he getting enough exercise and attention, maybe this is his way of getting your attention?

xx

tubbee2

Hi there

I think your problem could have been made worse because you've been rewarding him ............................

"His latest (last couple of months or so) trick is to run and get something he knows he shouldn't have, such as a sock or a tissue or anything like that, run behind or under the sofa and proceed to destroy it.

Usually we could tempt him out with some sort of treat, a bit of ham, some cheese, pasta, etc however each time he does this it seems like he is getting more and more aggressive when you try to get it off of him."

I have a Newfoundland and believe me she doesn't shift or give up easily but we trained her by making sure she knew her place in the family following advice from the breeder. If she wouldn't hand over something she'd acquired, we were advised to make a noise like a growl (yes I know) and then ask her to give, if that didn't work, we were to push her over (gently, obviously) hold her down and ask her to give, and take away whatever she'd picked up. Apparently it's all to do with pack leadership. Also she isn't allowed on any furniture at all, she was always fed after we had eaten, and when we wanted her to stop doing something we had to ignore her by turning our backs. It did feel really harsh when she was a cute ball of fluff, but when she reached 10stone and could knock a child over without trying, I was really, really pleased we'd gone through it.

I don't know how it works with a Jack Russell but possibly worth a try?....
Good luck

Chicken_Samosa

Thanks for all the useful advice people, plenty of food for thought here.

I think I'll try the leave command first, he is generally pretty good at following other commands such as sit and lie down.

I'll keep you all informed, thanks again!

Raksha

tubbee2 wrote: »

Hi there

I think your problem could have been made worse because you've been rewarding him ............................

"His latest (last couple of months or so) trick is to run and get something he knows he shouldn't have, such as a sock or a tissue or anything like that, run behind or under the sofa and proceed to destroy it.

Usually we could tempt him out with some sort of treat, a bit of ham, some cheese, pasta, etc however each time he does this it seems like he is getting more and more aggressive when you try to get it off of him."

I have a Newfoundland and believe me she doesn't shift or give up easily but we trained her by making sure she knew her place in the family following advice from the breeder. If she wouldn't hand over something she'd acquired, we were advised to make a noise like a growl (yes I know) and then ask her to give, if that didn't work, we were to push her over (gently, obviously) hold her down and ask her to give, and take away whatever she'd picked up. Apparently it's all to do with pack leadership. Also she isn't allowed on any furniture at all, she was always fed after we had eaten, and when we wanted her to stop doing something we had to ignore her by turning our backs. It did feel really harsh when she was a cute ball of fluff, but when she reached 10stone and could knock a child over without trying, I was really, really pleased we'd gone through it.

I don't know how it works with a Jack Russell but possibly worth a try?....
Good luck

The temperament of a Newfie is waaaaaay different to a JRT. I doubt a JRT would stand still long enough to by pushed over (and the alpha dog doesn't push anyone over, the submissive dog rolls on its own accord to offer an apeasement behaviour.) The whole idea of rolling a dog to show your dominance is very old fashioned and flawed, and has lead to a lot of humans being bitten in the face when they've timed it wrong, or taken on the wrong dog Ofcourse, in the end, its the dog which has paid the price.