dog keeps trying to eat the lead and

fly_dragon_fly

we got Alfie our little patterdale on friday and he is lovely but when going for a walk he firstly tries to eat the lead, to the point where he broke the first one in 5 minutes that his owner had given him, then once walking he will bark at anyone he doesn't know, human or dogs.

now i know he won't bite them as he is just all gob and his tail is waggy but it does intimidate people a lot.

how would you over come this?

when people come to the house he will bark and growl but if they have a treat he will come to them stop barking / growling and will be fine for the rest of the time but i don't want to get into this routine as it ( seems to me) encourages him to bark/ growl until he gets a treat.

he's just turned 2 and can sit / paw / roll over and can be let of the lead to run round the garden but i haven't braved letting him off his lead in a field yet.

this doesn't make him sound very nice but he really is a lovely loyal friendly little dog who likes everyone after the first 5 minutes, but growing up with dogs who like everyone straight away i'm not sure what to do!

x

Raksha

Eating or holding the lead can be the sign of an anxious dog - how about giving him a tuggy toy to hold on walks? Alternatively, use two leads - as soon as he takes hold of one, you transfer to the other.

I'd suggest you learn a bit about dog body language, as a wagging tail isn't always a sign of friendship, it's a sign of excitement or arousal as well, and it may indicate a dog whose spotted 'prey'

I'd solve this with a 'watch me' command, so he learns to watch you quietly when told rather than bark.

With people in the house, I'd use a 'house line' to encourage him on to his 'bed' (he should have a comfortable 'bed' in the room most of the family spend their time in) Don't use a treat to lure him to the bed, this is, as you realise, bribery. Instead 'magically' produce the reward when he is in place. Teach him that 'his job' when people come round, is to get himself on his bed. At the moment he's making up the rules (terriers are very good at this)

HannahIOW

Try him on a chain lead, dog's don't like how it feels on their teeth so he should stop biting it.