Extremely Aggressive Jack Russell!!!

Posted by Kesia
Apr 17, 2012
I have a two-year old Jack Russell named Jaxson. He is the first dog my sons & I have ever owned so we spoiled him rotten not realizing the damage we were doing. I never crated him. When he first came to us, he was around my friends and we didn't have any problems, however, at some point this changed and he became very aggressive towards people and other dogs. I tried Pet Smart's training class but he barked so much that he disrupted the class so I was told I needed individual lessons. Needless to say this didn't work either bcse he still barked at other dogs in the store

My neices came to visit last year and brought their Chihuahua and they got along fine but when my parents visited with their Chihuahua he tortured the dog the entire weekend :mad: When I take him to the walking trail I dread seeing another dog bcse he is going to growl, bark, pull and try to attack the dog. I hate to have visitors bcse he nearly tears down the door trying to get to them. On yesterday he tried to attack my son's friends and the more I said no the worse he got. He has already bitten my friend and today he tried to attack her and her 9 mth old son with a muzzle on his mouth. He has bitten my neighbor. I'm really at my wits end with him bcse he's toooo mean and toooooo aggressive..... the more I sternly say no the worse his behavior gets. I could go on and on about him but I think you get the point that he's too aggressive.

Please help otherwise I'm going to have to find him another home.
Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Apr 17, 2012
Hi Kesia,

I am glad you realized that you and your sons have spoiled the dog. JRs are not dogs for first time owners. They are very smart but they have their own mind and don't listen to the owners that they don't respect.

First thing I would like to suggest is you and your sons write down Jaxon's daily routine, from the time he wakes up till he goes to bed (if you let him sleep with you, you might want to stop it now). Then, think of the things of his highlights. Does he get one or two walks a day? How long are those walks? Does he get to play fetch or something that he REALLY enjoys? Does he enjoy his meal times? If you are free feeding (leave his food available all the time) please stop it right away.

Instead of telling him "No" all the time, put him on "time-out". By this time, your "No" doesn't mean anything to him. He has been ignored them and he has been gotten away with it. You actually lost a power of "No" by using it too often and failing to make him obey what you meant.

The good thing is that we, people, still control your dog's stake (sorry, this might not be a good word but as a non-native speaker I cannot think of a better word). All the foods are coming from you, and all the good things and fun are controlled by you, such as WHEN to take him for walk, HOW LONG and WHAT ROUTE he can walk, etc.

Use your power (not physical but authority) in a way to guide your dog to a better dog. Dogs with firm and fair rules and boundaries are happier than dogs that have no clear boundaries but being scolded all the time.

This is not a easy task but please discuss among yourselves to find out what rules should be followed and implement them. In the mean time, try to praise him for being good, instead of yelling and scolding at him. Burning his energy is always the first thing to be done. Good luck
Posted by KOPCaroline
May 1, 2012
Hi there,

I think MHN has offered great advice - it all makes a lot of sense and I do think the problem is stemming from lack of discipline or leadership when you first got your JR.

You might try putting a lead on him around the house - just so its trailing after him, but it gives you an extended "handle" to grab when he acts up, so that you can more safely remove him from a situation. This will help you get a hold of him for those time-outs MHN suggested. I fully support using time-outs with misbehaving dogs, I find it works really well because it deprives the dog from every stimulus possible and is both enforced and removed by you - thus strengthening your role as leader.

Try reading over the alpha dog sections in STDT - you may find help here, or alternatively, have you tried the 48 hour "ignore" technique for aggression?