Terrier Training... Need Help

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Terrier Training... Need Help

Posted : 9/8/2013 6:45:57 PM

Hello,

My name is Joe.

About a month and a half ago I rescued a jack Russell terrier from the shelter. I was aware of the high energy that comes with the territory and being a Fitness trainer, and living in a secluded equestrian community with plenty of outdoors, I was up for the challenge.

Dixie is 1-2 years old and by the time I got her she was already house-trained and does very well. I have worked on a few things with her such as basic commands as well as teaching her how to walk. (not pulling on leash, walking behind me or next to me. etc)

There are still a few things I simply don't know how to do and I see that this forum is full of great advice so I would love to see if you guys could help me.

#1

She barks at other dogs on walks and lunges towards them. She does this until she meets them. Once she meets them she tolerates them. However, I would like to know what you guys see as a good way to correct a terrier for this sort of thing. I cant try to get her attention because when she's focused on barking she doesn't listen to anyone or anything.

#2

She displays similar behavior with horses. She barks and lunges at them and has a harder time calming down than she does with other dogs.

#3 My mother feeds outdoor cats. They come to the sliding glass door throughout the day to wait for food, and when Dixie sees them she goes crazy. The cats are used to her and know there is a glass in between so they are no longer afraid of her and they stopped retreating, this further infuriates Dixie.

I don't want to correct her in a way that is incorrect so any help or experience is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely.

Joe

JackieG

Posted : 9/8/2013 7:18:00 PM

Hi Joe. Thanks for adopting Dixie. I love JRTs and know from my own experience that they can be a challenging breed. I learned that correcting mine made things worse rather than better. My JRT, Twister (may he rest in peace), is the dog that taught me I had to learn a better way to train. This lead me to a ton of reading and research and discovery. JRTs are very high prey drive and were bred to hunt. Dixie's reaction to the cats is something you may not be able to overcome completely. Maybe you could put up a visual barrier of some kind.

The best advice I can give you is to look around at Dr. Sophia Yin's website. The link below will take you to her videos and you'll find several that focus on dealing with a dog who is dog reactive. That's a pretty common response for a terrier.

You wouldn't be wasting your time if you spent some time reading her articles and blogs posts too. She's a very experienced and talented trainer and animal behavior is her specialty.

She also owns a JRT and the transformation she performed with that dog is amazing. Of course, she's a professional and her skills and experience are much more advanced than the average dog owner. That doesn't mean you or anyone who is willing to spend the time can't have a well behaved dog. :)

I also recommend you learn how to clicker train. It's fun for the dog and the owner. There is a learning curve involved. It utilizes positive reinforcement which is much more forgiving than using punishment. If you're timing is off with positive reinforcement, no harm, no foul. The other link is to another wonderful trainer that has a lot of videos showing, step by step how to change unwanted behavior without having to use punishment. I've got more recommendations if neither of these is your cup of tea. :) The videos are free and a great resource.

Keep in mind that any behavior you are trying to change has been reinforced previously. You'll have t change the dog's behavior with repetition after repetition after repetition. Think about all the times your dog has been able to practice the unwanted behavior and how entrenched that behavior has become. You've got to spend the time if you want to see results. Good luck. :)

drsophiayin.com/.../videos

http://dogmantics.com/