I,M NEARING 50 YEARS OF AGE AND HAVE HAD MANY DOGS OF DIFFERENT BREEDS SINCE I WAS A CHILD, HOWEVER AFTER MY LAST EXPERIENCE I,VE BEEN PUT OFF DOGS FOR LIFE!!!! WHEN MY RIDGEBACK PASSED AWAY IN MARCH I DECIDED THAT MY NEXT DOG WOULD BE A SMALL ONE. I WON,T SAY WHICH BREED I BOUGHT BUT I WILL SAY IT WAS ONE OF THE SMALLER BRITISH TERRIERS. THIS DOG WAS AN ABSOLOUTE NIGHTMARE!!! HE SIMPLY COULDN,T OR WOULDN,T GET THE HANG OF HOUSE TRAINING. LET ME EXPLAIN. WE DECIDED TO TRY AND CRATE TRAIN HIM, HOWEVER NO MATTER HOW LATE WE PUT HIM IN THE CRATE (SOMETIMES AS LATE AS 2AM) AND HOW EARLY WE LET HIM OUT (USUALLY AROUND 6AM) WE WOULD ALWAYS WAKE UP TO HIM HOWLING THE PLACE DOWN AND HAVING URINATED AND POOED ALL OVER HIS CRATE!!! NOW I KNOW IT,S TOO MUCH TOO EXPECT A PUP TO HOLD HIS TOILET IN ALL NIGHT BUT THIS PROBLEM WAS STILL PERSISTING WHEN HE WAS 5 MONTHS OLD !!! EVERY MORNING WITHOUT FAIL MY WIFE WOULD HAVE TO GET UP AND DISENFECT HIS CRATE WHILST I WOULD TAKE HIM OUT HOPING AGAINST HOPE THAT HE WOULD DO HIS BUSINESS OUTSIDE!!!!! THE STRAW THAT FINALLY BROKE THE CAMELS BACK WAS WHEN LAST WEEK WE WERE AWOKEN AT 5 AM TO HIM SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF HIS VOICE!!! HE,D ACTUALLY ONLY BEEN IN THE CRATE SINCE 1AM AND WE,D TAKEN HIM OUT EVERY 30 MINS THROUGHOUT THE DAY IN A VAIN ATTEMPT TO CURE HIS PROBLEM!! ANYWAY WE WERE MET WITH THE USUAL FOUL SMELL AND WHILST MY WIFE WAS ON HER KNEES CLEANING OUT THE CRATE I TOOK HIM OUTSIDE AND STOOD IN THE POURING RAIN FOR 20 MINS WHILST HE WANDERED AROUND SNIFFING THE GRASS!! I BROUGHT HIM BACK INSIDE WHERE HE PROMPTLY URINATED ALL OVER MY HALL!!! 20 MINS LATER I,M BACK OUTSIDE WITH HIM ( I HAVE TO ADMIT THAT BY NOW I,M ACTUALLY CRYING!) ANYWAY SUFFICE TO SAY NOTHING WAS FORTHCOMING AND WE WENT BACK INSIDE TO FIND MY POOR WIFE SOBBING GENTLY!!! 10 MINS LATER AS WE WERE ABOUT TO HAVE A CUPPA AND A VALIUM OUR LITTLE FRIEND POOED ALL OVER THE KITCHEN, STOOD IN IT AND THEN RAN UP THE STAIRS, JUMPED ON MY SON,S BED AND GLEEFULLY URINATED ALL OVER MY SLEEPING CHILD!!!!!!!! ENOUGH WAS ENOUGH! WE PHONED THE BREEDER UP AND HE AGREED TO TAKE THE DOG BACK (HURRAH!). WE LOST ALL OUR MONEY BUT I COULDN,T CARE LESS AS I,D HAVE WILLINGLY PAID FOR THE BREEDER AND ALL HIS LIVING RELATIVES TO SPEND THE WINTER IN THE CARIBBEAN!!!!!!! NOW I KNOW SOMEONE WILL COME ON HERE SO ANXIOUS TO TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG AND IF I WAS A NOVICE DOG OWNER I MIGHT AGREE WITH THEM, BUT AS I SAID I,VE HAD A RIDGEBACK, TWO SHAR PEI, A ROUGH COLLIE AND A LABRADOR SINCE I WAS BORN AND ALL THESE DOGS PUT TOGETHER NEVER GAVE ME AS MUCH TROUBLE AS THIS LAST ONE. I THINK YOU JUST HAVE TO ADMIT THAT THERE IS SUCH A THING AS BAD DOGS! WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Hello James and welcome to the forum. Could I ask you to please NOT post all in capitals ...turn CAPS LOCK off. It makes it very , very hard to read your post and is considered to be shouting on the internet.

Melody :)

Actually I can understand your having a hard time with a terrier. I have a Jack Russell Terrier which I wish we could get rid of, but since it's my husbands dog we can't. She's an absolute terrier(terror). She will not listen to anything you say, she's always on the furniture, always jumping all over anyone who enters the house and licking them. Bites the guests, she's bitten me 3 times(but has never bitten her owner), fights any dog that ever comes over, goes to the bathroom in the house whenever she's upset... Terrier's are a hard dog if your not use to them, or if you aren't a very patient person. They have so much energy that they tend to get very very annoying very fast. I was told by numerous people that you NEVER have another dog (even another jack russell) with a terrier. They don't do well with other dogs, and they usually end up being killed by the other dog, or they end up killing your other dog. I'm told they are so hard to train because they are so smart. But I rather think they have a screw loose in there head at times. So I feel for you, I've had lots of dogs too and I have to agree I will NEVER own another terrier. I've had Golden Retrievers, Springer Spaniels, Pit bulls, Rottweilers, Cocker Spaniels, Labs, Pugs, Greyhounds, great danes.. but never have I had a dog so uncontrolable as a terrier.

I don't think we can put it all down to being a terrier, just some individual dogs are harder to housetrain. My terrier Nellie was no problem, she has not, however, ever learned to ask to go out but as my cocker is in and out several times a day she just goes out when she does. As to her nature she is the kindest dog I have ever known, she grew up with another cocker who she got on very well with. Our current cocker is much more dominent in nature and has had a go at her on a few occasions, she has never done more than defend herself, the cocker is infact no match to her strength and yet Nellie has never hurt her. In addition she has been a very playful auntie to three litters of puppies never hurting any of the cheeking monkeys. There are breeds of terriers that have a reputation of being less sharp, my Dandie Dinmont and the Bedlington being a couple.

Hello James!

I am having a terrible time with my puppy also, she continues to go into a specific room and do her business. A friend suggested to me that I hang a bell to the door that I plan to take her out of every time she needs to "go", then you ring the bell right before you take her out. Pretty soon, when the dog needs to go, it will simply ring the bell and you can let it out. The bell needs to be low enough where the dog can ring it with its mouth or paws. It worked for my friend, but it may not work for all dogs. I don't think there is such thing as a bad dog. I mean, sometimes it depends on the breed, and other times it depends on how the owner handles it. Sometimes, a dog will go to the bathroom in unwanted areas in order to get revenge on the owner for something mean it did, such as leaving it outside by itself to long etc....If the dog was ever abused or hurt in any way, the urinating on the carpet/crate may be a sudden reaction to yelling or hitting the dog (which by the way you shouldn't do either). Also, if you owned a house where there were dogs previously living there and the dogs urinated on the carpet, the smell may still be lingering there and your dog may smell it and want to pee there too.

-Aliese

Mmmmmm

I wouldnt have said that particular dog was necessarily BAD, however......and im doubtless going to get shouted at for this...'some' terriers i have met (and a couple i have owned) have been persistently dirty......it might also be that this dogs character has not 'clicked' with yours, i mean, we certainly dont like and get on with every human we meet, why should we click with every dog?

Just my thoughts,
Em

What a load of rubbish!!

James.
Before owning a terrier you should of done your homework, you clearly did not. Poor dog having such an impatient owner who clearly has no idea.

Faiyth.
You certainly have a problem with terriers, what a shame. Just for the record, I have been savaged by Labs, Golden Retrievers, cocker and springer spaniels, but strangley enough, in 11yrs of boarding I have never been bitten by a Jack Russell, despite them being one of the most popular breeds of dog!
Dawn.

Maybe it's a load of rubbish to you, but it's obviously not to us. It's obvious that some people and terriers just don't mix. And I agree that there ARE bad dogs, not every dog will be the same. But usually they have the same characteristics. I've never had a dog that gets into as many vicious fights as this jack russell. I'm not saying terriers are the only savage ones. But they are so far the only ones I've ever been bitten by and that I've ever had to physically pull off another dog because they won't stop fighting. So it's my choice that I never have another Jack Russell or any other type of terrier because they obviously clash with me and my dogs. Why would three vets I took this problem to, and my behavioral specialist tell me never to have more then one dog when you have a terrier if it wasn't true that they fight to the death? Hmm? Or that they are rather aggressive dogs? I'm only stating what every terrier book I've ever read (and I've got about 10 at home) and every professional I've ever talked to has told me. Terriers are not good dogs if you have children, other dogs, or if your looking for a small lap dog. Just because you haven't been bitten by a Jack russell doesn't mean they don't bite. Because believe me.. they do. All dogs can be biters if they are raised that way, or if they are scared of you. I've tried being calm and sweet to this terrier, I've never hit her, she's never been abused, she was raised by a man for the first year of her life so I can't tell you what happened during that point of her life. But otherwise she's been a spoiled well treated dog who just happens to be very very aggressive and fights other dogs, bites people, gets even by going to the bathroom on the carpet, and is so hyper she should be on tranquilizers, I really fear she'll give herself a heart attack some day as fast and excited as she gets. :) I don't hate her, I just have learned my lessons regarding terriers. No more for me, thanks to 3 vets and a behavioral specialist.

faiyth, you and your vets are wrong there certainly are good terriers, I know for absolute certain because I own one. She would never dream of hurting another dog, child or even you ;)

Yes. I do believe there are good terriers. but our household obviously doesn't produce "good" terriers. (And I blame that mostly on my husband) So for their own safety I won't own another one. It's too heartstopping to have to pull her off my golden retriever to prevent her from being killed. And even then she won't stop fighting, and this because they fight to the death. Of course this has happened about once a month for the last 6 months. Many a time I've been bitten by trying to seperate the two dogs as they fight. That's of course besides the times I've been sitting on the couch petting the JRT while she lies next to me and she suddenly bites me in the face. This has happened twice, the third time she bit me I was playing with my other dog with a sock on the ground and the JRT ran up and bit me on the foot. So you have to realize why I won't have another one, how safe would a child be around a dog like this? It's not fun to have to put her up everytime anyone comes over. I want a pet who can be part of the family, not one that has to be put up to protect my visitors.

Are we talking terriers in general here or just JRTs??
I have had two Staffordshire Bull terriers of my own , both brought up with children , both of really good temperament and easy to train ( and both of different breeding too).
My mum owns a Jack russel and although he is a little "feisty" with other dogs and not allowed off lead he is brilliant with my two boys and he has been fine to housetrain .
I dont think you can generalise here - maybe its a mix of the owner and poor temperament breeding .
When we start to generalise on the breed we end up with the Pitbull fiasco ie. people saying it is the breed and not down to individual factors :(
There must be poor examples of this breed just as we have poor examples within the human species :(

Another load of rubbish!

I have 3 terriers here, they don't fight. There is somebody on here who has 10 or 11 of them, they don't fight either!
Dawn.

I don't often reply to posts but i feel i must reply to this one maybe you were just unlucky with your dog.
We have two border terriers and they are fantastic we would not be with out them they are trust worthy with our children ( and our youngest is only 16 months old) they sleep with my 12 year old son and they are very clean in the house they dont fight and get on great with our other dogs which include Briards and Boxers and i would not change them for the world . Maybe we have just been lucky. But we love them .both of them were clean in the house very quickly .

The original poster seems to have left the building :rolleyes: