Im at my wits end now,first of the barking now she wants to bite me,why?what have i done wrong,we had this problem when she had pups,she tried biting Merlin,then me,now 5 mins ago she bit me she just caught me with her teeth and grazed me thankfully it could have been worse ,she isnt ill,shes normal apart from this,what am i to do HELP with kids and other animals im getting worried
Crystal is a 2yr10mth old spayed jack russell terrier bitch
Mandy

First off, steady down Mandy and tell us a bit more of the history. What has led up to this? What was the reason for this  bite and the other to Merlin? Is it related to food? Jealousy? It there maybe NO reason (Not likely but possible). What went on immediately before? The more you can tell us the better chance we have of interpreting the actions.

Take your time to get your thoughts in order before answering.

Regards, John

ok sorry ,
right Crystal is a rescue which my hubby got from some gypsys 2years ago,vet said she was roughly 10mths old at the time,she has never liked a belly rub much without showing her teeth,i wasnt doing a thing she was just sitting on my lap as she normally dose,she always tries to get Merlin when he approaches her when she has something,toy,bone etc,she has tried biting before but not got me this time she did only grazing my hand thankfully could have been worse,not knowing her history really dont  help,i think she was beaten anyway and abused,she had fag burns on her and was under weight,shes now very happy,eats well etc,she only dose this once in a blue moon just wish i knew why,i love her to pieces and we have 5 kids and other pets im just worried for there safety,i think she is still to this day jelious of Merlin,she loves him to as they can play for hrs at a time then she changes and wants to beat him,its like she has 2 personalities.
Mandy

Have you tried T Touch massage with her. Even if it doesn't "cure"her it will help her to relax when being touched & is a natural way no drugs etc. I use it a lot with nervous dogs & those that are OTT.

I used it on  little X breed that appeared on stage in a musical & it ended up with him actually asking for a massage(had to train his owners to massage him)

Your vet said she was roughly ten months old when you had her. The younger a dog is when you get it the easier it is to get a guide to it's age so I doubt that age was very far out. It would be far harder if the dog was nearer five years old. In this case it would be easy to say that the dog was older than six months and less than eighteen months.

From your point of view, the most formative time in the dog's life was the time before you took her on. The three to six months period of a dog's life is so important and is the reason why we stress the importance of early socialisation. You say she has cigarette burns on her so we can assume that her early life was very stressful and that the burns were not all she had to contend with.

You say she has never liked a "Belly Rub". This would not be that unusual in the case of a dog who has suffered physical pain from hands. The lesson learned at an early age is that hands hurt so don't let them near! The other lesson learned is to get rather blasé about pain. It has been used by her owner to get their way, and possibly just for the hell of it. After a time of this pain becomes a way of life. You can understand how eventually the dog starts to see pain as a way of life.

You have not made things easy to sort out. I've been researching back through your past posts and think Merlin must be around 17 months old? In September last year you posted that Merlin was playing rough and barking. In October he was getting "Too big for his boots" and trying to mount your bitches. You tried to stop him fighting, all teeth bared and he bit your foot. In February you mated the bitch (which in view of the problems you were having and the history of the bitch was maybe not the brightest course of action.) In July this year, twelve and a half weeks after the puppies were born she bit your hand. At that time you were trying to stop her chewing her bedding. Then this time, if I've got it right, she was sitting on your lap and Merlin approached and she tried to attack him but instead caught you.

Maybe this is an over simplification but without being able to see the dogs, yes, you may be right and Crystal is jealous (Posessive of property). But it would also appear that maybe you have not been supplying the guidance and leadership of the family pack and Crystal, with her elevated position as matriarch of the pack is taking the law into her own hands. No bitch will tolerate a dog pulling her around and one who has only shortly before had puppies will for sure be feeling her feet. Unless you take charge and control things then the situation will only get worst and could end up by you having to permanently separate the dogs. Whether that is by keeping them in different rooms or by rehoming one. If a dog is getting unwanted attention from another the only option it has is to try to let the other dog know that it does not like it. It the other dog does not take the hint then it only has two options, one is to back down and let the other dog have its way, or two, escalate the action. Instead of showing teeth, using them!  

Sorry if this sounds rather hard on you but it is my reading of the situation and without being able to see things I only have these and previous posts by you to go on.

Regards, John    

Does she ever lie on her back at any other time?

yes she submisive always rolls on her back has been she knows im the boss,behaviourist thinks shes one jelious dog,who wants all the attention which she cannot have.some days she will like her belly rubbed others she dont she shows her teeth dont make a sound thought she was smiling now not to sure.
Mandy

Why on earth did you breed from her? I can't believe anyone would breed from a rescue dog with serious behaviour and temperament problems! You can't have had any pedigree papers. I'm baffled!

As you suggest, the teeth showing can be "smiling" but, can also be a sign of submission. Many sadly believe it is aggression but it can often be a presursor to a bite if the dog lacks confidence and that can be very confusing for the owner; it sometimes just comes down to knowing the dog as to whether it is a smile or not; however there are subtle differences :).

Lindsay
X

A 'smiling' dog will be relatively relaxed - a dog whose trying to give a warning will probably have stiffened as the first part of a dogs bady language for warning off unwanted attention.  I'm just wondering if she has a back problem, and being on her back actually causes her pain......