Hi Guysm

As i have mentioned in my previous posts, i have always had GSD dogs, and love that breed to bits, what great family dogs, anyway i now have 2 puppys DJ is a westie cross jack russell, more jack russell, anyway he is becoming very snappy and i mean snappy, my 6 year old went to stroke him and he snarled at her and was snapping his teeth towards her, and making horried noises sounded very vicous,anyway i picked him and yelled NO he then went to snap at me so i yelled again and again NO until he stopped then i put him back down and ignored him for a few mins, but he is getting worse, have i got a bad pup, i have never EVER had this from a pup, i have had them play fighting but never where they wanted to do me or my children harm, what am i doing wrong, i do not hit any dog, and would never do so, i just pick him up so that he is eye to eye with me, and i do  have hold of him gently under his tummy and yell NO , My westie Gizzy is completely different he is so soft and gentle even with his mouthing, but dj gets so nasty and really wants to do harm. I am fearful as i dont want to give up on him as we all love him so much,,someone said that this is normal jack russell behaviour, like i said he is more jack russell than westie, and he is only 8 weeks old, but i am scared if i dont get him out of this he will continue to think he rules the roost, any advice , i am going to speak with my vet and see what he says also.

Thanks in advance

Lorraine xx

I have just had to shut the Westie cross out, in the back room for him to calm down, my daughter was led on the floor when DJ went over to here and just went for her, and i mean WENT FOR HER, he was biteing her ear and really pulling at it, he was not playing, what am i going to do

Lorraine, did you get both these pups from the same breeder?  Is the breeder someone who has knowledge of the lines behind their dogs, or someone who is just producing puppies to sell?

Hi The westie cross, is someone who has a westie and jack russell, she said she did not want too breed but an accident happend, dont know much other than that, the pure westie i got from a breeder, and know all the history about him.

Thanks for replying

Lorraine xx

Lorraine,

If I were in the same situation I would return the puppy, even if it means you are out whatever you paid.   An 8 week old puppy of normal temperament should not be snarling and snappy and aggressive.  The only reason why a puppy born with a sound temperament is if it were very frightened because it had not been handled or exposed to any activities of daily life.

Stacey

How were the Westie Cross pups kept.  Did you see the parents and other pups, how did they interact with each other, and at what age did you get the pup.  Puppies and Terrier puppies at that play exremely rough, the bitch would start to teach the pups canine manners between 6 to 8 weeks, which is why for a dog to understand dog it should not be taken away from it's mother too young.

I am wondering if some of the pups responses are fear driven.  You say you pick the pup up to scold it, and I wonder if your daughter has been picking the puppy up and making it feel vulnerable, and it is reacting in the only way it can to get this to stop.

DSo ypou think that the person who had the accidental litter had handled the pups gently a lot since birth, or had rather let the bitch just get on with things.

It isn't natural for a dog to be picked up all the time, so is something it would need to learn was safe and pleasant.  Many small breed dogs get picked up all the time, and some do not like it, as it is rather an invasion of their personal space, but being properly brought up tolerate it, and enjoy it from those they are close too.

I would never allow children to pick puppies up, as they can inadvertently hurt or scare them.

Sorry more questions than help :D

IF you are concerned about this puppys behaviour towards you and your family, the best person to see is somebody recommended by your vet - a member of the UKRCB or the APBC preferably, or a member of the APDT with an interest in canine behaviour.  The internet is not the place to get advice on aggression because there are so many factors which can set it off which you may be unaware of.  For starters though, I would suggest not putting either of the puppies in a situation when they may feel vuneralably and inclined to defend themselves, and this includes picking them up, particularly if you are going to yell at them - dogs are sensitive to our voices, and they may well take to dislike being picked up, simply because it has become a pre cursor to being yelled at - in their minds, if they can prevent you picking them up, you won't be able to yell at them - they will NOT connect their behaviour with being yelled at if you've picked them up inbetween....  Don't forget that many puppies will make ferocious noises when playing, and this doesn't alway indicate a full blown attack meaning to do harm - although a 6 year old would struggle to understand this.  I think you may also be realising *why* responsible breeders will not let two puppies go to the same home, or even home a puppy with a  young dog in residence.....

Ok first of all the pups as far as i know where handled alot, Dj loves being picked up and stoked he even jumps up at my leg to be picked up, the only reason i pick him up to yell NO to him, is when he gets too much with his snapping as this is what i was told to do by the vet, he does not get scared when i do this, as i am not yelling in his face, i just say firmly NO, and once he stopped he gets fuss and told he is a good boy, my children dont pick up the pups i dont allow that, she was just lying on the floor, and DJ went up too her, he left indents in her ear, i know they sound vicous when playing, i am used to pups, but DJ will curl his lip up and show his teeth, which is not PLAY, i dont want to give up on him, he did not like being put in the puppy pen for time out, and when i let him out he was alot calmer, and even went up to my little girl and was licking her, it was as if he knew he done wrong and was saying sorry, but i am scared that when he gets bigger he will do harm, he is a sweet little thing normaly but does get a little nasty for no known reason, i am going to see what the vet can suggest, my pure westie Gizzy is the sweetest and loves cuddles and has never ever shown his teeth, he does sound vicous when he plays which is normal, but he never goes over the top, i have not had one problem with him, but what is going on with DJ, i love him to bits and dont want to give up, as far as i know the people who had the litter live on a farm and the pups were kept inside the house, and were handled by her children, maybe her children hurt dj and that is why he like this with my daughter, i sure hope that i can get him to stop and to reasure him that he wont get hurt if this is the case.

Thanks for the replies, oh my pure westie i got from a breeder and have all the history on him :)

It does sound like DJ may not have been brought up in quite such a careful way as the the purebred pup.  As you say he id not break the skin on your daughters ear, *which if he had really wanted to would be likley) I do think that maybe this was his idea of play.  With puppies most play is of the stalking hunting type acting out the skills he would require as a Terrier bred to kill vermin.  Children are often peceived as littermates and treated by pups as another puppy with which to tussle, try to dominate etc.  This was ther reason I asked how he behaved with his parents and littermates?  Is he very rough with the other puppy, and does he stalk and attack him in moock hunts.  Also as he is younger and I would expect younger, is he acting more assertively to keep up?  Also some individuals like people get more excited than others, and pups often loose control and get OTT when overtired etc, as do toddlers having a tantrum.  Calm behaviour and nipping things in the bud often work better, and if they are overwrought, time out as you have done.  I probably don't need to say (but for others benefit) it is no good getting cross or overwrought yourself as this makes matters worse.  Calmly removing him or yourself from the dituation to allow him to cool down is best.  As soon as he is quiet and calm some very gentle petting to show him he is included.

The NILIF program can be very useful in general wityh pushy type dogs and pups.  It teaches them that your the one who controls resources and your time, and to get these he must earn them.  This entails getting the dog/pup to do something before it gets your attention etc.

It stands for Nothing In Life Is Free.  It is a non confrontational way of showign you are in charge.  the dog works out that to get what it wants it needs to do what you want.

If you type in NILIF into a search engine severaol articles wqill come up.  Of course you will need to adjust things to suit the puppies, but it may be very helpful with bringing up two, as them seeing you as leader hopefully will avoid hierachy issues between them when they get older, as being same age they are more likely to have issues in this respect.

Thanks for your replies,

I did not see mum or dad or other pups, DJ is alittle more pushy than Gizzy, but they do get on well together and play great, although DJ has to go one better all the time, but Gizzy has now started putting DJ in his place,,i leave them to sort it out themselfs, the same way i did with my children when they were toddlers, somethings are best left for them to sort out :) I agree that you should not get OTT with your dog, and that being calm and firm works better as you get a better response, and it dont cause distress to the dogs or pups, i have spoken to a pet behaviourist who said that he was most probably playing, she said that jack russells are normaly alittle fiesty to start with but with calm controle and time out he should learn fast what is and what is not appropiate behaviour, any suggestions from jack russell owners would be great :)

Lorraine xx

I would suggest that you were not given very good advice from your vet because if a dog is snarling, the last thing you do is pick that dog up. I do wish vets would stop giving out behavioural advice - he should have referred you to a trainer or behaviourist esp. as you have children. So i feel the vet behaved in an unprofessional manner. They don't do behavioural training - unless they specialise - so it is just like another dog owner giving advice.

You need to get to the reason as to why this is happening and i would also suggest contacting a reputable trainer or behaviourist. Very often this kind of behaviour can be prevented but you do need a professional to help you :) esp. as over the net people cannnot see vital info such as home environment, children and their expectations of the pups, etc. I suspect DJ is not happy about something and it may be that he needs somewhere to escape too.

In the meantime i would manage the situation and ensure children and dogs are not left alone and preferabley are in separate rooms. I agree that it may be that the farmer's children hurt DJ as a pup, they may have dropped him for example.  If so you will need a training programme which can show DJ he may enjou being handled and that it can be pleasant.

I do hope things can be resolved - i would not return him to the farmer as if he doesn't want him I would not be sure what would happen to him.

Good luck
Lindsay
X

Would like to explain what my home is like, i let the pups have full run of the downstairs, they do have their own little room with their bed in etc for when they want to be left alone, and i use the puppy gate to keep the kids out, they know when the gate is shut to keep out and leave them alone, DJ does like to be picked up, he is not nervous at all, at least he is not showing signs of being nervous, he comes up to the kids and when my daughter puts out her hands he will jump into them, but i never ever leave them alone with the pups, if i need to tidy up stairs i put the pups in their little room where they can play eat or rest, their room is a biggish room, by my back door, it is like another room there, that leads on to the toilet, which i leave open so they can go in there also, dont worry and gasp omg there are things in there the pups can hurt them selfs on as the bleach etc are all put away where they cannot get too.

So hopefully this gives you an idea what their home life is like :) if you think i am doing something wrong here please say all advice welcome

Lorraine xx

Lorraine,

Jack Russells can be very feisty.   Any pup that is feisty needs a lot of attention and it is terribly difficult to do that when you have two puppies of the same age. 

I would still recommend that you consider rehoming your feisty cross. 

There are dogs that are born with poor temperaments and you can end up rearranging your and your entire family's life to adapt to the dog, when just the opposite should be the case.

All I can say is not to make training or learning to live with this pup a test of how good a dog owner you are and not to hang onto him longer than you would if you were only to consider your other puppy and your family. 

Stacey