anyone here own a jack russell terrier??

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r1ghtpath
r1ghtpath Posts: 701 Member
in Chit-Chat
if you do, could you please let me know. i got a puppy that was SUPPOSED to be an australian shepherd and has turned out to be at least part jack russell terrier if not ALL jack russell.

i need some advice, insight, into these dogs because so far he is NOT a good fit for our family. i have SMALL kids, and i got an aussie ( or so i thought) because i have chickens and needed a dog that would watch out for them. needless to say this puppy has killed one of my chickens so far.........

thank you!!!!

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  • clovr24
    clovr24 Posts: 56 Member
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    Do you have a pic? I'm not sure how the two could be confused..

    Where did you get the puppy from? If a shelter/rescue, contact them and let them know it's not working. Terriers, in general, have high prey drives (it is what they were bred for), so obviously it wouldn't be the best choice for guarding chickens- especially since it's already proven it's drive at a young age...
  • EmCarroll1990
    EmCarroll1990 Posts: 2,849 Member
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    Yes, high prey drive, high energy, lots of work. We've got one, he's 11 now so he's calmed waaaay down.
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
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    poor chicken
  • MotorCityFemmeFatale
    MotorCityFemmeFatale Posts: 222 Member
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    Do you have a pic? I'm not sure how the two could be confused..

    This


    I have a Jack and love him dearly, but I knew the type of dog I was getting. I have a "horsey" background and very common for Equestrians to own one, so I was around them since I was tiny. They certainly have a drive for prey and think they are much bigger than they are, lol Super high energy and very intellegent. Truely the easiest dog I have trained (he is one yr old this month). I have never had any issues with my Jack and my daughter (now 2yrs old).

    That being said, he is a good fit for me. But sounds like it would not be a good fit for your family.
  • r1ghtpath
    r1ghtpath Posts: 701 Member
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    as a 6 week old puppy he definitely resembled the australian shepherd, and the people selling him said that's what he was. as he's gotten bigger it's become very clear he has a TON of jack russell in him. i can make my profile pic him, if you want to see.

    he's bigger than a jack russell.

    i'm curious to know if he'll outgrow the incessant barking? he doesn't respond to any of the "training" to get him to stop. at least so far i haven't found the one thing he will respond to. he's smart in regards to other things.

    he's a biter. he's bitten me and the vet and a friend, drawing blood all three times. he hadn't growled at anyone or anything in a couple weeks, until yesterday. he is not submissive in the least bit. the vet told me to be very aware of this because when he bit her, all she was doing was holding him in her arms. when he bit me i was trying to see what was in his mouth...... yesterday he growled at a dog he's very familiar with, that is about 3-4 times his size....... my kids are uncertain around him, which doesn't help.

    i just wonder, from those who have had JR puppies, how much of this is puppyhood, and how much is their personality? we will do all of the training we need, but if he is going to continue to bark non stop and be aggressive with others and my chickens, i don't know that he's gonna work for us.

    and no, i had absolutely no clue he was a terrier. they said blue heeler australian shepherd. i never would have gotten a terrier of any kind. the main reason i was getting a dog to begin with was to keep the fox away from my chickens. so, i wanted a dog that would be protective. not a killer. not only did he KILL the chicken, he devoured it!!!! :-(

    thanks!!!
  • clovr24
    clovr24 Posts: 56 Member
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    as a 6 week old puppy he definitely resembled the australian shepherd, and the people selling him said that's what he was. as he's gotten bigger it's become very clear he has a TON of jack russell in him. i can make my profile pic him, if you want to see.

    he's bigger than a jack russell.

    i'm curious to know if he'll outgrow the incessant barking? he doesn't respond to any of the "training" to get him to stop. at least so far i haven't found the one thing he will respond to. he's smart in regards to other things.

    he's a biter. he's bitten me and the vet and a friend, drawing blood all three times. he hadn't growled at anyone or anything in a couple weeks, until yesterday. he is not submissive in the least bit. the vet told me to be very aware of this because when he bit her, all she was doing was holding him in her arms. when he bit me i was trying to see what was in his mouth...... yesterday he growled at a dog he's very familiar with, that is about 3-4 times his size....... my kids are uncertain around him, which doesn't help.

    i just wonder, from those who have had JR puppies, how much of this is puppyhood, and how much is their personality? we will do all of the training we need, but if he is going to continue to bark non stop and be aggressive with others and my chickens, i don't know that he's gonna work for us.

    and no, i had absolutely no clue he was a terrier. they said blue heeler australian shepherd. i never would have gotten a terrier of any kind. the main reason i was getting a dog to begin with was to keep the fox away from my chickens. so, i wanted a dog that would be protective. not a killer. not only did he KILL the chicken, he devoured it!!!! :-(

    thanks!!!

    If you post a picture, I might be able to help you out on the mix..blue heeler (australian cattle dog) and australian shepherds are 2 different breeds- so maybe he is a mix of those two.

    Either way, the fact that a puppy (how old is he now?) is showing this much aggression is abnormal and not a breed trait of any of these dogs. Were you able to see the parents of the dog and their temperments? It could be genetic, or there could be something medical going on. I'm surprised your vet was not more concerend. None of this is normal for puppies of any breed. Teething is one thing, but biting and drawing blood unprovoked is a problem.

    This dog is probably going to need extensive training- with an established trainer...Not from Petsmart, etc. This can be expensive, so if it is not an option for you then the best thing to do is to find a rescue group for him, able to deal with these issues while he is still a puppy. Keeping him, without proper training, will just lead to an older dog with the same issue and a stronger bite..Also, you can really train a dog out of their prey drive tendancies..
  • r1ghtpath
    r1ghtpath Posts: 701 Member
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    ah ok. i thought the blue heeler was a line OF australian shepherd. the vet was the one that said jack russell. she was concerned, quite so. kept telling me this was NOT normal behavior and that i'd have to establish dominance. she showed me what to do, and i have been doing it. he hasn't bitten anyone since that visit to the vet. so, i was hoping what i was doing was working. he also hadn't growled until he growled yesterday..... which bring me back to being concerned.

    i don't have the money to put into expensive training. i hadn't planned on having to "break" a dog if you will. the aggressive nature was a bit of a shock because he wasn't like this the first couple days/ week. i did not see the parents.

    i'll put pics of him up on my profile and add you as a friend. i have no clue how to post pics and i am not interested in getting a photo bucket account :-)

    eta: he was 6 weeks when we got him, and he's about 3 months now.

    thank you!!!!
  • clovr24
    clovr24 Posts: 56 Member
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    Well, it's good that he's still so young- i would at least contact a trainer for a consultation/basic puppy class and see how that goes. You do noooot need to "break" a puppy...Positive reinforcement only! No alpha rolls or things of that nature (I'm hoping that's not what the vet suggested).

    I'll wait til you add me and see the pic and them PM you more on this :)
  • falsecho
    falsecho Posts: 81 Member
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    I have 2 Jacks. One always wants to chase the ball, the other just wants to sniff out the neighborhood rabbits. They generally very smart, loyal and high energy. If they don't get that energy out in a productive way, they will figure out a way to get it out, usually in a non-productive way.

    As for the chickens, initially they will go after them, but I believe that behavior, along with the biting can be modified with being consistent.

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