Jack Russell owners please talk to me!

[bluenosebear]

I've got the opportunity to adopt a 1 year old Jack Russell. I've read a few web pages about the personality traits, and just wanted to ask a couple of questions before I make my mind up! ALl the articles I've read say they're barkers, can this be trained out of them? I also have a 2 year old obviously they would not be left alone, but is aggression an issue? If I decided to have another baby would this cause problems? I'm willing to work hard to make the dog welcome, don't work at the moment and am aware this is a challenging little breed.

I'd value any input actual owners could give me though, as first hand experience rather than web articles is much better! All I know at the moment about the dog is that it had a home, but the owners were unable to deal with it - something I have read is common with Jack Russells! My DH really wants one, and has experience with larger dogs. Any thoughts oh wise mnetters?

Ty for the quick reply! My DC has been taught to leave animals alone, unless told otherwise so I'm not too worried about her going after him. I'm reading everything I can, and to be honest I've been considering a dog for a while now despite saying I don't want one!

Hi

I have owned 2 jrt's and worked with many as a vet nurse and rescue worker. They are a high energy breed - not a lap dog, but a working dog bred to have lots of stamina. They do bark and ime it's pretty hard to stop them doing that. They also dig like crazy. They can be very difficult with other dogs, and need very careful socialisation. IME they are one of the less trustworthy breeds with dc, although no dog should ever be left unsupervised with small dc.
I'd be tremendously wary of taking on a 1 year old dog that hadn't been assessed by a reputable rescue - he could have major issues and people aren't always very truthful when they're trying to rehome a dog.
An interesting breed but not one I would have again tbh.
HTH

Well we have met the dog. He appears very friendly and not at all nervous. Didn't bark once and made a beeline for my DC to lick. Was VERY hyper LOL but very sweet. After a while he calmed down and had a tummy rub.

TY Bella for your opinion, I hadn't thought about being assessed. We have been offered to have him for a few days before committing which I thought was very nice. My DH is coming down on the side of having him as the person offering is a neighbour with kids of her own and has said if we ever had to get rid of him she'd want him back.

I think we need to sleep on it.

we loved ours, but she was full of character. runnign away as soon as the front door was opened, running off in the woods, barking herself silly.
absolutely brilliant with children, would disappear if the dcs became too rowdy and energetic.
they need a firm hand apparently, otherwise they turn into louts.

Mine is a fairly typical JR -

-she is a bossy boots

-she decides when she wants fuss - don't think because she's sitting on your lap she wants to be touched in any way she is up there for her benefit and you should be grateful she has chosen your lap to sit on

-she thinks she's a big dog and is equal to any other dog - she's doesn't start any fights but will have a go back if a dog starts on her and she'll give a growl if she's got a stick or a ball and another dog walks past it

-she will go for little animals - pets or wild and will chase any ball being thrown - hers or not

-not massively food orientated so needs a different incentive if training

-not very yappy but will bark if the door goes or she hears a car she knows pull up

-good with the kids and will give a good warning (grumbling) when wanting to be left alone and although can snap is very predictable in her nature actually - ie, we know what makes her bad tempered and she is very vocal when getting bad tempered.

-dp says she will never make old bones as she's always quivering and listening and running around. A very busy dog but if walked regularly and kept mentally stimulated (off lead walks with loads of sniffs, especially smells of rabbits or burrows to explore - always got her head down a hole! or her ball to chase) she will flake out of an evening and actually is always the last one up in the morning! My mum sometimes drives past on her way to take her dogs to the beach and will call in for mine; it's sometimes been about 9.30am and she's still in her bed fast asleep even though all the household people are up!

Her brother though is the complete opposite and has not got a 'Jack Russell' personality at all - lives with chickens, ducks, cats and doesn't chase them all the time, doesn't bark, totally laid back. So you never know what you're gonna get! Go for it, i say!

I say go for it!

Our JR is 5 now, we've got 2 DC's aged 3 and 18 months.

The dog is a joy and always has been, I'd agree with LaaDeDa on lots of points -

not motivated by food,

always quivering and sniffing around,

ours isn;t yappy and has barked about 6 times in her life!

Will stand up for herself with MUCH bigger dogs, but never starts a fight.

We've got a big garden and she tires herself out running up and down chasing the squirrels, she loves a walk and we take her everyday, but she's a real lazy soul around the house and is always curled up on a cushion in the corner of the sofa!

She'll chase any small animal and we can't let her off the lead because of it.

She's never snapped at the kids, although they are very good with her. She is getting a bit fat due to the amount of food the kids 'accidentally' feed her!

Would agree with SlartyBartFast that they need a firm hand - she likes to know her place and can be 'rude', jumping up, snaffling food off plates, trying to push people off the sofa etc. if we're not very firm with her!

She's got a crate that the dc are not allowed to touch, so she sometimes escapes to that if it all gets a bit much.

I LOVE JR's and would def have another.

Oh, our was mad hyper (used to do the 'wall of death' around the living room when someone came to visit!) Until she was about 3.5.

LOL Shortshafe's wall of death. That sounds typical. I think a crate may be the way to go if we take him. Because he's been passed around a bit I don't want to do it unless it's 100%. I think we'll take him for a walk tomorrow and see how we get on. My dc has been chanting "Puppy, puppy puppy" since he left. Who knows we may start the new year with a dog!

Speaking of new year, Happy new year to you all!

Haha @ the 'wall of death'!!
I know exactly what you mean! Sometimes if we've been stuck in all day and she's got a lot of pent up energy we can get her to do it by playing with her and then going 'Reeeeeady? Steeeeeeeeeady? GO!' and she goes mad and loops round and round with a big smile on her face! Good times!

Ours is 5 too and everyone still thinks she's a pup.

I had lots of dogs growing up but the absolute BEST dog ever was our Jack. He was the most entertaining, clever, funny little soul. Very aggressive with other dogs (always had to be vigilant when out as he WOULD spot another dog a mile away and go haring off to attack it) and always a barker when people came to the door but packed it in after a minute or so. We had a cat whom he ignored and lots of guinea pigs that lived "wild" in the garden during summer - he would stand guard chasing off any cats that dared approach and then herd them back into their hutch when Mum gave the whistle! I remenber him being slightly standoffish when we were younger but by the time I was 9 we were best friends. He was lovely and I'd lock to get another Jack in the future.

"but the owners were unable to deal with it"

In what way?

have lol'ed reading these. we have a 1yo Jack/westie x and he is very, very hyper and prone to bouts of naughtiness. it was a bit of a shock when we got him, before we'd have a collie and a lab who were both v docile and a bit lazy, suddenly we get this bundle of fluff who will go nuts at the phone ringing and will keep barking at rottweilers (provided ive picked him up) in a comic "lemme at him" manner.

TY for all your replies. DIfferentnameforthis, unable to deal with it as in they wanted a quiet little lap dog and most jacks aren't. He's a bouncy lil thing! Anyway, after sleeping on it, we decided the time is not yet right for us to get a dog so we had to say no.

I think in a couple of years we would be in a better position, and would consider a jack russell, but for now must remain puppyless much to DH's unhappiness.

i think with a two year old, a rescue dog is probably not a good idea(regardless of breed) - most rescue centres wont home dogs with people with young families.

I have worked with lots of jack russels as a vet nurse, and would often think, eh up, theres my fingers again - they can be snappy and quick, hyperactive, difficult to train - nay, impossible to train. I hated JRs before i worked as a vet nurse, but grew to love them.

I have a border terrier x JR and he is a star, he tolerates more than he should from DD and is happy to not go out, or walk for miles. He is the sweetest little dog ever. We had him from a puppy and i socialised him from a young age, made sure he was used to children. He is getting a bit shitty with other dogs so his balls might have to come off. I am a sucker for a JR now, but I wouldnt even consider a rescue until DD much older. Been bitten by too many of the little feckers!