Jackschund

[Luckydip1]

I have been offered a JRT/Daschund mix and wondered if anyone has one and if they make a good family dog?

I've got one. He's a rescue (came to me aged 1) and I have no evidence of abuse, other than a vibrating anti bark collar, but it's fairly clear his needs weren't always met. He's been with me 5 years now.

As he's a rescue (and because he's an individual) I cannot fully separate out what's part of him as a breed and what's a result of his early experiences.

In terms of him being a family dog - I could see him living successfully with older dog savvy children who knew when to leave him alone, and parents whose first response to hearing the dog has snapped is to ask the child what they were doing to make the dog feel the need to snap old school dog ownership like I grew up with.

Dachshunds are inherently a bit nervous and barky. Jack Russells are inherently a bit snappy and barky. Both are opinionated and don't suffer fools gladly. The result - in mine at least - is a dog that gets worried about things easily, and won't hesitate to bark / snarl / snap to make the worrying thing go away (though thankfully he's learned some de-escalation techniques with other dogs over time). He's reactive towards some odd triggers. Taking him to a pub or café and sitting down is beyond what he can manage (nipping in for a takeaway latte is fine though).

They have plenty of stamina, and in the early years I'd walk him for 2-3 hours per day, mostly off lead, and if I didn't get at least 2 hours in I'd live to regret it. Nowadays we can get away with much less but he'll still go all day if you let him.

As is common with Dachshunds, he's aloof with strangers and has a small social circle of humans - basically me, DP, DF, and his dog walker. He quite likes other dogs though.

Would he be an easy family dog who slots in anywhere? Absolutely not. If you had had dogs as a family before, understood (or were willing to go on a crash course in) training and behaviour, the kids were dog savvy, you were relaxed about a dog that will snap on occasion, but you wanted a dog with stamina, personality, intelligence and opinions by the bucketload then you'd be in about the right place.

Ps how old is the dog you've been offered and what's the history on the dog?

What's your family set up like?

I don't know own one but I've walked both breeds and it honestly doesn't like a sensible mix to me.

Dachshunds and Jack Russells are both feisty little dogs with a tendency to growl and snap. Both are intelligent working breeds that need a lot of exercise and stimulation despite their small size. I mean, dachshunds might be small but they were bred to flush badgers. JRT's were bred to hunt and kill rats.

How old is the dog you're being offered? If it's a puppy, why on earth has someone bred this particular mix? If an older dog, why are they rehoming it?

It's a three year old, I get the impression the owner isn't able to exercise it enough. I have two children aged 9 and 6. They sound like quite a handful.

Honestly, I wouldn't take on an under-exercised dog with a 6yo in the house.

Jack Russells need a decent amount of exercise everyday (ideally a couple of hours) but dachshunds have joint and back issues so you may end up taking on a dog who needs loads of exercise but can't physically have it, which is a recipe for disaster behaviour-wise.

I don't honestly think this is the right fit for your family.

Dachshunds are inherently a bit nervous and barky. Jack Russells are inherently a bit snappy and barky. Both are opinionated and don't suffer fools gladly.

This.^ I have a JRT and he's far more complicated than the dogs I've had previously. He's lovely natured, which isn't all that common in the breed, but if I ever have to rehome him it would be to another home without children. In general dogs who are small tend to feel threatened by children because children aren't as predictable and boundaried as adults, and they don't read the dog anywhere near as well. Bites, including nasty ones to the face, can and do happen if a small dog feels they have to act defensively. There's a thread on here at the moment about a JRT who bit a child he had previously been fine with.

The Daschunds I know ... well frankly I can't see the appeal. They can and do escape out of anywhere, the ones I know aren't exactly loyal, (they like a cuddle on their terms but recall is non-existent), they bark SO much that it's beyond a pain in the arse, and they're worried by children even more than the JRTs.

Both are hunting breeds and would much rather take themselves off on a hunt rather than enjoy a nice family walk at a leisurely pace.

I also agree with the poster who questions why on earth somebody would deliberately breed that combination!

The dog is already underexercised. When would you make the extra two hours a day every single day to walk it?

That's going to be one stroppy mix. Great if you like stroppy dogs (I loved our JRT) but I'd be cautious taking on a rescue if you have young DC, especially one from two breeds known for taking no shit from anyone.

It sounds like this wouldn't be a good idea, hopefully a suitable new home will be found.

I've always had at least one JRT of sorts. They are fabulous little dogs. As long as you can establish training, mental and physical exercise then he should be fine. Have him on a trial for a couple of weeks first and see how you go before you commit. Obviously don't leave him alone with the children, and make sure the children are trained on how to be around the dog.

I have one, she was a puppy farm rescue so came to us at weeks old. She is ball obsessed and stubborn. Toilet training was a nightmare. She is reactive to the door (bell and knocking) and visitors but calms down after a few minutes.

That said, she is incredibly loving and loyal, has fabulous recall and, once she's been tired out running for the ball at any given opportunity, a lazy lil sod who loves to curl up with us on the sofa.

She lives with 2 adults and 2 cats and just wants us all to love her/play with her.

She is great with our visiting nieces but as I say, she's been here her whole life- I can't say she'd have been so great had she been elsewhere beforehand.

@MaybeThisIsntForYou you've pretty much exactly described my JRT (although she's quite long. I known both parents and a few generations back but we suspect there might be some sausage somewhere in the mums side somewhere) who I've had since 8 weeks old so I'm not sure how much of that is the fact your dog is a rescue. Only thing different is she's perfectly happy with a lazy day or 2 - especially if it's raining.

OP having that dog from very young or a puppy might work because they will see your dc as part of the family but I'd be cautious about an adult dog. I said on another post this morning, these dogs are very loyal and mine is amazing with my DC. They are her family. I don't let any other dc approach or stroke her though not that she'd let them either and that goes for adults too. She likes our household. My parents who she goes to when I work and tolerates a certain friend and her son who we spent a lot of time with holidays in the early days. That's it, that's her circle.

it honestly doesn't like a sensible mix to me.

Honestly, as someone who owns one... wtf were they thinking when they put those two together?

Mine is frequently a knob, but at least he's my knob <3

It's no less sensible than either breed their own tbh. They have incredibly similar traits.😆

I had a JR x rough haired dachshund for years. She was ginger with pricked up ears, looked like a corgi.

We got her when she was 9 months and was a lovely dog. She wouldn't get up until midday and only barked at really unusual things/strange noises so was a quiet and quite lazy dog. We had no problems with her whatsoever so I'm a bit bemused by these responses.

She was a bit ball obsessed when we first had her as the previous owners were old and used to throw balls for her rather than take her out for walks. We took it away from her and broke her obsession, and no problem after that. She loved swimming and always came back when called/whistled without exception.

The best dog I ever had. Unfortunately she developed epilepsy when about 6 years old but it was managed with meds.