Barking problems

[somewhereintheworld]

My dog, a Plummer terrier (think Jack Russell on steroids!) barks at everything. The worst is when we're out and she'll bark at car engines, doors slamming, lawn mowers, strimmers, basically anything that makes a noise. Recently, she's taken to barking at us when we let her off the lead.She also pulls on the lead and has an extremely high prey drive and will take other dogs' balls and kids' footballs if she gets the chance. So she's a total nightmare to take for a walk. I paid £400 last year for a behaviourist, but her rules were so strict we couldn't keep them up. At home she's the most lovely dog and will snuggle up in the evenings when we're watching TV. Has anyone ever had a dog like this and if so how did you overcome the problems, if you did. My DH gets very upset when she plays up and says he wants to rehome her, but we never would.

Take a look on the dogs trust website. There is a number to get free help from a behaviourist. Maybe they can suggest something that will work for you and your doggo.

My husband thought our dog needed to be rehomed but they told me to try 'find it'
While we are walking I throw down a few bits of kibble and say 'find it' my dog is so busy sniffing about that he doesn't notice the triggers.
He did start to get bored of it so in every other round, I include a small piece of cheese or chicken for him to find.

I think it's all about distraction for my dog.
Hope this helps x

How old is she? And how long have you had her?
If she barks when she's let off and steals other pets toys, don't let her off. If you're chasing her around trying to get balls off her she'll think this is a good game.
For the pulling you could try a Halty. I first used one for a very strong staffy cross we had a few years ago, but make sure it fits properly.
Our current dog is a very large lurcher (greyhound bull terrier cross) he used to pull but I did the stop/start approach with him. Basically if she pulls you stop walking, pull the lead gently til she comes back to nearish your side and then start walking again. It's a pain in the bum for a few days/weeks but it works. He doesn't pull now unless he sees a cat etc.
It's all boring stuff but they need to be shown that the bad behaviour doesn't give them what they want.

You have a very high energy, working terrier breed.

What do you do to channel her working drive and give her an outlet? I'm not talking chasing balls or hours of walks - what do you do to stimulate her brain and replicate what she would be doing in a working environment?

It sounds as if she's frustrated: you need to find ways to focus her drive and tire her out mentally. Scentwork or something similar might help.

I'm so sorry you are having to live with this sh*beast . things won't improve , you should pass on the problem to some other poor mug probably