Djeta Thernadier
First Post
Hi all,
Lets see if I can answer some of the questions...
First and foremost, giving him away is not an option. We researched Jacks before we got him, and we knew what we were getting into. We can handle him, and even if he NEVER stops his chewing and stealing of our stuff, remember, I'm WAY emphasizing the bad here. The good far outweighs the bad.
Yes, he was neutered at about 5.5 months. And yes, he still LOVES going to see his vet.
Crate/ Kennel trained. He is Crate trained. He hates , I repeat HATES being in his crate. He has to stay in the crate during the day when we are at work, and when we are eating. Because he destroys blankets, he has to sleep in it at night, instead of with us. (we had him sleeping with us for a while, but his chewing of blankets just got worse and worse). He knows not to go to the bathroom in his crate.
It took him a while (partly because of physical development) to stop urinating in his crate during the day (we're gone from 6:30 am to 6 pm during the day). However, he learned VERY quickly, through positive reinforcement, that when he is out of the crate, puppy pads or outside was the proper place to go. Puppy pads are probably going to be a lifetime thing for him (at least until we move, currently we live on the third floor with no safe direct access to the backyard), although he understands that outside is also where to go. He has not had an accident in many months, and even then, only when he was sick (I know, he has to be yelled at when he messes up even if he's sick, so he learns that it's still bad).
He learned where he's supposed to go to the bathroom in probably a week , maybe two. He also picks up "tricks" like sit, raising his paw for a bisquit, lie down, etc. very fast (week or two).
When we get home, he obviously has a lot of pent up energy to burn. We let him out of the crate and he usually runs around the apartment like a spaz until he calms down a bit. Then we feed him. He does not like eating (unless he has nothing better to do, or he's very hungry) and is distracted from eating easily. The he has to go back in his crate while we eat because try as we have, there is just no other way because he will jump up and take our food. We recently got a puppy gate, and may start trying to gate him from where we are eating so he can run around while we eat. When we're done he comes back out until we go to bed (pretty late).
We have a pretty small apartment (something eventually will change), but actually the way it's set up, he has a long hallway he can run back and forth and we don't have a lot of stuff in his way. We also have a yard, but had a very scary discovery, that a piece of fence was missing and he could slip out. We are planning to fix that up as soon as the snow clears so he can spend more time in the yard (we're even buying him a "jungle gym" like they have at his kennel that he loves). Right now, he does go in the yard sometimes, but he can't go outside alone and during the freezing cold, I worry about him (and us) being oustide for prolonged amounts of time.
I know I'll take some flack for this, but he does not get outside enough now. I know that and I suspect that is a HUGE part of the problem. This doesn't mean he doesn't get outside at all, he does and not that infrequently. But it's not every day. During the spring/summer/fall it will be every day. And next winter, when the yard is safe, it will be every day in the winter as well.
He was bought from a breeder when he was 2.5 months old. For the first month we had him, he had pneumonia and was very, very sick. We had to force feed him whatever he would take (our vet told us to give him deli meats if he wouldn't eat dog food...I suspect this may be why he is a finicky eater).
As for the suggestion about having a parakeet...I don't know...we had a "foster" cat for 2 days and the cat nearly beat the daylights out of Monty. He got scratched up terribly and we had to seperate them. Monty was also bitten on the nose by a pet rat when he was little and he is now afraid of many small animals if they get too close. He usually ignores birds, he is afraid of rabbits and most other dogs seem annoyed by him (he did recently make a "friend" at a pet supply store , and we are going to be setting up play dates with that dogs "parents" soon.)
The one thing he is not short on is affection. He is constantly being hugged, kissed, held etc. It's very odd, because he is quite submissivee
in this manner. He LOVES to be on our laps. Like if we're sitting down to watch tv and he has all his toys out, he will bring a toy up, curl up on our laps and is just content to sit there. Likewise, if I'm typing at my computer, he will jump up on my lap. It seems like no matter what I am doing, Monty prefers to be sitting on my (or anyone else's) lap.
He is not aggressive towards people. Just very, very stubborn. I know this is an endearing (and somewhat annoying) trait about Jacks.
I know a part of the problem is he doesn't get outside enough, but that will be changing within the next few weeks. We also want to look into clicker training (heard pretty nasty things about some local trainers...we live in Methuen MA, so if anyone can recommend a good one...) and doggie day care with a group of dogs while we are at work. Doggie Day care will not take him until he can demonstrate that he can come when he is called (He knows his name, we trained him with treats...but he refuses to come when called, even for a food reward) and that he understands NO!.
We've tried (mostly) the technique of yelling NO! in a loud voice when he has something he should not. And then giving him one of his toys and a treat when he drops it and praising him, but he does not respond to this at all.
I do not like any sort of training that involves pain. The only thing I would consider would be a nasty tasting substance (like bitter spray, which he seems to think is delicious anyway). But if there was any physical pain involved, I would not do it. Beating a dog (or anyone) into submission almost always has disasterous results, and I just could not bring myself to inflict pain upon him (ie. electronic shock collars...yikes). I would much prefer to go the route of positive reinforcement.
I also want to start him in serious obedience training. Three times a week is out of the question for financial and time reasons. Because of our work hours, we need to find a training class on the weekends (which is proving very , very hard). I personally find it hard to believe that any family with any breed of dog has three spare days a week to blow off work to go to dog training. I have heard a lot of people say these training classes are a waste of money because it only trains your dog to obey the trainer (even the ones that have the owner present). A friend lent us some training videos and I think I have read every dog obedience book there is. I am hoping that until we can find a professional who is available Saturday/Sunday that consistent training at home with us will work.
Lets see if I can answer some of the questions...
First and foremost, giving him away is not an option. We researched Jacks before we got him, and we knew what we were getting into. We can handle him, and even if he NEVER stops his chewing and stealing of our stuff, remember, I'm WAY emphasizing the bad here. The good far outweighs the bad.
Yes, he was neutered at about 5.5 months. And yes, he still LOVES going to see his vet.
Crate/ Kennel trained. He is Crate trained. He hates , I repeat HATES being in his crate. He has to stay in the crate during the day when we are at work, and when we are eating. Because he destroys blankets, he has to sleep in it at night, instead of with us. (we had him sleeping with us for a while, but his chewing of blankets just got worse and worse). He knows not to go to the bathroom in his crate.
It took him a while (partly because of physical development) to stop urinating in his crate during the day (we're gone from 6:30 am to 6 pm during the day). However, he learned VERY quickly, through positive reinforcement, that when he is out of the crate, puppy pads or outside was the proper place to go. Puppy pads are probably going to be a lifetime thing for him (at least until we move, currently we live on the third floor with no safe direct access to the backyard), although he understands that outside is also where to go. He has not had an accident in many months, and even then, only when he was sick (I know, he has to be yelled at when he messes up even if he's sick, so he learns that it's still bad).
He learned where he's supposed to go to the bathroom in probably a week , maybe two. He also picks up "tricks" like sit, raising his paw for a bisquit, lie down, etc. very fast (week or two).
When we get home, he obviously has a lot of pent up energy to burn. We let him out of the crate and he usually runs around the apartment like a spaz until he calms down a bit. Then we feed him. He does not like eating (unless he has nothing better to do, or he's very hungry) and is distracted from eating easily. The he has to go back in his crate while we eat because try as we have, there is just no other way because he will jump up and take our food. We recently got a puppy gate, and may start trying to gate him from where we are eating so he can run around while we eat. When we're done he comes back out until we go to bed (pretty late).
We have a pretty small apartment (something eventually will change), but actually the way it's set up, he has a long hallway he can run back and forth and we don't have a lot of stuff in his way. We also have a yard, but had a very scary discovery, that a piece of fence was missing and he could slip out. We are planning to fix that up as soon as the snow clears so he can spend more time in the yard (we're even buying him a "jungle gym" like they have at his kennel that he loves). Right now, he does go in the yard sometimes, but he can't go outside alone and during the freezing cold, I worry about him (and us) being oustide for prolonged amounts of time.
I know I'll take some flack for this, but he does not get outside enough now. I know that and I suspect that is a HUGE part of the problem. This doesn't mean he doesn't get outside at all, he does and not that infrequently. But it's not every day. During the spring/summer/fall it will be every day. And next winter, when the yard is safe, it will be every day in the winter as well.
He was bought from a breeder when he was 2.5 months old. For the first month we had him, he had pneumonia and was very, very sick. We had to force feed him whatever he would take (our vet told us to give him deli meats if he wouldn't eat dog food...I suspect this may be why he is a finicky eater).
As for the suggestion about having a parakeet...I don't know...we had a "foster" cat for 2 days and the cat nearly beat the daylights out of Monty. He got scratched up terribly and we had to seperate them. Monty was also bitten on the nose by a pet rat when he was little and he is now afraid of many small animals if they get too close. He usually ignores birds, he is afraid of rabbits and most other dogs seem annoyed by him (he did recently make a "friend" at a pet supply store , and we are going to be setting up play dates with that dogs "parents" soon.)
The one thing he is not short on is affection. He is constantly being hugged, kissed, held etc. It's very odd, because he is quite submissivee
in this manner. He LOVES to be on our laps. Like if we're sitting down to watch tv and he has all his toys out, he will bring a toy up, curl up on our laps and is just content to sit there. Likewise, if I'm typing at my computer, he will jump up on my lap. It seems like no matter what I am doing, Monty prefers to be sitting on my (or anyone else's) lap.
He is not aggressive towards people. Just very, very stubborn. I know this is an endearing (and somewhat annoying) trait about Jacks.
I know a part of the problem is he doesn't get outside enough, but that will be changing within the next few weeks. We also want to look into clicker training (heard pretty nasty things about some local trainers...we live in Methuen MA, so if anyone can recommend a good one...) and doggie day care with a group of dogs while we are at work. Doggie Day care will not take him until he can demonstrate that he can come when he is called (He knows his name, we trained him with treats...but he refuses to come when called, even for a food reward) and that he understands NO!.
We've tried (mostly) the technique of yelling NO! in a loud voice when he has something he should not. And then giving him one of his toys and a treat when he drops it and praising him, but he does not respond to this at all.
I do not like any sort of training that involves pain. The only thing I would consider would be a nasty tasting substance (like bitter spray, which he seems to think is delicious anyway). But if there was any physical pain involved, I would not do it. Beating a dog (or anyone) into submission almost always has disasterous results, and I just could not bring myself to inflict pain upon him (ie. electronic shock collars...yikes). I would much prefer to go the route of positive reinforcement.
I also want to start him in serious obedience training. Three times a week is out of the question for financial and time reasons. Because of our work hours, we need to find a training class on the weekends (which is proving very , very hard). I personally find it hard to believe that any family with any breed of dog has three spare days a week to blow off work to go to dog training. I have heard a lot of people say these training classes are a waste of money because it only trains your dog to obey the trainer (even the ones that have the owner present). A friend lent us some training videos and I think I have read every dog obedience book there is. I am hoping that until we can find a professional who is available Saturday/Sunday that consistent training at home with us will work.
