sensitive jack russell ??

Question

My wife and I are lucky enough to have a wonderfully behaved and clever JRT pup (10 months). We have had very few incidents of destruction / chewing and virtualy have no concerns over leaving her free in the house while we are out. The problem is that she seems to be quite submissive and if I ever do have to be firm with her she seems to be devestated and will become incredibly timid and stressed for quite some time (hours to days). When I say firm I mean raising my voice and a firm look. (no hitting or grabbing at all!). We never have had reason to hit our rough house our pup but surely need to be firm with her when she does misbehave. Anytips for toughening her up? Between these bouts of self pity she seems to be a very happy and content puppy... Any advice appreciated... I thought JRTs were meant to have a bit more spunk...!!!

Answer 1

A good portion of every dog's temperament is inherited. You know how your puppy was raised, you know she wasn't abused, so her temperament is in large part genetic. What were her parents' temperaments, particularly her mother's like?

To help her overcome her timid behaviour, try some obedience. When dogs succeed, they gain confidence, and more confidence is what she needs. Classes or by yourself is your choice, make lessons short and fun, use lots of praise, and you should see a more confident dog.

Answer 2

well, part of the problem COULD be how you react to her self pity.
IF you are firm and she acts extremely submissive, do you then try to reassure her? Do you go out of your way to try to make her feel better after a bit? If so, you're actually reinforcing her submissive behavior. She forgets the correction , but thinks "wow! they're really nice to me when i act all submissive"

if you need to correct the dog, do it. You're obviously not abusing or scaring her. Then go on as if nothing happened. Invite her to play or something. GO about your routines. DOn't try to make her feel better. Try to make her feel like everything is normal.

Answer 3

Every dog is different. Yes, their breed character is more of a tuffy... but that's apparently not her. There is no way to toughen her up, but YOU can adjust your responses to her misbehavior.
First, why set yourself up for failure? Leave her in a crate while your gone. That will remove the possibility of damage in the house... and then all three of you can be joyful upon your return!
And 2nd, firm may not be as firm as you think it needs to be. Back off on the little girl. If a simple "You were naughty.", gets the point accross, why push it.
Now go give her a hug and toss the ball.

Answer 4

Obedience training. Your dog is an omega but should not be displaying the behavior that you describe. Obedience training will give this dog confidence and help it to understand its place in the pack. So many problems can be corrected and avoided with just some obedience training. It is more for the dog owner than the dog. It will teach you about dog behavior and give you the tools and teach you how to teach your dog.

Answer 5

I would try enrolling her in clicker training. It is a positive reinforcement training method that really helps submissive dogs feel more confident. I have a Shih-Tzu that is very very submissive with men. My husband and my puppy took clicker classes. Now, when my pup is starting to get upset about a correction or stern look, he (my puppy) starts going through his entire routine of tricks to try to please my husband. It makes the dogs feel like they have some way to change your mood when you're upset with them. The end result is that when you start to look upset or sound upset, they not only stop the behavior you are correcting, but also offer you a trick to please you. This stopped my Shih-Tzu from submissively peeing whenever my husband corrected him. Plus, your puppy will have fun learning tricks. Good luck!