A question for the dog owners?

Question

My Jack Russel Terrier is a real pain. She eats anything she can get her paws on. We leave the kitchen for one second and she is up on the table eating our food. When we realize she is on the table we come in and yell at her to get down but she just stares at us and keeps eating untill we come over and pull her away. We have tried yelling at her, squirting water at her with a spray bottle, but nothing works. On easter she ate about 2 pounds of chocolate when she escaped her kennel. She has gotten so fat that her tummy bulges.

I have considered hitting her when she does this but i am afraid that i could really hurt her and i don't want to do that. Is there any other way?

Also, she eats our socks if no food is lying around.

Michael, would that work with you?

I think my question was more along the lines of how to get her to stop eating as much, not how to get rid of her.

Anonymous, if i wanted to abuse my dog i would just hit her and that would be cheaper. I want an alternative to violence.

Texas angle, that is a great idea, but what if the mousetraps broke a bone in her foot? I would never be able to forgive myself.

Nochocolate:

actually when she first started stealing food and socks we though we were underfeeding her so we actually feed her more then the dog food container suggested.

Answer 1

There are many ways to train a dog not to do things without expensive training classes. Rather than just squirting the dog with water, try mixing in a mild irritant with the water - I find that vinegar usually works best. Depending on how large your squirt bottle is, fill it with about a half-inch of a mild vinegar (white vinegar, perhaps), and then fill the rest with water - shake well and use this. Be sure to only use it when the dog is doing something you really don't want them to do. Don't use this bottle for every single "bad" thing they do, because you'll run the risk of getting them used to the bad taste. Also, be sure to consistently refer to the bottle with a name - we called it the "No-No Bottle," and our dogs did learn to associate not only the bottle but our tone of voice before using the bottle as a deterrent. If used effectively, eventually your dog will cease "bad" behavior at the mere sight of the bottle.

Another method you could try as far as keeping the dog off of tables is to remove all method of getting on the top of the table. Move chairs far enough away or turn them around so that the dog can't use them as a "stepping stone" to get to the tabletop. If your table is low enough that the dog can jump from floor to tabletop, you may want to consider either getting a taller table. I would suggest buying gates to block the dog's access to your dining room, but if your dog can jump from the floor to the tabletop, those won't do you much good. :-)

Hitting your dog is okay when done correctly. If you are rearing back and slapping your dog with all your might, then you're doing it very wrong. The suggested force to use would be about the force you might use when mildly clapping your hands at a concert - imagine you were only somewhat impressed with the song you're clapping for, rather than if you were "wowed" by the song and are clapping vigorously. Any more than moderate force is too much. Some might disagree, but this method (again, when applied correctly) does work.

If all else fails (as far as behavior), you may have to consider training classes. Talk to your veterinarian about any training centers in your area he/she recommends. As far as keeping your dog away from things you don't want them to touch, make sure you're putting these things in cabinets or other areas the dog can't get into.

As for her weight...consider changing her diet. Do you feed her canned (wet) dog food? Do you feed her table scraps? If so, these things are good to begin eliminating. Also, take your dog out for a walk every day, or provide them with some form of exercise (even if it requires your participation). Your veterinarian is the best person to consult for your dog's individual needs.

Hope all this helps!

Answer 2

I have a table jumper too. I'm not sure if obedience training would help at this stage. You could try but otherwise, I'd try to remember not to leave food on the table unattended. If you have to leave the room, move your plate to the counter or somewhere she can't reach. She obviously gets rewarded (with food and attention!) when she jumps up there. If you catch her again, just gently push her down and don't make a big deal of it, don't even look at her for about 5 minutes. Dogs like attention of any kind and yelling gives her attention and does no good.

Crating the dog when you eat could be a solution, if she's already trained. But the crate isn't supposed to be used as a "punishment".

I don't think hitting the dog or shocking her for that matter is the answer. I also tried the squrting and it did nothing but get her all riled up and she ran around the house barking like crazy. Then every time she saw a squirt bottle she would bark at it.

As for the socks, I would, again, remove the temptation. Or make sure she has plenty of other things she can chew on. If you catch her with a sock, simply exchange it for something that she is allowed to chew on.


Good luck.

Answer 3

Have you talked with your vet? There must be a reason for all the eating. And you are very lucky to have her after eating 2 pounds of chocolate. She may have an aggressive tape worm, or some other problem. If not, there was an earlier suggestion of a squirt bottle. That works pretty good. Also, someone suggested pepper. Use cayenne pepper. Dogs really don't like it. Good luck.

Answer 4

Don't yell at her. A lot of people do that but it only gets a dog confused or more excited. When she is doing something you don't like give her a stern "No" in a calm and assertive voice along with a firm tap or push on her neck. It doesn't hurt her at all but it will let her know who is in charge.

If she becomes fixated on something you want her to stay away from you should take the same approach. It is better to stop the behavior before it progresses too far.

You should also be taking your dog on daily walks. Jack Russels have a lot of energy and they need to work it off so they won't become frustrated and destructive. When you are walking her make sure she is either walking next to you or behind you. In other words, you should be walking her, not her walking you. Good luck.

EDIT: DO NOT LOCK YOUR DOG in a cage and yell at her like the guy above me said. You are using human psychology in trying to treat a dog. You have to discipline her while she is engaged in the unwanted behavior as dogs live in the moment. Otherwise she will not know what she is being punished for.

As for the Dog Whisperer YES. Check out his book or his show. http://www.amazon.com/Cesars-Way-Everyday-Understanding-Correcting/dp/0307337979/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-4179745-9651165?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1186772183&sr=8-1

Answer 5

Has she had a vet look at her? Maybe test her for diabetes? How much do you feed her? Is she getting enough dog food? And try a good dog food like canidae. If there is nothing physically wrong with her and she's getting good dog food then you need a trainer.

The reason people are giving thumbs down for suggesting you put her in a crate when she is bad is because crate training is not supposed to be a punishment. Although I have wanted to put my dog in there for time out or just to calm her down but evidently it's not so good because then they don't want to go into the crate at all.

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Answer 6

If a very stern "NO" in her face does not seem to work, a little tap on her bottom won't hurt her. Not a hard slap or anything mean. Jack Russel's are made of stone. They're pure muscle, so it won't hurt her, but it will startle her. My dog is Little Miss sneaky herself and loves to chew anything she can get her mouth on. I just get her lots of chew toys and bully sticks. Bully sticks work wonders for her. They keep her occupied forever. You may want to try those for her chewing.
Obedience school is not a bad idea either. But if time wise or money wise that is not really an option, you can try getting the Cesar Millan book called "Cesar's Way" he's the dog whisperer. He works wonders.

Hope that helps a little :)

Answer 7

wow.... what you have here is a classic case of your not my boss!!!if she doesn't immediately respond when you tell her to and keeps eating off the table and looking at you then she doesn't think your the alpha. you need to establish dominance. i dont think training would help unless your trainer made a feast and had lots of socks laying around. you cant teach a dog to do something if they dont see or do it when you correct them. plus she will just end up listening to the trainer going home and still think she is above you. i recommend you read up on ways you can establish your alpha leader role with her, cesar milan has a great book that will teach you everything you know or you could research online. crate training her and keeping the socks picked it would help also but only until she got bored enough to find something else to eat . i have used the "prong" collar to help me establish dominance with very BAD foster before and after very few corrections she saw that i meant bussiness and was the one who made the rules. the prong collar costs about 10$ at petsmart and doesnt hurt your dog unlike the shock ones that hurt and scare them. i would buy 1 training session so they can train YOU how to use the collar the right way then you train your dog not to do those things. the collar has an optional handle $5 that will attach to it giving you an easy way to correct her for what she does wrong. it has worked wonders for us ,..

Answer 8

I have a Jack Russell Terrier also. Luckily, he's pretty tame.

Kennel training is an effective way to train a dog. I did have a problem where my dog, Ren, would bark too much at anything. One of my neighbors even complained to animal control about him. So what I did was buy a kennel and placed it in a room...not his normal area (ie: where he sleeps, eats, or plays). Somewhere solitary. When he barked, I told him, "No! Bad Dog!" Then he went in the kennel for 15mins. Jack Russells are smart dogs...my dog learned quick. I had him trained in just a few days. The "no bark" collars did not work for him.

Answer 9

My husbands brittany spaniel which is much larger then your little dog developed the same habit. She'd put her paws on the counters, stove, table and snatch food off it. She even did it to my 14 month old sons highchair when I put food on his tray and went to get him to eat dinner. Simple solution because squirting her, yelling and moving her didnt work. I went and bought mouse traps and my husband fixed them so they snapped at the slighest touch. I placed them near food and everywhere I knew she jumped. It took ONE snap and it cured her. She no longer jumps and she had been jumpin for months before I thought of this. The trap did not hurt her it was just the sound but I kept the traps set up everytime she was in the kitchen for a while. Give it a try bought 4 of them for under 2 dollars at walmart. Put them on the chairs your dog uses to jump onto the table put them on the table and so forth.

As for your clothing if its teething ofcourse its going to chew whatever it can get its mouth on. buy it chew toys and keep your clothing out of its reach either in the drawers they belong or in the close hamper so he cant get them

I just read your edit it wont break a bone in her foot I promise you she sniffs and looks prior to jumping. I just gave a suggestion that worked for my dog, my friends cat, and a friends toy poodle(they all tried this after I did) that kept jumping on the living room table. You could always shell out some major bucks and take her to a trainer.

Answer 10

Please don't hit her! I know it's frustrating for you when she acts up, but hitting is definately not the answer, nor would it really work in the long-term. I don't know if books are your thing, but "The Loved Dog" by Tamar Geller is really good, she does all her training with treats and love (hence the name, lol). And also, if you can get stuff by the Dog Whisperer - don't know if he has a book but maybe you could try looking him up. I hope you find something that works... Wish you luck!