Originally Posted by Britster  I have a 50ft lead for Jackson because we live on 3 acres, however tieing a dog to a 30ft leash every day isn't what I'd call 'exercise' by any means. He used to be off leash more but I don't trust him as much anymore since he darted off a few times. They're terriers, and they're KNOWN to be much harder to train off leash, though of course it CAN be done. Recall is something that must be worked on every single day if you want a reliable recall and even so, a terrier was bred to hunt mice and rats, so yes, they're going to be more interested in 'hunting' or chasing. The key is making yourself more interesting. You've got to find his currency, or his form of money. You say he likes cheese, you could use that. Or find something else he loves, it does not have to be a treat. A favorite toy, or anything can be used.
In the meantime, practice! A few times a week, I put Jackson on his 50ft lead, and let him wander and sniff and play, etc, and then I get something like chicken or cheese and get him to come to me. I use the word 'here' but the key is not to actually SAY the word until he's physically coming to you. I see people saying "come! come! come!" over and over again and it just becomes another word that the dog hears all the time and means absolutely nothing. Dogs don't speak English, so they must be taught. Also, if you could find a local dog park, or any fenced in type field (often times high school football fields, tennis courts, etc are fenced) and let him just RUN and get his energy out. I don't think Jackson would ever be able to survive on just his 30 ft leash every day.
To me, he just sounds like a dog who has a lot of pent up energy, a lack of training, and is anxious, fearful and nervous. And there's lots of things you can do to improve that, as I've listed above in my posts. |