NinjaSmurf
Devils Advocate
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I recently moved in with my dad and to my horror discovered he owns a JRT. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there that are fans of this particular breed, but I am not one of them. My brother's dad had one of these once, and while she was mostly well behaved she could be very... single-minded? I know they were bred for this, but three days straight in a groundhog hole with no food or water?
My problem is, this one, whose name is Bubba, is the most spoiled rotten, independent, jealous, screw-you dog I've ever come across. He has admittedly come a long way since I first moved in in March, such as he doesn't jump up on kitchen table as much, usually doesn't go in the house at night, doesn't bark non-stop till you feed him something you're eating, doesn't bite me as much, will sit and stay, for me at least, when I mow instead of barking and attacking the lawnmower the entire time and doesn't try to eat what you set on the coffee table as soon as your back is turned.
He still however does try to nose his way into every meal by hanging around the table or putting his paws up on my dad's leg begging unless I park him in the living room and make him stay.
And that comes to my biggest problem, which is not the dog, but my dad. I can get Bubba to do just about everything when I'm home alone, but as soon as my dad walks in the door it's all out the window. My dad spoils the dog, he knows he spoils the dog, he admits the dog has him wrapped around his front paw, but he doesn't do much to fix the problem. His ex used to be home alone all day with Bubba and she let him get away with EVERYTHING, and somehow this is not his fault. They didn't put a stop to Bubba dominating the cat that was their before him (and who now sleeps with me till Bubba worms his way into bed when my dad gets up for work). I've been working on that situation and I think having my non-declawed cat around is helping because Bubba's realizing cats may have sharp things attached. To top everything off Bubba was from a puppymill and has seperation anxiety to the point where he barks non-stop when we leave without him, and to top it off often pees and poops on the floor. There is also the jealousy thing, he growls and barks if anybody (and I mean anybody) hugs anybody else in his view, regardless of whether they live there or not, and if I go over to my dad and sit next to him Bubba has to be right there too, kissing up to my dad, who then showers him with attention. He's only recently started yelling at him for growling at me when Bubba thinks I might hog the attention.
I'm basically at my wits end on this, I can't seem to get my dad to realize exactly why I get stressed out when Bubba constantly ignores my orders and hides behind my dad when he doesn't want to do anything and I have to ask my dad not to feed him everytime my dad gets a snack, or lets him run loose instead of tying him out on the run (he seems to think it's mean) like I do (because as you could probably guess the neighbors aren't always happy with Bubba, especially since he drives their dogs nuts, pees in their yard, and once peed on the neighbor when he was gardening) or even just making him sit before he throws the ball. And to top it all of Bubba has started growing at me (almost always when my dad is home) when I tell him to come to me, that is if he doesn't revert to parking himself at my dad's feet and refusing to move. I can even make Bubba run and jump into my dad's lap at night, regardless of whether Bubba is napping or playing, just by calling his name or making a kissy noise in his direction he is that determined to not listen.
So I guess I'm asking, does anyone know any way I can fix these:
1. Getting my dad to back me up instead of shrugging his shoulders and getting defensive?
2. Getting Bubba to not freak out and pee on the floor after we leave?
3. Getting Bubba over the whole jealousy, it's-all-about-me attitude?
4. Any breed specific training tips for the dog? I grew up with a slightly mellow (but she had a lot of issues) terrier mix (not JRT) but compared to Bubba's energy and mentality she seems almost comatose, and some of the things that worked with her aren't working with Bubba.
5. Any way I can not go insane? My dad said we could get another dog but there is no way I'm getting one unless Bubba is trained, I do not want him ruining any new dog we might get, and I don't want my dad ruining it either.
My problem is, this one, whose name is Bubba, is the most spoiled rotten, independent, jealous, screw-you dog I've ever come across. He has admittedly come a long way since I first moved in in March, such as he doesn't jump up on kitchen table as much, usually doesn't go in the house at night, doesn't bark non-stop till you feed him something you're eating, doesn't bite me as much, will sit and stay, for me at least, when I mow instead of barking and attacking the lawnmower the entire time and doesn't try to eat what you set on the coffee table as soon as your back is turned.
He still however does try to nose his way into every meal by hanging around the table or putting his paws up on my dad's leg begging unless I park him in the living room and make him stay.
And that comes to my biggest problem, which is not the dog, but my dad. I can get Bubba to do just about everything when I'm home alone, but as soon as my dad walks in the door it's all out the window. My dad spoils the dog, he knows he spoils the dog, he admits the dog has him wrapped around his front paw, but he doesn't do much to fix the problem. His ex used to be home alone all day with Bubba and she let him get away with EVERYTHING, and somehow this is not his fault. They didn't put a stop to Bubba dominating the cat that was their before him (and who now sleeps with me till Bubba worms his way into bed when my dad gets up for work). I've been working on that situation and I think having my non-declawed cat around is helping because Bubba's realizing cats may have sharp things attached. To top everything off Bubba was from a puppymill and has seperation anxiety to the point where he barks non-stop when we leave without him, and to top it off often pees and poops on the floor. There is also the jealousy thing, he growls and barks if anybody (and I mean anybody) hugs anybody else in his view, regardless of whether they live there or not, and if I go over to my dad and sit next to him Bubba has to be right there too, kissing up to my dad, who then showers him with attention. He's only recently started yelling at him for growling at me when Bubba thinks I might hog the attention.
I'm basically at my wits end on this, I can't seem to get my dad to realize exactly why I get stressed out when Bubba constantly ignores my orders and hides behind my dad when he doesn't want to do anything and I have to ask my dad not to feed him everytime my dad gets a snack, or lets him run loose instead of tying him out on the run (he seems to think it's mean) like I do (because as you could probably guess the neighbors aren't always happy with Bubba, especially since he drives their dogs nuts, pees in their yard, and once peed on the neighbor when he was gardening) or even just making him sit before he throws the ball. And to top it all of Bubba has started growing at me (almost always when my dad is home) when I tell him to come to me, that is if he doesn't revert to parking himself at my dad's feet and refusing to move. I can even make Bubba run and jump into my dad's lap at night, regardless of whether Bubba is napping or playing, just by calling his name or making a kissy noise in his direction he is that determined to not listen.
So I guess I'm asking, does anyone know any way I can fix these:
1. Getting my dad to back me up instead of shrugging his shoulders and getting defensive?
2. Getting Bubba to not freak out and pee on the floor after we leave?
3. Getting Bubba over the whole jealousy, it's-all-about-me attitude?
4. Any breed specific training tips for the dog? I grew up with a slightly mellow (but she had a lot of issues) terrier mix (not JRT) but compared to Bubba's energy and mentality she seems almost comatose, and some of the things that worked with her aren't working with Bubba.
5. Any way I can not go insane? My dad said we could get another dog but there is no way I'm getting one unless Bubba is trained, I do not want him ruining any new dog we might get, and I don't want my dad ruining it either.
Those are some serious not-easy-to-deal-with things you're talking about. Well done for coming as far as you have - but without your dad's full support and commitment to help change things - no further steps on your own to help and rectify this behaviour will make a spec of difference.
