Case Profile: Working Terrier
Hold onto your butts - in this case profile, we discuss the delightful assassins of the dog world - the pocket rockets, the Swiss army knife, the lethal teddy bears. The 10kg workout, the professional nightmares. The Working Terriers.
BREED(S): Jack Russell, Parsons Russell, Border Terrier, Patterdale Terrier, Fox Terrier etc.
Owners most commonly see me for: Prey driven aggression and overstimulation. Generally wanting to chase and kill things.
Most Common symptoms include: Fixated behaviour escalating to intense lunging and biting, towards dogs and other animals. ‘Screaming reactivity’. Other reactivity and aggression without self preservation.
Occasional symptoms include: Territorial barking and lunging. Anxiety and fear.
Case Breakdown: I have to preface this article by saying that more than any other group of dogs, the working terriers are the one that I have warmed up to the most - because for all the ways in which they can be intensely challenging for their owners, and for professional trainers - they almost always have winning personalities that you cannot help but love.
With that being said, they are lethal. Not always - but often. And if they are not lethal, they are still very intense, and more often than not leave their owners absolutely at a loss for how to keep them calm and under control. Of all of the dogs I work with, it is most commonly the terriers which need intensive resocialisation work - so these are not typically easy dogs to take on.
The biggest challenge by far is that working terriers are busy, high energy dogs that are perfectly happy moving ALL DAY - and this is usually at odds with the types of people who buy them under the pretence that being small will make them easy family pets. As a farmer once said to me, if his mother in law knew what that dog had had in its mouth earlier that day when it was sat on her lap licking her face, then it probably wouldnt be allowed in the house. Every terrier I know that exists in psychological balance either lives in a highly active home, or on a farm where it is allowed to roam for miles getting itself into mischief. There is a good argument that many working terriers simply aren’t compatible for low energy modern living - but most people will not be told.
…when you are dealing with a dog that has the equivalent of A Tony Stark Arc Reactor in its chest, the release of energy becomes essential to prevent these dogs from boiling over. Releasing too much energy too quickly, or getting into associations whereby these dogs learn they can direct their energy into other dogs, people or animals - becomes a recipe for disaster very quickly.
Energy Level Matters. Exercise Matters.
When it comes to aggression, there are always three factors - excitement, space and competition. And when you are dealing with a dog that has the equivalent of A Tony Stark Arc Reactor in its chest, the release of energy becomes essential to prevent these dogs from boiling over. Releasing too much energy too quickly, or getting into associations whereby these dogs learn they can direct their energy into other dogs, people or animals - becomes a recipe for disaster very rapidly.
There is a skill in not only ensuring that you are getting rid of enough of your dogs pent up energy, but doing so in the right way to direct it somewhere safe and healthy, and not into bad habits. As a rule, I don’t let my clients with working terriers chase other dogs if they have a history of aggression. The line between excited play and prey drive, which becomes predatory drift and aggression, is so blurred with terriers that it is usually not worth crossing. I could spend this entire article caveating the fact that there are terriers who are perfectly capable of playing nicely - but those dogs don’t come to see me for resocialisation work because they took a bite out of a cockapoo (or my ankles… or my kneecaps).
Give them a ball or let them chase a lure. take them swimming, learn canicross, join an agility club. Or buy a farm and let them help you with your rat population - but keep them calm around other dogs and people.
Learn the long line and use it properly.
When I say long line, I dont mean tie your dog to a 30 metre lead and let it wrap itself around a tree or disappear down a rabbit hole. Long line is an activity - typically done on a 3 or 6 metre lead, and involves you having the ability to guide and direct their energy and attention in a healthy way, whilst letting them get their steps in and not keeping them tight/frustrated on a lead. You will never hear me publicly advocate for an extendable-lead, but there is an immense amount of value in long lining activities to release energy.
You will not resocialise your terrier by giving them food near dogs.
For terriers that have issues with other dogs, it cannot be overstated that throwing food at them to form “positive associations” won’t help. Most terriers I work with do not need help forming positive associations - they have a perfectly positive idea about other dogs and all the ways in which those dogs can help them release their energy. many terriers I know will have the time of their lives chasing after other dogs with aggressive/prey driven intent, and the presence of a little bit of double Gloucester or some of your finest Wensleydale is of absolutely no interest to them, other than to create more excitement.
You will not resocialise your terrier by delivering heavy corrections near dogs either.
It’s also worth saying that a ‘well timed correction’ typically does very little by way of a behavioural resolution. Most terriers I know have absolutely zero self preservation and have absolutely no opinion on someone trying to issue a lead correction - or being shouted at, or all the other ways in which people try to discourage their terriers. Most of them don’t care - because their goal is simply to release energy and direct their prey drive.
Teach your terrier limits. Teach them to be calm and self regulate. And make sure you have a really good alternative for their energy.
There are no quick solutions for a working terrier - long term success is about respecting the whole picture of your dog, their Breed requirements and their need for an outlet. It means having clear communication and strong obedience when it comes to impulse control - as well as a ‘floodgate’ for getting rid of energy effectively on a regular basis. These are prerequisites to getting a working terrier calm and comfortable around other dogs, not optional extras - and provide the foundation for successful interactions.
We Survive Them Too
Working Terriers are the dogs that make you question every life decision that led you to owning one — and then immediately forgive them because of their personality. We work with them regularly, and we won’t pretend it’s always easy. But we know exactly what they need. If you’re local to Yorkshire and the North East, we’d love to chat.
James has helped me with my Patterdale terrier since she was five months’ old (she’s four now), not only with training her but also with helping to understand her behaviour and our relationship as dog and owner. James is calm, professional, friendly and very easy to talk to. He understands dogs and people and how they interactive better than anyone I’ve ever met and provides incredibly effective practical and emotional support. Plus there’s loads of helpful tips and information on the website too. I can’t recommend James and The Dogs Way highly enough.
James had my reactive West Highland Terrier walking alongside his dog down the farm track on my first visit with not a bark to be heard. I was suitably impressed. He also taught me on that first visit how to manage reactive issues when meeting other dog walkers and some good lead techniques. His videos are informative and encourage consistency in training techniques. I am being trained how to observe and listen to my companion and the bond is growing between us. Perseverance is key. Thanks James we are getting to where we should be with your help 🤩
Otis is a very lively border terrier puppy. We’ve had our first session with James where he gave us some tools and techniques to deal with Otis in a calm and helpful way. We’ve a way to go but James really helped our confidence in dealing with a very excitable puppy. James is professional, calm and measured and non-judgmental. We really enjoyed our time with him.
Super interesting and helpful. James is so astute and knowledgeable and has a really clear way of communicating. Our perception has changed so much it feels like we’re leaving with a completely different dog!
After failed attempts with other behaviourists trying to help our dog with her aggression and reactivity, we took her to the dogs way uk, and after only an hour and a half we were able to understand her reactivity more and ultimately reduce it from what we thought was a severe case to not even barking at a dog entering her space. With the tools provided in this session we have been able to go out in the real world with our dog (which we were previously told we could never do) and enjoy walks with minor issues. We will only need another couple of sessions and she will be perfection!! Thank you so much!!
We are so glad to have found James. His patience and knowledge allowed us to really understand the route of the issues we were facing. We were really struggling with Kiefers separation anxiety and couldn't leave him alone without alot of stress and howling the moment we left. After one home visit, he gave us the key tools and advice to get us to where we are now...where we can leave Kiefer in the house alone for a couple of hours without him getting stressed and actually being able to settle by himself. Can't thank James for really helping us and we are now working together on his reactivity training which is going really well. Sarah, Steven and Kiefer!
James helped us understand why one of our dogs reacts the way he does when being walked by some of the family but not others and has given us some techniques to help retrain our anxious little dogs behavior so that walks are less eventful ans stressfull for everyone!
James has been amazing and massively helped us resolve seperation anxiety in our 8 year old Jack Russell. We were like prisoners in our own home as we were terrified to leave the house, most of the time we would come home to destruction. We have tried everything in the past such as leaving the radio on, Kong toys, leaving clothes with our scent, nothing worked. James came to our home to establish the root cause of the behavior, he explained in details what the issues were and how to fix them. We had weekly check in calls to see how we were progressing. As Ruby is 8 years old I assumed it would take considerably longer to see any improvement. Within just a few weeks we were seeing massive improvements and are now able to leave the house. I cannot thank James enough for the tips and advice he has given and would definitely reccomend to others. You need to be fully committed and put the time and effort into training but the end result is very much worth it.
We took our Bedlington Terrier to work with James at the farm after we had tried just about everything to stop his reactivity with other dogs and had not been successful. He is not food oriented, and can be quite stubborn at times. Before we met up we had a telephone conversation with James and that immediately helped with our confidence and gave us a idea that all wasn’t quite as bad as we felt it might be. Our first meeting at the farm was so good. James was patient and is a very good listener, and took time chat through the issues with us and to observe our dog and understand what was happening with him. We spent some time trying out a couple, of approaches and immediately got a positive outcome. The session also gave us an opportunity to practice handling the dog differently. I appreciated the very positive encouraging style which James takes, and we learned so much about our dog that we didn’t know - even after having him for 2.5 years. We left with a different dog and lots of ideas for further development, which we worked on over a 5 week period. We then did a second meet up in a ‘Real World’ situation. That was great! We could show James the fantastic improvement we felt our dog had made and we got chance to move on with some other more challenging situations, all of which James managed really well and ensured we were safe and working calm and confidently. We all enjoyed the sessions so much, and not a treat in sight! Our dog’s behaviour is so much better, he is more comfortable and confident around other dogs and is clearly enjoying his walks and canine interactions much more! We would recommend James and his approach without reservation. He is easy to understand, gives owners and dogs confidence and is able to support his recommendations with sound and extensive knowledge of his subject. We are looking forward to our next session to make even more progress!
We needed help with our very reactive (to all dogs) rescue Norman, and indeed, James admitted he was the second worst case he's ever dealt with! After several sessions and a home visit, I'm now able to walk with my friend and her border terrier, which I never would've thought possible. Although we still can't yet pass a dog on the same side of the street, Norman is much better than he was. James is so patient and generous with his time, and we are so glad we visited him. Thank you James! Helen and Mick
