Re: Is my Jack Russell normal?

In Reply to: Is my Jack Russell normal?
Posted by:  Georgette Tilley
Posted on:  December 28, 2001 at 18:25:04

: I have a 18 month old male JRT. Even though I don't have a fenced in yard, I do fine with him. He is not constantly active but loves to play with toys and gets about 16 hours of rambunctious play a week ( not including he plays with toys a lot, too.).
: I'm a stay at home " Mom". He was raised with other dogs and loves them. He loves to bark, dig, and is demanding, curious, intelligent, mischievous, and gets overly excited when I have visitors. He jumps all over everyone and tries to lick them to death.
: My boy also likes to get into trash cans, walks across tables and the back of the couch like a cat, etc.
: But he also will adjust to the level of activity in the house. If I want to take a nap, he will lay with me for two hours during the day. Is this normal or is my Jack weird?
: Is he less hyper than most Jack Russells. I'm really curious because he's the only JRT I've been around.

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Hi, Georgette,

Good questions about your JRT! Normal vs. abnormal!

First of all, let me stress that your terrier hasn't reached his adult prime, so don't be surprised if some changes still take place. Most of the terriers I see in rescue are closer to three years old before the owners decide they don't want them anymore, and I attribute much of this to the fact that they really reach their maturity at age 3. This is when they typically stop putting up with things they always used to put up with, or basically just become more sure of themselves.

Second of all, not having a fence is something that *some* people can manage to work with, but it only takes *once* for the dog to see something he wants to run off after, and he's gone. If your dog is neutered and is getting enough exercise, you have more of a chance of making it work, but you must always be on your guard. Lack of a fence not only increases the chances for your terrier to run off, but also increases the chances of a feral or unfriendly dog coming onto your property to hurt your terrier. I have a friend who lost her JRT to a Golden Retriever. Who would have thought a Golden would be aggressive toward a little JRT?

And third, Jack Russells are individuals. They have (and I quot this, because it's in the eyes of the beholder) "BAD" tendancies that are pretty typical, but there is a huge gray area between what is "normal" and what is "abnormal." My Gritty will hang out with me all day in my office. He'll follow me around all day long and behave himself until he can get outside and run with the other dogs. Then there's my terrier Rowdee, who will pace around the house all day waiting for some kind of action to happen. He is eternally energetic, and rarely just lays around. Neither dog is any less a Jack Russell, nor is one normal and one abnormal. It's all in the individual! My Looise runs the gammut. She's a wild woman outside, but a snuggler inside. It's like a switch goes off when she goes from indoors to outdoors and vice versa. I always say she's got the best manners in my pack, because she can go from being a total lady inside to a complete maniac outside, running around and inviting everyone to play.

Hope this helps explain about normal vs. abnormal! Just about anything is normal as long as a dog isn't overly aggressive, or such a slug that you wonder if it's healthy. What you see here on Jack Talk are mostly people looking for answers to problems they're having. Some are typical issues, but some aren't.