# Rat terrier bite



## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

my roomate has had her rat terrier here now for about 2 months..me and him get along very well, I treat him as my own as I love dogs. 
When I cook, if he comes near me in the kitchen (close to the oven) I usually go to the living room, call him there and tell him to stay, which usually works. 
Today, my roomate left for work without any dog food left in the house and he was hungrier than usual and kept coming over to the oven.I had too much stuff on the stove to leave so I VERY GENTLY moved him with my foot same way I wouldve done with my hand, and he bit me pretty hard on my big toe. I quickly picked him up and put him on the couch in the "submissive" pose but couldnt stay there because I had to tend to the food...any suggestions as to what I should do?
Thanks


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## JulieK1967 (May 29, 2011)

Feed the hungry dog.


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## Curbside Prophet (Apr 28, 2006)

Don't ever "pose" the dog and get your roommate to invest in a crate.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

thanks but those are temporary solutions. Im looking for a way to make him stay in the living room and also not bite me when I move him


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## Curbside Prophet (Apr 28, 2006)

CAMILOGOD said:


> thanks but those are temporary solutions. Im looking for a way to make him stay in the living room and also not bite me when I move him


Ah, so you're looking for something more long term. I can help with that.

Don't ever "pose" the dog, employ a crate, always have food available, hand feed the dog, participate in the dog's training, and put the behaviors you want on cue, so you don't HAVE TO touch him.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

Ive tried the calling him to the couch idea many times, sometimes he listens but today he didnt have food. "feed the dog" yes thats a given, it just so happens today his owner left forgetting to stock up in food, she is home now and has brought food. Anyway thanks for the tips


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## Pawzk9 (Jan 3, 2011)

CAMILOGOD said:


> thanks but those are temporary solutions. Im looking for a way to make him stay in the living room and also not bite me when I move him


Teach him to come. Dogs like to move themselves better than being moved by feet.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

well like i said i usually go to the couch and call him over and he sits there....I just dont want him to bite if somebody ends up touching him by accident or grazing him with their leg or arm


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## Poly (Sep 19, 2007)

And keep in mind that this is a terrier, and therefore not very tolerant of being physically pushed around. Terriers in general don't take to what is called "harsh correction" and react very negatively to it - and what is harsh to them may not seem very harsh to you. 

All terriers are more-or-less "sharp" and snappy in their general behavior. Be glad this was a rattie - which is less so than most. What you got was a nip, not a bite. If this were a JRT or a scottie - just to name a couple of notable ones - that "bite" could have been a lot more real.


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## Abbylynn (Jul 7, 2011)

Poly said:


> And keep in mind that this is a terrier, and therefore not very tolerant of being physically pushed around. Terriers in general don't take to what is called "harsh correction" and react very negatively to it - and what is harsh to them may not seem very harsh to you.
> 
> All terriers are more-or-less "sharp" and snappy in their general behavior. Be glad this was a rattie - which is less so than most. What you got was a nip, not a bite. If this were a JRT or a scottie - just to name a couple of notable ones - that "bite" could have been a lot more real.


This ^ ... ^ ... ^ ....... for sure! Lol! 

All but one of my dogs is a Terrier mix ... Eddee last evening for example ... wanted what I was eating. I calmly told him " No." He stubbornly kept jumping up at my face and my bowl of food. I pointed my finger at him and said "No!" again ... about the third time I did this ... he nipped my arm! Eddee is a Schnauzer mix. They are big guys in little dog bodies with "attitude!" I just then redirected him to his own snack ... a filled bone .....

I do not suggest any physical manipulation such as "posing" the dog. "Posing" will just make his nipping worse.

EDIT: After reading through this thread again ... I thought I should mention that my dog is a new rescue and one year old. I did not have the opportunity to train him as a small pup from the beginning.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

the bite wasnt just a nip, I bled and today my toe is swollen and in pain...one thing I realise when I lay him down gently in the submissive pose, he doesnt try to bite and he calms down pretty much right away


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## Pawzk9 (Jan 3, 2011)

CAMILOGOD said:


> the bite wasnt just a nip, I bled and today my toe is swollen and in pain...one thing I realise when I lay him down gently in the submissive pose, he doesnt try to bite and he calms down pretty much right away


For now. It's not really a very good fix. Frequently that leads to more bites. If he will come when you call him to go some place, why did you need to nudge him with your foot.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

well like i said in my original post, he was being very stubborn and coming too close to the stove and I had too much going on on the stove to go to the couch and call him and wait for him to come. His owner forgot to buy food and put it in his bowl that morning


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## Tofu_pup (Dec 8, 2008)

Stop doing this "submissive pose". He may not be biting you while you're alpha rolling him, as it's known, it is aversive to most dogs. 

You have a variety of options that do not involve touching him. I've had a handful of dogs nip, bite, or give me a warning bite for trying to physically move them. 

1. You can teach him "place"(or bed, couch, whatever you want to call it). This involves teaching him that he has a place where he needs to be AND it's very rewarding. Have sessions when you aren't cooking to start out with. Lure him onto the bed(or couch), give him a verbal reward marker, and reward. Repeat, repeat, repeat. He will learn that the bed is where he gets treats and you can start rewarding at random. Rewarding randomly will increase the likelihood that he'll stay on the bed just in case a treat might be coming his way. THEN have practice cooking sessions. Go through the motions with food on the counter. When he comes into the kitchen, give him the cue for bed and call him back to it. Reward frequently at first and then randomly. The bed should become his default for when you're cooking with practice and repetition. 

2. Depending how you're kitchen is set up, you can just body block him out and teach a boundary line. Some dogs do not react well to be body blocked but I haven't met many. Body blocking is walking directly into the dog so they back up. For my roommates' dog, I body blocked him out of the kitchen so that he was behind the piece of metal that separates the hardwood floor and the kitchen tile. He gets bits and pieces of food tossed his way as long as he remains behind the boundary line. If he crosses the boundary, I body block him back out and count to at least 20 before rewarding him again. 
(I count to avoid accidentally creating a behavior chain)
Now, his default is to hang out behind that boundary when I'm in the kitchen. He rarely breaks position and I don't reward him as frequently. It's pretty nice.


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## Tofu_pup (Dec 8, 2008)

You might even want to hook a leash to his collar so that you don't have to touch him to move him out if he refuses to leave.


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## CAMILOGOD (Jul 20, 2012)

thanks for the tips, im gonna try this out more..hes a rat terrier with a temper so its gonna take a while, the owner had to let him stay with one of her friends for a while, im starting to think he was abusive with it.. he can be the most loving dog one second and growling at you because you sat to close the next...doesnt seem normal even for a rat terrier.


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## SamiSaysRawr (May 26, 2012)

> All terriers are more-or-less "sharp" and snappy in their general behavior. Be glad this was a rattie - which is less so than most. What you got was a nip, not a bite. If this were a JRT or a scottie - just to name a couple of notable ones - that "bite" could have been a lot more real.


Stereotypical much? My JRT has one of the best temperaments I've ever seen in a dog. The worst dogs I've seen have been a chocolate labrador, a generic fluffy white thing, a dachshund, yorkies, chihuahuas and a collie/corgi cross. Terriers should never be human aggressive. If a dog gets stuck in a hole and you have to pull it out by the tail you don't need it biting you for invading it's personal space. How the dog is brought up has a lot more to do with it than what breed type it is. If you have a well trained, well bred dog it's not gonna bite you for no reason.


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## Poly (Sep 19, 2007)

SamiSaysRawr said:


> Stereotypical much? My JRT has one of the best temperaments I've ever seen in a dog. The worst dogs I've seen have been a chocolate labrador, a generic fluffy white thing, a dachshund, yorkies, chihuahuas and a collie/corgi cross. Terriers should never be human aggressive. If a dog gets stuck in a hole and you have to pull it out by the tail you don't need it biting you for invading it's personal space. How the dog is brought up has a lot more to do with it than what breed type it is. If you have a well trained, well bred dog it's not gonna bite you for no reason.


if you don't understand the difference between _general breed characteristics_ and what you call "stereotypes", you are (1) not very experienced in handling dogs and (2) unconvincable. 

But for others who might read this, while it is true that every dog is an individual, you'll do a lot better in your training if you *start* with the assumption that your dog's general temperament and characteristics does 'follow the breed' and take it from there . You'll also tend to be less disappointed and frustrated. It is not a formula for success to train a dog of one of the terrier breeds while expecting it to respond in the same way as, say, a poodle or a border collie, just to name a couple of the more 'biddable' breeds.


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## zeronightfarm (Jun 15, 2011)

Poly said:


> if you don't understand the difference between _general breed characteristics_ and what you call "stereotypes", you are (1) not very experienced in handling dogs and (2) unconvincable.
> 
> But for others who might read this, while it is true that every dog is an individual, you'll do a lot better in your training if you *start* with the assumption that your dog's general temperament and characteristics does 'follow the breed' and take it from there . You'll also tend to be less disappointed and frustrated. It is not a formula for success to train a dog of one of the terrier breeds while expecting it to respond in the same way as, say, a poodle or a border collie, just to name a couple of the more 'biddable' breeds.


Sorry, but you are wrong. JRT are never suposed to bite. They have a high prey drive, but should never ever bite. IF they did, the handler would be in big trouble, because they would get bit in almost every thing they do with there dogs. 

BTW I've been bit by poodles, Chi, labs, and others, but never once by a terrier.


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## mom24doggies (Mar 25, 2011)

zeronightfarm said:


> Sorry, but you are wrong. JRT are never suposed to bite. They have a high prey drive, but should never ever bite. IF they did, the handler would be in big trouble, because they would get bit in almost every thing they do with there dogs.
> 
> BTW I've been bit by poodles, Chi, labs, and others, but never once by a terrier.


 That may be true....just as poodles and labs aren't supposed to bite either. However, with the over abundance of BYB we have, temperaments are going down the toilet. Probably 75% of the terriers I groom try to bite me or have to be muzzled for parts of the groom because they will. That includes schnauzers, westies, Scottie's, wft, jrt, etc. I also get bitten by shih tzus, poodles, and yorkies though...it's not just terriers. However, terriers do seem to be more bold about using their teeth, and let me tell you they bite HARD! 

Just for the record, I have two poodles, a toy and a mini, the poodles most people think are nippy and yappy. The toy is only 4 mo, so yes he will nip and mouth, as most puppies will. However, he's already learning not to and my mini wouldn't dream of biting, or at least he hasn't in any of the situations he's been in. Iow, his threshold is very high and hasn't been reached yet. Neither of them is yappy, either. Sure they alarm bark and my mini "talks" to me and other dogs he plays with a lot, but poodles are known for talking. Both of them are from responsible, reputable breeders who breed to improve poodles, and their temperaments reflect that. 

As far as the OP's question, yeah, terriers do not respond well to being pushed around or made to submit. I think everyone else has made some excellent suggestions as far as alternative methods.


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