# Milo a 5 year old Sporting Lucas Terrier with a socialising problem



## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi, this is my first time in this room and I would like to begin by introducing myself my name is Duncan and the new addition to my family "Milo". We used to have two jack russells for nearly 14 years and losing one back in 2008 and the other March this year has taken its toll on us all. After the death of our youngest one we decided not to have anymore dogs but didn't realise how much pain there was going to be. By chance I was looking on a well known advertising web site and saw an ad about "Milo" needing a new home and the picture of him, we could not say no and I rang the family soon after and arranged to go and see him the following day.
A Sporting Lucas terrier originated in Scotland and is the cross breeding of the Jack russell terrier and various other terriers to create a hardy breed for working purposes. We have had Milo now for 2 weeks and he is settling in with us very well. At home you could not have a more obedient dog as he responds to all commands given to him. It is when he sees other dogs or cats he becomes very nervous and starts a screaming bark at them which is very off putting to other dogs and their owners. We are the fourth family to own him as the other families could not keep him for one reason or another but we will not be giving up on him and this will be his forever home.
His lead training is on going which is going to take time but he is responding well and the barking is becoming less frequent. 
I will of course keep you informed of his progress.

Duncan


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## Katieforian (Mar 18, 2011)

Hi Duncan, 
I'm not as experienced as most of the people on here, however i too have a dog who's nervous of other dogs.
Ever since he was allowed out on walks he would run away and yelp from other dogs, unfortunately since then he has been attacked numerous times by different dogs. This did make him worse but we are still working on his confidence.
How old is milo? is he neutered? 
I had a behaviorist come to the house when my boy was younger to address a few things. Regarding other dogs, she suggested getting a friend/family member that has a quiet dog, and ask them to bring them to your house. Starting with both dogs on the lead, keep a distance and reward for any calm behavior. Using a "watch me" works also as it gives the dog something to focus on. You can then keep reducing the distance as your dog feels more comfortable. If he gets scared, don't push him and just go back a step. Hopefully he'll be happy to sniff and in time both dogs can be let off lead together. When you take him on walks, keep an eye out for other dogs in the distance. When you see one ask milo to "sit" and treat him. He should start associating dogs actually mean good things happen. My dog is now fine with any dog that approaches him slowly, but does get scared if another dog runs at him and wants to play. It takes a lot of time and patients to get confidence up, unfortunately it can then get knocked straight back to square one if he encounters a nasty dog. 
Good luck


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## lucylastic (Apr 9, 2011)

Best advice I can give is to buy the Patricia McConnell book "Feisty Fido" Armed only with the knowledge from this book and a tube of squeezy cheese you will, over time see a vast improvement. Given the age of Milo and not knowing his previous experiences, you may not totally eradicate the behaviour, but you will be able to change it to an acceptable level. The main thing to remember is that punishment and/or lead corrections will very likely make the issue worse. Milo needs to learn that seeing another dog means that good things happen. This means that you have to start working with him at a comfortable distance from the other dog. If at any time you get a negative reaction you are too close and need to back off a bit. Forcing a confrontation will make things worse. Identify what distance he can cope with (even if that is 200 yards), without reacting. Then when he has seen the other dog, encourage him to look at you. When he does, reward, reward, reward. You will eventually be able to introduce a cue word. By doing this consistently you will be able to reduce the distance very gradually until something wonderful happens. Milo will see a dog coming and immediately look at you. Do not miss this moment. It is vital that he is heavily rewarded for making the correct decision. This is not a quick fix and may take many months to achieve, but it is a long lasting solution. Good luck.


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi Lucy and Katie, and a big thank you from Milo and me for the advice which myself and family have taken onboard. After adopting him 2 weeks ago from two young professional people who could not give him the time or constant love and attention he needs I was able to make contact with his second owner who was able to give me the information about his background from when he was bought as a puppy in Scotland 5 years ago. I could not believe the reasons given for passing to another owner.
1) Oh!! he was biting my older dogs ears so I had to re-home him.
2) My new baby suffered from eczema so I had to re-home him.
3) We could not afford the cost of leaving him in kennels so we thought it best to re-home him.
Now he's with us and this will be his forever loving home what ever the problems he's staying with us. There is no way my family and I will ever give up on him. Three words sum him up !!he is adorable!! 
If you were to meet him you would, like us you would fall in love with him.

Duncan


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## lucylastic (Apr 9, 2011)

Well said. With time and commitment I'm sure he will be perfect for you.


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## lucylastic (Apr 9, 2011)

Oh, and we need pictures please.


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## 8tansox (Jan 29, 2010)

Sounds like this dog has struck lucky this time. Well done, it's very rewarding ....when it all goes to plan!!


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi again Lucy and Katie, just to bring you up to speed, I have taken Milo for his evening walk and used the command you told me and he is responding to it, the only down side, is my coat pocket stinks of hotdog sausage because he absolutely loves them. We saw a poodle and six cats and because I brought him into check there was a little whine then nothing so he was rewarded with his sausage. I am so proud of him, we have come along way in such a short time and this is the begining of a more confident time for Milo.

Duncan:smile5:


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## lucylastic (Apr 9, 2011)

That is the downside. Start getting used to smelly pockets. :yikes:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Thanks guy's, !!oh !! yes he has been neutured Katie. I'm going to take some pics of him doing his party trick, walking backwards pulling a football with his paws, its very funny. I'll upload them tomorrow.

Thanks again for the support and advice.

Duncan:biggrin:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

I have put a couple of pics in his profile album, I will be putting some more on tomorrow.


Duncan


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## bearcub (Jul 19, 2011)

Can we have some piccies please? 

Just googled Lucas Terrier - they are lush :001_wub:

Lucky Milo finding his forever home


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## bearcub (Jul 19, 2011)

oh sorry just read your last post, I'll be patient


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## Lexiedhb (Jun 9, 2011)

Hey.

I too have a dog reactive dog- I say reactive and not aggressive as I can walk him with any other dog I care to, and he is sweetness and light, if a touch (read massively) over excitable! He can meet dogs nicely, and did not even retaliate when bitten (his own fault, PLAY WITH ME, PLAY WITH ME, PLAY WITH ME PLAY WITH ME, PLAY WITH ME wears thin with ANY dog after a while!!).

I too am doing similar to what has been suggested here but using a clicker- he sees a dog, he does not react click treat, click treat,click treat,click treat,click treat until he can no longer see the dog. 

Progress is somewhat slow, but progress is there, I do not have the screaming dancing 26kg loon at the end of the lead now with dogs in the distance so thats something!!- Keep at it!! :smile5:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Morning all, I have uploaded three pics of Milo into the photo gallery, as soon as I can get him to do his party trick I will take some pics and upload them.

Hope you like.

Duncan:wink:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi again, I have put two more pics of him asleep with his favourite toy, this is after running us all mad for over an hour.

:cursing:

Duncan


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi bearcub, there is a difference between the Lucas Terrier and the sporting Lucas. The Lucas Terrier is a cross between the Norfolk terrier and the sealyham terrier and they are more of a show breed. The Sporting Lucas originated in Scotland and is a mix of the highland terrier, Jack Russell and border terrier. These were bred for working and are a more sturdier dog than the Lucas, as the Lucas has legs and spine issues which can give them problems in later life. Both dogs have web sites and clubs where if you like you can find out more about the breed. !!oh!! take a look in the photo gallery as I've added some more pics of Milo.

Hope you like.:smile5:


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## Katieforian (Mar 18, 2011)

SMILEY MILO said:


> Hi again Lucy and Katie, just to bring you up to speed, I have taken Milo for his evening walk and used the command you told me and he is responding to it, the only down side, is my coat pocket stinks of hotdog sausage because he absolutely loves them. We saw a poodle and six cats and because I brought him into check there was a little whine then nothing so he was rewarded with his sausage. I am so proud of him, we have come along way in such a short time and this is the begining of a more confident time for Milo.
> 
> Duncan:smile5:


That's brilliant, he sounds like a clever boy. Keep up the good work! 

Regarding neutering, i only asked out of curiosity. It seems nervousness around other dogs seems to be a lot more common in dogs who are neutered. Although obviously nothing can be done about that now.

Well done for taking milo on, he looks like a lovely dog in the pics and deserves a loving forever home.


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi Katie, as far as we know he was neutured and microchiped when he was a pup. What we are finding out is within his first 12 months he was already onto his second owner because his first owner had an older dog and Milo was chewing its ears. The third owner had bought him before she had a baby and looking at his history, she must have had him before she got married. So it looks like she had him for couple of years and then sold him on because her baby had eczema. In all this time he had never been socialised properly with other dogs hence his problem. He is such a good dog and wants to make friends with everyone humans and dogs. I can't believe its only two weeks it seems alot longer cause he really has settled in so well.

Duncan:wink:


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## lucylastic (Apr 9, 2011)

I really think this little dog has fallen on his feet and found a forever home. This is really heartwarming to read.


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Thanks Lucy, I can tell you it tore at our heart strings as well. I do wish people would stop having dogs when they have all the good intentions at the beginning when they are pups all cute and fluffy, the problem is they grow up and because they don't fit into their family unit anymore the poor thing is either abused which sickens me, or like Milo passed from family to family or worse ending up at a rescue centre where for some they may have no chance of ever being re-homed. My wife and I visited our local animal care centre the other week and the sight of some of those poor dogs and cats being caged up like prisoners on death row looking forward to visiting time is upsetting,some of them having no chance of ever being re-homed because they are too old or not cute enough.
In that centre we saw all the cages full of Lurchers, border collies and rather alot of staffy's. Its heart breaking seeing them and I take my hat off to all of the volunteers that work there, they do a very difficult job with pride and conviction with funding only from donations. Its a true saying "a dog is for life not just for christmas" I just wish that some people think of that before getting a dog.



Duncan:smile5:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi folks, sorry about my last thread for going a bit over the top, but it does make me angry when I see all the dogs caged up and all they want is to be loved. I feel sorry for the staffordshire bull terriers because they have a bad name nobody wants them, because in the right environment they have such a loving nature and make lovely pets. What upset me the most was every other dog at the rescue centre wanting a new home was a staffy.
I'm taking Milo down to the beach to let him have a run shortly, where we live the beach is about a 5 min walk from our house.


Duncan:smile5:


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## SMILEY MILO (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi folks, I am so happy with Milo, he is now walking to heel and he is learning that when on the lead the other dogs are not threat to him. I have also let him off the lead down at the beach he is starting to play with dogs, I am so proud of him because it has been only 3 weeks since we adopted him and he has come along way in such a short time.
A big thank you to you all for the support and advice that you have given me and special thanks from Milo and he sends you all a big smile and a sloppy kiss.


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