Border Terriers tend to be very obedient, friendly, and well-behaved. Though, it is not uncommon for owners to complain of their aggression and intolerable behavior like going after other animals, cars, and so on. The thing with Border Terrier is, they are not trying to be a pain. If anything, they want to please. Most of the bad behaviors exhibited by borders are due to their temperament and maybe, poor grooming.
To effectively manage this bad behavior and possible aggression that your Border may be displaying, understanding their temperament is paramount. For instance, Borders do not appreciate punishment in any way and they do not learn from this form of discipline. Rather, mean treatment may heighten their aggression.
Border Terrier Behavior Problems
Common behavior problems exhibited by Border Terriers include: not following orders, and engaging in activities that put them at risk like running after cars, chasing vermins and small animals, herding, unwarranted barking, and digging.
The best way to tackle these problems is to understand your Border Terrier and know the root cause of the trait being displayed. It becomes easy to resolve the problem when this is done.
When your Border Terrier fails to follow orders, it may be that there was a problem with the way it was groomed. If when it was introduced to commands, there was no reward for obeying, it may ignore these commands at some point. Or, if obeying a command put an end to an activity it enjoyed, your Border Terrier would associate following orders with discomfort.
Several Border Terrier owners have testified to this. Avoid punishing your Border Terrier for following an order. For instance, when your Terrier is out and off-leash, do not take it away from the environment when it obeys your call without a reward.
Leaving the fun environment may be necessary but Border Terriers are smart and over time it would realize, you are not going to meet its needs the way it desires. Similar scenarios may be occurring with other commands. Try to reward your Terrier as often as possible for obeying commands.
Border Terriers also love to run and engage in energy-sapping activities as they are quite energetic. This is not a breed that is used to a docile life. When it is deprived of fun activities or not taken out as often as needed, it is likely to find an avenue to release its energy. This may be chasing cars and trucks or vermins and cats or barking needlessly.
Regardless of the behavior exhibited, the first line of action should be understanding where the discomfort is stemming from. And also, knowing if the issue has to do with the temperament of your Border Terrier dog.
Border Terrier Temperament
For most people, the mention of a Border Terrier creates an imagery of a fun, smart, affectionate, and people-loving dog. Border Terriers are one of the most sensitive dog breeds, and they are quick to notice changes in the mood of their owners and people around them. They are also very sensitive to how they are treated.
On average, some Border Terriers are welcoming while some are reserved. Most traits associated with Borders vary from breed to breed so owners would have to observe their Terriers to understand their unique temperament.
Border Terriers are very independent dogs with love languages outside of touch. Though some members of this breed are lovey-dovey dogs. Little wonder this breed does not suffer so much from separation anxiety as other dogs.
They are very good with children but should still be supervised when they are with very young children. Some Terriers get along well with other dogs while others do not. This behavior pattern has been associated with the kind of training each breed receives.
Borders also love to stay neat and rarely drools. They can also be quite reserved around owners and family members while others can be open and quite welcoming of people. In the same way, some breeds are very playful while others are laid back and love to relax. They can as well create fun activities to keep themselves busy. That’s one of the reasons why they are regarded as intelligent and smart.
Border Terriers score high in adaptability when rated by owners as they ease into environmental changes like noise and weather quite fast.
A good number of Terriers are eager to please but many are strong-willed and rely more on their intelligence. The very energetic breeds enjoy barking at literally everyone while the others reserve their barking energy for only threats.
Border Terrier Aggression
Some Border Terrier breeds are more aggressive than others even though aggression it’s not a common trait with Borders. Observations over the years have found a correlation between aggression and how energetic a Border is.
However, a Border’s energy reserve is yet to be identified as the cause of aggression. Known causes of aggression in border Terriers vary from poor treatment by others to disrespect from other/bigger dogs and inactivity.
Are Border Terriers Aggressive?
Border Terriers can be aggressive towards vermin, little animals, other dogs, and humans including children. Aggressive behaviors may include: barking, chasing, and even biting.
Border Terriers only become aggressive when they are experiencing difficulty. This difficulty could be linked to their health, how they are treated, or even boredom.
How To Calm Down a Border Terrier
With the right amount of mental stimulation, you can help your dog calm down. The thing with Border Terriers and their surplus energy reserve is that they sometimes do not know what to do with their energy. Creating a list of activities for your Border will enable it to channel its energy to good use.
Also, it is a great opportunity to bond with your Border as they love to play with people they feel affection towards.
Activities you can try out with your Border include regular visits to parks for dogs, going on walks – long ones, playing games that involve hunting and digging, hide and seek, tug of war, and scheduling playtime with other dogs and cats.
Border Terriers sometimes love to mingle with other dogs, run around, and play. A dog park is a great place to make this possible. When you visit a park with your dog, let it off the leash but not without a marker. Try to follow it around if you can and allow it to wander for a while. As it runs around, it would expend its energy which is good to help it maintain an even mood. Try doing this as often as possible.
Another option you may want to consider is sending your Terrier to a dog school. You may have provided all the basic training that’s needed but that time spent away from home, and interacting with other dogs can also help improve your Terrier’s mood. This will be most valuable when your dog is displaying behavior problems as you would get some support with training your Border Terrier.
Another activity you can carry out with your dog to manage aggression and related behavior problems are walking, especially long walks. Terriers are a sociable breed of dogs. Even the ones that are reserved and barely warm up to people appreciate this moment outside. You would notice that after every walk, your Border’s energy levels would drop drastically and it would behave better.
Border Terriers also enjoy games that have to do with hunting and digging like barn hunting, nose work, and tracking. Either of these three games can provide the needed stimulation needed by your Border Terrier.
Barn hunt is played with a barn and rats. The setup needed can be put up anywhere even at home. With a couple of rats that your Border can hunt, you will get the game started in no time. though, you may still have to supervise your Border as it races around.
Nose work requires mental work so it’s a great game. You can hide something in the neighborhood and leave trails that your dog can pick up. Implore your dog’s help in finding the hidden object. Your Border is likely to find this exciting.
Nose work is similar to tracking. You could volunteer to help people find things that they have misplaced and go with your Border terrier dog. If there’s no one in need of help, you can try to replicate a real-life scenario and ask your Border to come to your aid in the search.
Throwing objects far away and asking your dog to go get it can be fun and rewarding. You can do this with an object or bones or something edible. This is a common, favorite sport among dogs in general. Aside from this, you two can try running around, jumping, or playing with balls.
In some scenarios, the best way to calm a Border Terrier is to let it act out, especially when its behavior is harming no one. Unwarranted barking, for example, could be stemming from inactivity. If you find your dog barking needlessly, allow it to bark as long as it wants till it gets tired. Terriers sometimes enjoy hearing themselves bark.
Conclusion
No Border Terrier owner is pleased when their Terrier acts out. And, in some cases, attempts at calming them are fruitless. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that Terriers are peaceful and fun-loving and their acting out is a sign of an underlying problem they are experiencing. Try to keep calm in the situation so you can help your dog through the moment.
