Good evening,
I'm writing this today because I'm at my wits' end. My Jack Russell is 6 years old and he's making my life a living hell. This has been going on for about 4 years now.
When he was a puppy, he was really lovely, well-behaved and cuddly... He didn't get into as much mischief as some other Jack Russells I know. We had a very close bond; he was my little ray of sunshine (and he still is!).
Four years ago, I had some health problems that lasted for 3 years. At the start of those issues, my dog's behaviour hadn't changed, so I don't really know if it's linked or not.
It started with a growl one evening when I touched his food bowl; he didn't like it and was quite threatening. I told him off, but that was just the beginning. Bit by bit, it got worse until he started attacking me (very often). He would chase me to bite me, and I'd have to lock myself in a room to "escape" him. I know it sounds ridiculous when you say it like that, but he must have sensed my fear. I've been bitten many times; I have scars on my legs and I even had my finger sliced open, which needed stitches.
I've done everything to try and understand him; I've taken him to several vets and seen a behaviourist, but nothing helped and it's just got worse.
Despite everything, I've always been patient and I've NEVER thought about getting rid of him, even though my family and friends told me he was dangerous and that I needed to (and still need to) let him go, for my own sake but also for his. My relationship is very strained; my partner didn't want the dog anymore after he bit me right in front of him.
Our old neighbours complained about his howling; we got a note when we first moved in and then nothing. I thought it had passed, that it was just a phase at the start. In the end, the residents' association received complaints. So, I made the decision to move rather than leave my dog, because we could have stayed in that building, but only without him. To be honest, I even thought the neighbours were exaggerating because I'd never heard my Jack make noises like that.
So, we moved into a new flat, and my dog seemed more content and, above all, more relaxed. No barking, no complaints. We've been in this flat for 3 months and I finally realised this weekend that he was howling his head off whenever we weren't there. Just to be sure, I'd even closed the windows—we're on the top floor. I could hear him howling even when I was outside the building. I've felt sick about it ever since; I don't dare go out for fear of him disturbing the neighbours. I go to work with a knot in my stomach. We're happy here, the neighbours are very quiet and I'm so scared of bothering them since we're new.
(I'll post the rest in the comments)
