my devil dog

Question
hi i have a mini fox terrier cross jack russell his about 9 months old his a very sweet little dog but he is a terror. he likes to dig up the backyard, steal things to chew lately a pair of shoes, he jumps all over everyone and when on your knee continuely bites and licks your hands doesnt sit still. he has had training not a great deal but he comes when you call he knows when theres food around to go outside, he mostly an outside dog and unfortunatly spends most of his time alone due to work, i do spend time with him when i get home i feel this is contributing to his behavior. ive tried to teach him to stop his jumping chewing and biting but the amount of dicipline i give doesnt seem to help.i was told maybe desexing him might help calm him down? im not really sure what else to do...not sure if your able to come up with an idea for me? im willing to try everything and anything as my partner is sick of the behaviour and wants it stop or wants the dog gone but thats not an option i am evn going to glance at.

Answer
Yes, go ahead and have him neutered.  He will still need training, but it will go much better once he gets all the hormones out of his system.

Consistently is very important in correcting jumping and other problems. Quickly correcting him each and every time he jumps on somebody is very important. He must never get the affection he wants. A number of things have been used. One of the most gentle is to grab his front paws and hold him up. The traditional knee to the chest or step on his paws are fading from use. As part of the the trend away from negative methods, just step backwards leaving his front feet to fall to the floor. After a few tries, the dog may just stand there looking confused.

Young Labs, which I know best, and other puppies tend to very bad about biting. You see a litter of them, and all the ones that are awake are biting another one or themselves. I am not even sure they realize that when they are alone, if they quit biting, they would quit being bitten. At 3 to 4 months they are getting their adult teeth, and it seems they spend every waking moment biting or chewing. One thing you can do at that stage is to knot and wet a piece of cloth. Then freeze it. The cooling will soothe the gums. Only let the puppy have it when you are there to watch it. I maintain a Lab's favorite chew toy is another Lab. Otherwise they settle for any person they can. They keep hoping to find one that won't yelp, jerk their hand away, and leave.

You just have to keep on correcting them, hundreds of times, not dozens. Provide sturdy, safe toys such as Kongs and Nylabones. Avoid things they can chew pieces off and choke on them. Keep them away from electrical cords. Crates are essential for most young Labs and other dogs.

The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/ For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm