Chloe's reaction to the outside world

Hi everyone

Chloe is approx 2 (she was aged between 2 and 4, but i think shes more the lower end of that), and i came to own her by fostering her for my local rescue in early september. she was in kennels but clearly was very scared and tried to claw her way out, resulting in many of her claws being ripped out and becoming very withdrawn. She was an unknown quantity with other dogs and animals, as she was so shut down she didnt want to interact with anything. at the time i already had 3 bitches in the house so i took her in as a last resort, and hoped she wasnt dog aggressive. i introduced her to my lot one by one and she behaved beautifully, considering the pain she was in and her state of mind. she growled a tiny bit and that was all.
After she recovered we discovered that she is violently afraid of fireworks, and other loud noises, so over the fireworks period she had to be medicated and we had to stay in with her to stop her destroying the house and hurting herself.
however once the fireworks were over we discovered a wonderful little dog, very affectionate and loving, and so happy and playful. Her only vice at that time was chasing the cats but she getting better. She even bonded very well with with the resident 'girls' and will play for ages with them, rough housing and such. shes not food aggressive, or toy possessive. ive never heard her once be aggressive towards the other dogs. we officially adopted her on boxing day 2011, after losing our oldie, Tara the week before xmas.

however once we go out and about its a different story. i walk her alone because shes too much of a handful with the other two. She on a harness and an extending lead as i cant let her off lead yet. when we walk on the street shes kept on a short lead.
SHe is really obsessed with people! if she sees someone on the street she thinks they were put there to fuss her! and if theres a child shes even more excited. but thats not the problem. (although i would like her to learn that not everyone wants chloe kisses!!)
Its when she see another dog. She tenses, and pulls towards them, and if she cant get near them she starts screaming and screeching (as only a staffy can) and wont stop untill the dog is out of sight. nothing can dater her focus. Even worse, if the dog comes up to her, more often then not she will jump at them and snap at their face. she is better if the other dog is calm, and she has met a big male german shepherd and a big male husky and never bothered. both were very calm and she behaved very well. but more often then not she will behave as i said.
i have a lot of experience with dogs and training (although wouldnt call myself an expert, far from it) but ive no idea how to shift her focus onto me. Treats havnt had an effect although i am going to try a squeaky toy. She does have a high prey drive.
Another thing i have noticed, that ive never seen before (although i have never owned a terrier before) when we go for a walk somewhere she has been before, she goes into hunting mode. shes at the very end of her lead, and is just focused on the walk. no sniffing, no interest in me, nothing. Ive been doing lots of recall work and she comes almost instantly not but as soon has shes had her treat shes off again. i even make her wait a few seconds but i can see shes not bothered in the fuss etc, she just want to be off again.
I took her on a different route the other day and she behaved like a normal dog, sniffing, playing with me, recalling well, completely different to other times. Does anyone else have experience of this behavior?
All advice is welcome...especially as i have no experience of terriers! (or in my case, terrors!)

ah poor chloe,sounds like she has'nt had a good start to life but now she has you im sure she will get there,well done on rescuing her,tbh i've only had my girl so you prob have more experiance than me,your right by getting her focus on you,i tell sasha to look and put a treat near my face but you say treats dont work so may be the squeaky toy idea will,hope it does

I'd get her to sit every time she acts up, maybe using a squeeky toy as a lure to get her attention, and then get people to calmly & quietly stand by her without giving her any attention.

Once she's calm, then they can gently scratch her head, but no excited greeting.

Same with other dogs, really. Don't allow any contact/greetings until she's sitting calmly.

I don't think it's a terrier thing so much as emotional damage from a previous owner.

well good news and not so good news. the bad news is she doesnt react AT ALL to the squeaky toys. nothing not even an ear flick! and thats when theres nothing around for her to focus on lol!
How ever i met a lady i work with on a walk the other day and she has a staffy (a gorgeous boy) so i let her go to him and she did the usual snapping at him, (poor sod he look so confused lol) so we walked together for a bit and she just ignored him after that! she was very good, although he was off lead and started to charge around she wanted to chase him (shes kept on lead). i dont think she is truly dog aggressive other wise i think she would have wanted to have a go at him all the time, but she just calms down and gets on with her walk. maybe she just lacks the skills to meet other dogs appropriately??
I bought her a 50ft lead so she could have some freedom and she loved it...charging around like a loon lol! bless her she looked so happy.

Walking with other dogs is a great way to socialize them

Ahh poor girl at least she got a chance now
Im having the same expirience with my little boy although hes been lucky hes not been in kennels but he has never seen the outside world until i got him, which has made him petrified of everything out side
Any hints and tips would be very welcome but with skye beside him hes slowly getting there
Deffinately walking with other dogs is a great way to socialise

shes great with our two, its just strange dogs really, and not that many people understand that im not going to let her hurt anyones dog, they just assume that shes dog aggressive and cant be trusted. Maybe i need to take her to some training classes for the socialization?

Have you thought of talking to an experienced and progressive dog behaviourist about it ? This may help. Regular walks with other placid dogs will help, as will long-lead walking. There is no easy solution. Keep up the good work and best of luck.