Melanie, follow your instincts. If this dog is too much for you, then talk to a rescue organization by all means. You have not failed this dog, this dog may have some big, BIG problems that you are not prepared to deal with. JRTs are a great breed, but there is a huge span of personality and temperement in the breed. I know first-hand, because I have had them for many years, but I had to give one up to Russell Rescue due to escalating, terrifyingly violent aggression against my other dogs (including her own mother.) It really came down to the commitment I had made to the oldest dog 12 years ago when I adopted her - I just could not allow the attacks to continue, because one of them was inevitably going to be fatal. We went the whole route when the problems began, from weekly visits from a dog trainer recommended by our vet for aggression problems (with much homework in between visits), to medication (which did not help), to dividing the house with baby gates - with the constant risk that one moment of inattention would launch another savage attack. At one point, the troublemaker was in her crate, and got herself so worked up into a rage that she got the OTHER TWO to start fighting on their own, just by watching her. It really was h*ll on earth for many months. It all came to a head one day when my boss took me into his office, shut the door, and said, "I'm really disappointed in your performance lately." I started crying, and it all came out - living in a war zone - the tension, the stress, the disturbed sleep, the fatigue, the arguments, the guilt, the fear, the disappointment, the injuries to the old dog (a trip to the emergency vet with a torn jugular once, a ripped eyelid another time.) My boss was really understanding, but it all suddenly became crystal-clear to me what this situation was doing to all of us, and I understood that it was time to move on. After much soul-searching, tears, and long talks with my wonderful vet, we were THIS close to putting her down (we had literally dug her grave anticipating taking her in to the vet the next morning), when Rescue called back on a Sunday night with a temporary placement, fully understanding all of the dog's problems. The Rescue people were absolutely terrific. The last I saw of my beloved pup (the dog whose birth I'd witnessed, the dog I thought I'd grow old with) was seeing her sitting on the Rescue person's lap exchanging kisses after a parking lot hand-off. Within a few weeks, they placed her with a family out of state who had experience with the breed, had lost their own aged JRT, had a fully JRT-proof backyard, and fully understood the behavioral problems. Last I heard it was working out great. Like Migo, mine was a fabulous buddy and just adored people, but could not tolerate another dog. Serious aggression between dogs is terrifying and unmistakable - it is NOT playing - not even aggressive playing. Your comment about your other dog screaming gave me chills - I remember that sound so well. Do what you have to do to protect all of the other animals to whom you have made a commitment, and do the best you can by Migo. You're not a failure - everything you've written shows that you are a sensitive and responsible dog-lover, and you need to be strong and do the right thing for everyone concerned. Best of luck, Susan

We had to lose a mural too -- bought a house with a tea party mural - perfect for a house with a couple of girls, but we have two boys. We wound up wallpapering, so we did sand the wall. We had to remove texture more than paint. Since you are planning on painting, and assuming the walls have some texture on them, I would paint on one coat of tinted primer and see if you can see ridges or brush strokes through the primer. If you do, you ony need to sand to break those down, not totally remove them, so they blend in with the wall's texture. If you have done a lot of sanding you will definitely want a second coat of primer. If not, you can decide whether you want a second coat of primer. If the wall has no texture at all, then I would give it a light sanding first, then prime. If the grey goes with the blue in his room, I'd go with the one he likes. If you have a large open are of carpet, you can put a rug on top of it. If not, it will fade away visually -- it isn't going to be what he or likely anyone else is really looking at.

I love the clean, uncluttered look of your home and you've made some great furniture choices. My first thought, though, is that I would try to rework the sofa/sectional placement. It really is unwelcoming looking to me to have the back where it is facing a wall, when it could be oriented to look into the room and out the windows. It seems like if it were placed in the corner under the stairs that it would feel open and invite you to come in and sit. I'd hate to be cooking in the kitchen and have the family or guests with their backs to me. If you are having a TV in another room close by, do you need one in that room, too? If, so placing a 70" unit will probably only work as you have it. But, to me, it's not going to look like a living room but more like a movie theater, which is fine if that's what you're going for. It seems like it won't be a cozy conversation area, though. I might actually flip the rooms and put the dining room where you have the sofa now. I was looking at lights used with dining rooms and ghost chairs and saw this, maybe would work in the living room? Kind of fun. don't know if it would look as good without the colored walls though. And I thought something like these were interesting to consider for over your table:

Not every wall needs to be decorated. You could easily put a large tall plant in the corner next to the window. Home Depot usually has good ones for not too much. Any of these would work well. Every room needs a plant. They're great space fillers without looking contrived. They really cozy up a room.