Puppies Who Play Fight

[ShezSam43]

Hi,

I am new and i have an 8 month old Samoyed and about 3 weeks ago got a golden retrevier puppy who is 10 weeks old, and they play fight all the time, the retrevier is the instigator and we can never get play time without them attacking each other....is this normal? and any suggestions on how i would stop this or will the retrevier grow out of it?

[poodlefan]

Are they shedding any blood? It could just be very rough play. I'd be stopping it when it gets too rough and giving them a time out.

[ShezSam43]

no they aren't shedding blood, but the retrevier keeps growling and we seperate them and say no, but as soon as you do that they are back into chasing and biting each other again.

[Joshua]

as long as it doesn't look to serious (ie. Dominance) it should be fine... as they get older they will quit it (or only do it every so often)

[spoilt lab lives here]

My 3 yr old lab and 10 weeks old GSD, play fight all the time. Its very noisy from the puppy! She is very vocal! When they get too rough I seperate them. The pup always goes back to play!

I think its important for them to play but just watch it so they dont get hurt.

[TerraNik]

My 15 week old pup LOVES play fighting with my 7 month old. They are always very noisy and they "sound" rough, but because they both have a lot of fluff I don't think they ever get to the skin!! LOL My 15 week old is always running around with Jedi's fluff in her mouth!!!

It's ALWAYS my 15 week old pup that starts it, too and she's always yapping/barking/growling while they play. I think it's fine, just as long as no one is getting hurt.

[Garden Girl]

my 12 weeks old bitch and 9 month old dog play fight all the time too. I used to remove the little girl because she nips the boy all the time and I thought it must be driving him crazy. But as soon as I take her away he's wanting her back with him so I just let them sort if out. Sometimes I guide them onto soft ground when they're playing if they come inside on the tiles or something but thats about it.

[peigirl]

Also a 15 week girl puppy here with a 3 year brother. She is the instigator 90% of the time and the older one is the one covered in scabs from the puppy teeth! As long as they're not getting too carried away and running the risk of accidently hurting themselves I don't see a problem. Lots of noise too - mostly when they are both rolling around on their backs on the floor!

[ShezSam43]

Thanks for all the advice, glad to see its normal behaviour....the pup always starts it, but by samoyed loves it and the pup always gets his fur in her mouth.

[lilypily]

My pup and older dog are play fighting from dawn to dusk. I don't know where they get all the energy

I leave them to it. My older dog is very vocal and sounds like she is killing my pup, but she doesn't make any contact at all. When the pup gets a bit carried away and rough, my older girl quickly puts him in his place and lets him know he's gone to far. He backs off (for a minute)

[tracylacy]

I have a 4mnth old and a 4 yr old, they pplay fight all the time, quite roughly, I separate them when they get too rough - and shout "enough" (I'm hoping that the pup will eventually learn what that means - my older dog already seems to) Even though the pup seems to be getting beaten up all the time, he is the first to jump straight back into it.

From what I have read in other threads, you only really have to worry if there is blood. I also read that if one of the dogs runs away and doesn't want to come back, this is a sign that they have had enough.

[Guest june.andnovas]

Ivy and my parents English Pointer play like mad!! Taking in mind the rather big size difference too. I try to make them stop and rest bhe but no thank you. Ivy will normal have a quick sit down, looking like she's going to have a sleep but all of a sudden she's up again ... nips Jaffa (normally her racehorse legs) starting a new play session.

[SoL]

You should see and HEAR Stafford pups playing - now that really does sound like they're killing each other (I've got a pen full of 6wk old pups who do the same thing). Mum and dad used to have heartattacks every time Sunny took on Chester but now they're used to the noise!

If you're really worried and they really don't let up, then instigate a bit of time out and I mean truly separated until both are calmed down.

Just keep an eye out to make sure there's no heckles, no standing over, no 'glare' and obviously no blood. Usually we can tell when one of our girls means business just by their stare and the way they hold themselves. As soon as we see that look we get out there and separate. Funnily enough, the only time the boys have had that stare is when we're playing tug of war with them.

[MayaBC]

I have a 12wk old pup and a 4 year old. The pup chases the 4yr old around non stop, all day long, nips gently at her legs, jumps all over her, they wrestle all day long. We didn't leave them alone until we had watched them for a week or so just to make sure it was only play fighting. They seem fine, if the older dog gets sick of it, she growls a bit and the pup stops, for 5 mins anyway, then they are at it again.

[badboyz]

Just to be different, my chihuahua (1yr boy) and cat (adult female - the bigger of the 2) playfight all the time. He drags her around by the fur on her neck (which she doesn't mind at all) then she will pounce on him and look like she is going to rip him apart. Never any bloodshed.

[Odin-Genie]

My 1 year old and nine months old play fight most of the time, frequently rolling on their back and making funny growly noises They have been doing this for the past seven months that we have had the second dog. They've never hurt each other. In fact, quite often their play ends in them licking each other.