Stera Posted May 22, 2010 Share Posted May 22, 2010 Hi Team, My partner and I have recently had a little Border Collie pup join our family, which has been very enjoyable (and challenging)!! My partners Mother has an older Border Collie also and upon getting the two together, our pup wants to play, but the older dog will just growl and bite (latched on today and wouldnt let go). Our pup is quite social, but the other dog isnt overly and the other dog is treated like a child and is a bit naughty and undisciplined. Is there any tips for what we can do to help make the two friends? A few bites hasnt put out pup off playing, but the older dog doesnt want a bar!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiona'n'Theo Posted May 22, 2010 Share Posted May 22, 2010 Hi Team,My partner and I have recently had a little Border Collie pup join our family, which has been very enjoyable (and challenging)!! My partners Mother has an older Border Collie also and upon getting the two together, our pup wants to play, but the older dog will just growl and bite (latched on today and wouldnt let go). Our pup is quite social, but the other dog isnt overly and the other dog is treated like a child and is a bit naughty and undisciplined. Is there any tips for what we can do to help make the two friends? A few bites hasnt put out pup off playing, but the older dog doesnt want a bar!! Hi, I know - I'm in the same boat with our 9yr old beagle and 5.5mth old RR who is relentless at wanting to play rough. I have been separating them when things get out of hand - otherwise I'm hoping the ridgie will grow out of nipping and jumping on the poor curmudgeonly beagle who just wants to spend his days lying on his back in the sun. Any advice also appreciated. :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenGirl85 Posted May 22, 2010 Share Posted May 22, 2010 You could try crating the puppy to let the older dog get used to the pup, or have both on leads and supervise all interaction. Does the older dog know 'gentle' that is also a great help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stera Posted May 22, 2010 Author Share Posted May 22, 2010 Hi GG85, Thankyou for your response! All interactions have been on the lead, but no the older dog is pampered and is the boss of the owner (imo) and pretty much does what it likes. So no, it hasnt been trained to gentle command. We thought it could be jealousy between the dogs, as my partners and her Mum lived together and the older dog was theirs, maybe its jealous, or trying to protect them - Or just nasty??!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted May 22, 2010 Share Posted May 22, 2010 Puppies have to learn to respect their elders. If the older dog is not wanting to play the puppy has to leave her alone. In my house I have a variety of ages from the grumpy old girls to a 5mth old pup. The oldies are not interested in the young pup and quickly tell them off by growling and snapping at them. The puppies very quickly learn manners and I generally leave the old girls to it. The only time I will intervene is when the puppies are not listening and then it is the puppies that are crated until they settle down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmolo Posted May 22, 2010 Share Posted May 22, 2010 While i don't think its a bad thing for an older dog to 'correct' a puppy- it concerns me greatly that the older dog latched on and would not let go of the puppy- was there damage done? Do you live with the older dog? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janba Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 If the older dog doesn't want to play the pup should leave it alone, not all dogs want to play with young pups. The older dog is probably giving signals to the pup, that the pup is ignoring, before it growls and snaps. Not many people would put up with an over the top child bouncing on them, pulling at them and kicking them without saying something but we expect our dogs to do it. The fact that the pup kept wanting to play after the first few times suggests the older dog was being were disciplinary not aggressive. When it latched onto the pup where did it latch on and was the pup on the ground, standing etc and did she scream then run away frightened when released or just act pretty normally? I have seen my dally keep one of my BCs on the ground as a pup with her mouth over his nose grumbling away at him. He was over the top and ignored her warnings but he got up when released and played nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Bronson Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 (edited) While i don't think its a bad thing for an older dog to 'correct' a puppy- it concerns me greatly that the older dog latched on and would not let go of the puppy- was there damage done?Do you live with the older dog? If the older dog doesn't live with you, I personally wouldn't worry about teaching them to interact and just keep the puppy away from the older one. It's too hard to condition someone else's dog that isn't living with you, especially if what you teach isn't being upheld consistantly by the dog's owner Edited May 23, 2010 by Black Bronson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stera Posted May 24, 2010 Author Share Posted May 24, 2010 Hi All, It was the oddest occurance when the older dog latched on... She just went SNAP without warning! I have been with an older dog correcting a pup and that was a GO AWAY - This latch was pretty serious and Im thinking they wont be friends. Its sad as whilst we dont live together, we are a few streets away and would be a good dog sitting arrangement for both parties! When the "latch on" (!!) occured, both dogs were on the leash in a public park. The pup wanted to play and was rolling on the ground and the older dog just snapped! The pup cried and cried... We managed to get them apart and the pup hid behind us for a while and we walked away... A little while later we came together again and the pup tried to crawl closer and the older dog would ignore and then growl with teeth showing... I dont have high hopes sadly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raineth Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Hi Stera, It is important for older dogs to teach puppies their manners however it does sound like the older dog might be taking it a bit too seriously if she is actually inflicting pain on the puppy. It is risky because if the older dog is doing that, then she could make your puppy afraid of other dogs and that can lead our puppy becoming dog aggressive. If it was me I would probably decide to keep them apart unfortunately. Maybe you could actively train your puppy to leave that dog well alone. Use treats and maybe a clicker to encourage your pup to not approach the other dog. Then maybe when she is grown up you will be able to have them together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 Dogs are no different than people & often people expect to much without thinking about the older dog in question. In our house it works both ways,are oldies have an oldie area,whilst they are social there comes a time where they dont want to be annoyed,overwhelmed by a young pup. Our young pups also arent allowed to torment the oldies. Both parties have rules,the pups MUST learn there is a time & a place BUT above all you need to read the other dogs body language. It sounds like it gave plenty of warning signs that werent listened too to by the humans & the oldie has gone to the next level. people need to understand that warnings signs are given for a reason & you need to learn to back off & do things slow & steady & in small doses. How old is the oldie? Does it have any medical issues?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toofarnorth Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 I have a 14yo dachshund and a 7mo cocker spaniel....its only JUST in the last week or two that my puppy has started easing up on my old girl...prior to that I was having to seperate them continually. My gorgeous oldie wants nothing to do with the puppy, and I have to accept that and protect her from him. You may have to do that with your puppy....when I got my puppy I had two oldies, sadly Gemma passed away and neither wanted much to do with him. I guess my situation is the opposite...I keep my two seperate all the time when I am not home, so that my oldie can get some time out and just in case things get out of hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 We thought it could be jealousy between the dogs, as my partners and her Mum lived together and the older dog was theirs, maybe its jealous, or trying to protect them - Or just nasty??!! Or just an older dog with little tolerance for pups. They aren't rare. Keep the pup under control and away from the dog until it learns some manners. If the older dog hasn't drawn blood on the pup, then its behaviour is nothing unusual. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuffles Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 We've met plenty of dogs that don't like puppies in their face and we have to remove our puppy from them. Sounds like your puppy might be similar, to ours. Ava doesn't want to accept that a dog may not like her and although she sends off submissive signals by crawling on her belly, we have had to remove her as some dogs just won't tolerate her silliness. Our older dog has pinned our pup to the ground with his mouth for a few seconds when she is being rude. She has gotten up, learned a lesson and come back to play with less intensity. It's hard to know what the older dog's intentions were in your case without seeing the situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirrall Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 (edited) Hi, I know how it can be as I have had three dogs of my own. What I've found really good was to go to a doggie park and let them off leash there. Otherwise if there isn't one, we just go to our usual park. Around our place, there's this park that's fenced (there's not suppose to be any dogs there but I try to only do it when there are not people around which is around 12pm). Anyways, socialising in an unfamiliar place is really good start for an unfriendly dog because they learn to play with each other. Stay there for a while (like one hour) and you'll find they'll get along better at home. I've tried introducing a pup at home before and it totally failed. Dogs were just fighting day and night. However, the park thing works really well and whilst they did fight a bit at home, it wasn't that much. You'll find that the pup will understand what it needs to do around the older dog and pups usually want to please, so that's the good thing about it. My little scatter brain was like a pest around my other one. She eventually learned the rules. Just make sure there's supervision so the growling doesnt become anything too crazy. Hope this helps Edited May 27, 2010 by spirrall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
furballs Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 I had to do this with my mum's dog as my BC is an angry little so and so. I met her down at the dog beach about 10 times before I would allow them to be together in the yard. I would keep the puppy on a lead during interactions or in a pen because puppies can be really irritating to older dogs who don't have much patience. Good luck with it, it can take a lot of work but it sure makes life better when we can take our dogs to visit people with other dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 31, 2010 Share Posted May 31, 2010 If the older dog actually latched on I would keep them seperated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stanlo Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 My problem is slightly different but I'd welcome any replies - my older dog (2yrs) is not giving any guidance to the younger dog, for instance I heard a yelp today (back was only turned for a few seconds) and out troops the pup with a clump of the older dogs hair in her mouth! Same rules apply - ie creat and supervise until she is older? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 My problem is slightly different but I'd welcome any replies - my older dog (2yrs) is not giving any guidance to the younger dog, for instance I heard a yelp today (back was only turned for a few seconds) and out troops the pup with a clump of the older dogs hair in her mouth! Same rules apply - ie creat and supervise until she is older? This is one of the biggest mistakes dog owners make when they have a mature dog and then introduce a puppy. It is not your mature dogs job to correct the puppy, you are the dogs leader and you must step in a correct the puppy each and everytime it harassess another dog. I would only ever have that pup out when you can supervise and I'd probably have the pup on lead and have a safe place the older dog can go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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