Ask The Experts About Train New Puppy Hunting
Richard asks…
Older Dog Bit New Puppy?
We have an older male lab that is 6 years old and not neutered. We recently brought home a new 8-week-old female lab and introduced them. The female is very high energy and the male seemed to tolerate her the first day. The male is a trained hunting dog, and my boyfriend threw a stick for him to retrieve. When he was returning with the stick, the female jumped at his face attempting to play. Well, the male bit her right on the nose, puncturing her skin in two spots and requiring a trip to the vet. The male was corrected and the bleeding puppy was carried away.
We are now afraid to leave them alone. The male has always been possessive of his toys, but in general very friendly to other dogs and people. At this point, we remove all toys from the room when they are both present, hoping it will resolve the issue. Has anyone else dealt with this situation? I understand the male needed to establish dominance, but he seemed to take it too far with a 9 lb puppy.
Is there still hope?
admin answers:
I have three dogs, two older males that grew up as only-dogs, and a 2 year old female. Both of the males grew up possessive of their toys (only towards other dogs, never people). Through constant vigilance and corrections, all three now know the rules:
-you may not take a toy from a dog who is chewing on/playing with it (or taking a break from chewing on it)
-if you get up and leave a toy (even to go get water), the toy is fair game
-growling or baring teeth to another dog gets you yelled at and/or the kennel, plus you lose the toy
By always (ALWAYS) enforcing these rules, my dogs get along great, which was especially surprising for the old boxer who never lived with another dog until he was eight or nine.
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