When a puppy is brought into a house that already has an older pet, both the dogs go through an adjustment phase and you as the pet owner should do all you can to help both the dogs adjust to their new companion and status. The older dog finds it very difficult to understand and accept the fact that his master chose to bring home another pet even though he was already there.
Most pet owners who have more than one dog will have several anecdotes and some horror stories about what ensued after the first sniff. It may not always turn into a biting match between your pets and then fighting over dog accessories. But it always helps if you can help the older pet to adjust to the new arrival and the new situation. Here are a few tips that will get you started.
An older dog will usually be jealous of the new puppy. He may start demanding more attention than he previously did. You may also see a marked difference in his behavior. It is not unheard of to see even older dogs behaving like pups when a new dog is brought home. The older dog will be reluctant to share his things with the puppy. So if you are playing with both of them with toys or giving them dingo bones, there will always be one who tries to take all the toys for himself. If you are faced with such a situation it is best to leave it up to the dogs to decide who is going to lead. If you interfere and snatch the toys away from the dominant dog it may just interfere in their “getting to know each other” process.
If it doesn’t all go smoothly and if the dogs display growing hostility towards each other resulting in a fight, the most important thing is to handle the situation calmly. If you yell at them things will get out of hands as your puppy grows older because it will just add to their aggression. For dogs yelling is tantamount to a threat so you may just worsen an already dangerous and tense situation by yelling.
A technique that really works when your pets are fighting is to just get up and walk out of the room. You have to understand that your pets are fighting for your attention and the moment you leave they will have nothing to fight over. So don’t say anything if you see a tense situation developing. Just get up and get out of there as fast as you can and make sure to slam the door as you leave. This will certainly get their attention
Feeding time can be very crucial with two pets in the house. At least till they get used to each other and the situation, try to feed them away from each other. Even if you don’t feed them in separate rooms at least keep their elevated dog feeder far away from each other.
Two dogs can be a handful particularly if you have to control them and a bowl of food in your hand. So it’s quite acceptable to leash one of the dogs and then place the food bowls in front of them. Always make sure to give the first bowl to the dominant dog.