How can I stop my new puppy from being a bully with my other dog?

[dustnbones]

Hi,

I'm hoping someone here has experience with curbing aggression between two dogs.

I have a 5 year old Male Shepherd Mix named Frisco who is a sweetheart. Three weeks ago, I got a 12 week old Female Doberman for his companion. I live alone and work long hours and I was feeling pretty badly about leaving him alone all of that time 5 days a week.

When I brought Sadie home, he was pretty mean to her for a few days. He's a bit spoiled and didn't want to share his toys or house for that matter. He's also a bit food aggressive with her. He was like that with me when he was young, but we corrected that issue.

They now get along wonderfully inside of the house. I still feed them separately, but Frisco is showing improvement in that department. Sadie will give her food up easily and would never eat if it were left to Frisco. They play all of the time. Frisco gives Sadie a bath and cleans her ears and Sadie follows Frisco everywhere and has to do everything Frisco does. It all seems great... until we go outside.

Once outside, Sadie turns into a little demon. She plays very rough, which would be okay except it always ends in a fight. They were like that in the house at first, but I corrected that behavior; which was much easier because they don't have an acre to run around on and I could grab one of them easily. Now, she's almost submissive to Frisco inside and he to her. They play very well together. Both of them roll over on their backs when playing which is a good sign. Outside, she's aggressive with him and will NOT stop. She grabs his neck and won't let go, she growls and shows her teeth. She's a completely different dog. I used to be able to just yell NO in a loud voice and it would stop her. That doesn't work anymore. It's like they start playing and after a couple of minutes, it ends up in a fight and it's because she just won't stop and she growls and snarls which she doesn't do inside. This happens over and over.

I don't know if it's a matter of her learning how to play or if it's dominance? it used to be triggered when my older dog would fall and roll over on his back which I guess she perceived as submission, but now, it's really every time they play regardless of how Frisco acts. He tries to put her in her place which used to work, but now, she just stands up to him. The always stop on their own. It doesn't escalate into a big fight, but I'm afraid it will. My yard is too big to stop them. I can't run anywhere near as fast as they can.

The guy I got her from said she was a bully. He fosters a lot of dogs in his home and he said he had to put her with the big dogs to kind of put her in her place.

I'd let them work it out, but she's going to be a big dog and I'm afraid that she'll hurt Frisco if she's still like that when she's bigger. I doubt that will happen because she's really a gentle dog otherwise and I have a feeling she's just being a puppy, but I also don't want to take a chance. I also don't want her to be aggressive toward other dogs.

She's an absolute sweetheart other than that one issue. She's loveable and adores Frisco until they play outside. She'll fight with him and then two seconds later, follow him everywhere he goes like his little shadow. She followed him on a walk through the woods yesterday and stayed about two inches behind him the entire time. She does what he does, likes what he likes and won't leave his side. My older dog absolutely LOVES my mom's boyfriend. There's nothing better on this planet to Frisco than him. We went to her house yesterday and Sadie has only met him once briefly and she was all over him like he was her favorite toy. Since Frisco loves him, Sadie loves him. It was so cute! So, I can tell she is attached to him, I just can't figure out why this one problem keeps happening and how to stop it.

She's not aggressive in any other way AT ALL. She's so nice and when she does something wrong and I say NO. She stops immediately and acts like she's sorry. She shows no aggression toward me whatsoever. It's almost like she just wants to please me, but doesn't yet understand how. I've never had a dog that obedient before in my life.

I am however, seeing a little disobedience when I am teaching her commands. When I first got her, she learned sit, down and come in a matter of about an hour which amazed me. Now, she is starting to ignore my commands from time to time. I have a feeling this is an attention issue that will correct itself when she's older because when I get closer to her and repeat the command, she obeys.

Has anyone else dealt with this and have any suggestions on how to curb this behavior? I'd be very grateful for any input. :hail: My neighbors probably would be too. They are probably sick of hearing "SADIE, FRISCO STOP NO BAD!!" :lol-sign:


Thanks!

Susan

 

[Maura]

She is acting like a normal young dog in that she is testing the waters. I think the confinement of the house reduces the territory to a managable size for her. Outside is a different territory. You are going to need to let them work this out themselves. Keep in mind that she is doing a lot of posturing, part of play is play fighting. She is learning how big she is and how hard she bites (Dobies have extremely hard bites). If Sadie really wanted to hurt Frisco she would have. If she bites too hard and he yelps or bites her back, she'll know to be more careful next time. Really, they sound very normal.

Remember, dogs don't generalize, so although she will usually mind you in the house, she might not outdoors or in a different territory. You need to put her on a ten foot lead and take her all over the yard working her on all of her known commands, otherwise she will not mind you in those parts of the yard you have ignored. When you go to a new place, take her around on leash and work her on all of her commands, rewarding her.

Dobes are very smart and learn very quickly. Make sure you are consistent. If you think she may not mind you, don't give her a command. Don't repeat commands. It's much better to work her on leash over and over again in difficult areas rather than risk noncompliance.

 

[dustnbones]

Thanks for easing my mind Maura.

I'll start using a long leash immediately. I'll also try to just let them work this out themselves. It's just hard to watch. I'm so attached to my older dog that I want to protect him. Don't get me wrong, he's not bothered by it in the least. I guess he knows it's normal. It's me that gets overprotective. My neighbors probably think I'm having dog fights in my backyard. It's embarassing!

I'm also trying to find a good trainer. So far, no one has returned my calls, but it's only been a few days.

Thanks again for your help!

Susan

 

[Crumbyuy]

The best thing to do is show her when she's being good. To show her what she has done is good, reward her with a treat. If she disobeys you, you can lock her in her cage for a little while, or you can take your hand and hit her snout with slight force. It's not abuse to hit their snout. They feel it, but it's not like, extreme horrid pain for them.

If this behavior continues, you can find a dog obedience trainer, depending on where you live, and that should help.

 

[Maxy24]

Please do not hit your dog's snout, it may make her hand shy towards hands approaching her head/face and could lead to her biting you (or someone else if she thinks they are going to hit her) in self defense. No dog should have to put up with being hit by the people they are supposed to trust. If she is disobeying it's either because she does not understand what is being asked or she has not been properly motivated to do it (not been rewarded enough or heavily enough for doing the command in the past).

I agree it sounds like play and that the Shepherd is teaching the pup how much she can get away with. If you are really worried is there anyway you can post a video? Being able to see both dogs' body language may help us to tell whether or not there is anything to be concerned about.

Make sure she has the chance to play with other stable dogs (because she is so rough stick to large dogs for now) so that she continues to learn what other dogs will put up with. No one can teach a dog how to interact with other dogs better than other dogs.

If she is repeatedly ignoring the shepherd when he is clearly telling her to back off so the point where he is getting very annoyed then remove her so she can calm down. This would mean having her on a long leash so that you can stop her when you need to. But don't go crazy removing her, make sure he tells her she's going overboard first and see if she listens to him eventually.