Sandy asks…
So I have this problem…?
My 13 week old Siberian Husky Labrador mix, was thought to be friendly. Yesterday I took him to my friend’s house who has a 6 month old German Shepherd. Koda was not dominant at all, and gave in right away. Today, my cousin’s 8 year old Basset Hound came to meet him, but they did NOT get along whatsoever. Koda became very dominent and also aggressive. He nipped at his neck and mounted on him. I put him in the yard as a time out everytime he did that.
Now, he’s starting his puppy classes at PetSmart on May 24th. He already knows Sit, Come, Lie Down, Paw and other Paw. This doesn’t matter, but my main concern here is if he’ll stop being so aggressive. He is already neutered, so I was wondering whether I should bring him to the local off leash park for socialization or not?
*Note: Koda and Oscar (Basset Hound) met eachother on neutral grounds, and then headed into my property. The next time, I was thinking to bring him to Oscar’s house so that they can finish dominating eachother.
What is your suggestion as to solving this problem?
Thank you 🙂
Hmm..well I don’t know yet. My cousin keeps pushing him out to the yard even if he looks like he’s about to mount (like paws on the dog), which I would have done myself as well. We decided to let the dogs settle it, but Koda tends to nip and she gets worried and pulls him away, which I understand. Koda also goes for the neck, which is dangerous (sometimes from the bottom up or vice versa).
Shaynamidd; it’s not about what they teach you, it’s about the dogs in the class. Because I am not doing private classes, he will be there with other dogs to socialize it. What I’m hoping is that he will be able to socialize there as well. : )
Sarah Jones answers:
I know it sounds rough, but they really need to work it out.
Our puppy, Callie, is 14 weeks old. She does puppy classes, too at PetSmart. She is very submissive but with some dogs that she’s bigger than (which I assume Koda was to Oscar) it’s like she gains confidence and beats up on them. She’ll nip and tackle them and everything. But that’s her way of telling them she’s bigger, than she’s in charge. Yet to my uncle’s full-grown German Shorthaired Pointer she will lay on the floor with her ears completely back and her tail between her legs while showing him her neck.
You really need to let them work it out. When Callie was playing with Scout (the GSP) she was sub-missing extremely. And he also owns a Yellow Labrador Retriever (Zoey) who is older and is cranky, who doesn’t tolerate puppies, so Callie was submissive to her as well. Anyways, my mom kept getting worried that they would hurt Callie, or that she was scared and needed to be comforted. Both my uncle and I are huge dog people and we said no, let them be. If it gets out of hand then to stop them, but let it all happen. Scout would dive bomb for Callie’s neck and bite on it, but it was a warning to her saying you better get down and be submissive or I’ll get you. It look bad to us, but he did no harm to her. After awhile they got settled in completely (yes, this was on neutral grounds, too) and then Callie got brave and went into play mode with Zoey, which she did NOT like. So Zoey whipped her head around, snapped in Callie’s face, just missed, Callie skidded over and cut herself on the rock flooring. A HUGE cry came from Callie and Zoey snarled but walked off and Callie was fine, except for the scrape on her leg. After that, Callie left Zoey completely alone, and whenever she got too close Zoey would let out a warning growl and Callie would walk away.
So yes, fights will happen, and it’ll look bad, but you need to let them work it out. They are dogs and are communicating. If suddenly they get into a fight fight you need to have control and be able to remove them. (Like while they’re together keeping their leashes on until they work it out.)
Trust me, I’m pretty sure Koda is just doing it because Oscar is smaller. And our PetSmart training has helped beyond obedience training (she knew stay, come, paw with both, sit and slightly down before we went). Our trainer helps us with socialization, how to greet people, leash training, etc. Plus, Callie is getting socialization with those dogs and is learning how to play nice. There is a dominant Siberian Husky there and she will whack Callie to the floor and Callie will be fine, but it looks like it hurts. Another German Shepherd Dog isn’t as social, but is getting better, and snarled and nipped at Callie today, who raised her hackles and then immediately laid down on the floor in which he jumped on top of her. Of course at that point we grabbed their leashes and held them back, and then they spent time sniffing one another and 5 minutes later were find.
Definitely let the two work it out and keep control of the situation at all times. Take those classes and really do the homework that your trainer gives you, and let your dog socialize with the other dogs before class. Also try and have your dog meet a new dog every day, it’ll help with him learning to be okay with all sizes and ages of dogs.
Good luck!
