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Small dilemma with puppy play

  • 03-02-2011 8:00pm
    #1
    RoastBeefDinner
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 63 ✭✭


    I have a now 14 week old collie/gsd whom I walk twice daily. In the morning we go to the local park and the afternoon we hit the beach. She has been socializing very well and would simply sniff another dog's nose or give them a lick if she has met them before and likes them.

    As you can expect when you frequent your walking spots regularly you meet up with other dog owners. So my girl has met a springer spaniel and they both are the same age. The owner is fantastic and we hook up and walk the dogs together. My collie has lost a lot of her shyness and is very happy to interact with the spaniel. Myself and the owner are also delighted as they run around a lot an get great exercise.

    Now here is the part I'm not sure of.
    The springer is fairly full on with his play and does his playful snarling play biting on my collie's back or other parts he can get hold of. She would just break loose and run. But slowly over the past few days she has been chasing him and nipping at his back to get him to react.
    All of this seems normal BUT she has started to do it with other dogs and I'm afraid my socialization efforts may be going in vain because of her springer companion.

    Any suggestions on how to approach this or should I just be content with the fact that my dog has a companion to play with and it's only just puppy play? I really want her to be able to interact with all dogs.


Comments

  • #2
    daenerysstormborn3
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,213 ✭✭✭daenerysstormborn3


    Older dogs and nervous dogs certainly wouldn't take too kindly to the chasing and nipping straight off the bat like that and she may become so used to being like that with her little buddy that she may try to do it everytime she plays.

    You could try using some commands with her when she is with the collie. Maybe something to encourage her, "play" or something similar and when around other dogs use a different command like "calm" and train her to be more gentle.


  • #3
    TooManyDogs
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,634 ✭✭✭TooManyDogs


    If you have other friends who have older but well socialised dogs it'd be worth going for a walk with them. My older dogs will correct inappropriate behaviour from a pup but won't retaliate. They'll give a sharp bark into the pup's face, or bare their teeth but the minute the pup stops they go back to what they were doing, they start off with gentle signals and gradually increase it until the pup responds. The pups learn very quickly how to assess and approach each different dog without getting into trouble.

    You might leave your pup on the lead when he's meeting new dogs, let them sniff each other and then call your pup back to you for a treat, let him go back to the other dog if it's happy and let them sniff again or play a little. If your pup goes to nip straight away just call him and re-direct him so he doesn't get to nip, when he's calm then bring him over to the other dog again. Gradually he'll learn to remain calm when greeting an new dog and it'll give everyone a chance (you/your pup/other dog/other owner) to see if they might be play buddies or just a 'sniff and walk on' dog.


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