Good morning. Two weeks until my new puppy comes home and I am getting a bit nervous. Background: I have a two year old male working line GSD (neutered). He is a house companion dog, well trained. He minds me and is quite calm. We do agility together once a week, he is great with my kids, settled in the house and all around wonderful. He is a little growly around other dogs but mostly wants to sniff and play. Seems like a lot of posturing. He does have a dog friend in the neighborhood 1/2 his size that he plays really well with. My new pup will be a female from the same father. My breeder is aware of my desire to have a companion type dog with lower drive than many of her pups from this litter - most of her dogs go to K-9, SAR and Schutzhund. She chose my current dog and chose really well. He's just what I wanted.
I have done a lot of training with my guy and work with him every day. I'm looking forward to working with my new pup and transitioning her into our lives. I've got the ex-pen ready!
My breeder has suggested that for the first meeting I take the new pup outside and let her pee/poop while my current dog is inside...then I crate her and bring my current dog out to where she was and let him smell that she was there...then I introduce them both outside under controlled circumstances.
My intention is to keep the new pup in her ex-pen or crate or tethered to me at all times for the first few weeks. Gradually I will allow the dogs to be out together supervised.
I'm hoping I'm on the right track and wanted to know if you have any additional advice or see any "holes" in my plan! My current GSD is so settled I don't want to rock his world too soon, so I'm open to suggestions.
Reg: 10-09-2008
Posts: 1917
Loc: St. Louis, Missouri
Offline
I haven't done the smell-the-pee routine, but I see nothing wrong with it.
More important, I think the dog and pup should be introduced on "neutral territory"--meaning not in your yard. Pick a place that's walking distance from your house--a park, empty field, or just down the block. Let them meet and smell each other there, make nice, then walk home together.
That's how I've always done it, and so far, so good.
If you have the opportunity to do this, here's another idea--ask the breeder to put a towel or t-shirt in with your pup for a while (long enough to get some scent on it) and you do the same with your own towel or t-shirt with your scent and the current dog's scent. Then swap t-shirts. It'll give both dogs an opportunity to become familiar with the scent of the other dog before the first meeting.
When adding a pup, I have been fortunate enough to be able to bring my existing dog or dogs to pick up the pup. Then, they rode home in the car (crated) and walked a little bit before entering the house. Never had any problems.
I did send my breeder a t-shirt with my scent (and inevitably my dog's as well on it. I was considering bringing my current dog to the pick up location and letting them ride home together...my dog lies in my back cargo area (too big for a crate back there)...would I put the new pup in her crate back there with him if he's uncrated or up front?
Also, if I did that, would I let my current dog and the new pup out to sniff/get to know each other at the neutral location and then put them in for the derive home or wait for the meet and greet once we got home?
Reg: 10-09-2008
Posts: 1917
Loc: St. Louis, Missouri
Offline
"Also, if I did that, would I let my current dog and the new pup out to sniff/get to know each other at the neutral location and then put them in for the derive home or wait for the meet and greet once we got home?"
How bout both? I don't think you can over-do letting them meet each other in a supervised way on neutral turf.
Also--go into this with the expectation that everything will be fine. Because it will. Be upbeat and positive when the old dog meets the pup, and yet not make too big a deal over the whole business. "Oh look, there's a nice looking puppy. Let's say hello to him. etc." As though happening upon a puppy were an everyday sort of thing and nothing to get too worked up about. You're not looking for excitement--and everyone is going to take cues from you about how much energy this encounter merits.
For everyone's sake, a puppy's first day should be all about calm.
Thanks Tracy. I think my mind is running away with me a bit and I'm worried my current dog won't like the puppy! Calm and assertive and positive...yes.
Vanessa - I worried about one of my GSDs not liking my pup when I got him. They truly are the best of buddies now. His entrance into the pack was so seamless that it shocked me.
I have read so much about it my head is spinning! I get such good sound advice on this board I wanted to hear what people have actually done in the past vs. theory in a book.
You need to save the pup from the big dog as much as save the big dog from the pup! I have had success with using a barrier for a week (one is kenneled while other is out). Then a face to face with very close supervision, just a minute or so then separate. Then build up on that. Real test comes when pup gets a boost of testosterone at 12-14 months
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