hi everyone i am not sure this post belongs in this section so if it doesnt please move it.
my mother has a 12 yearold bitch Jenny.For some reason the last couple of years she is very aggresive to small breed dogs.My sister just got a griffon/poodle mix,female and she is 4 months.Her house is ontop of my mums and she wants to make her pup friends with jenny. jenny is an outside dog and she is scared(my sis) that if the pup accidently goes in the yard jenny will attack(and she will).What is the best way to introduce these 2 without making jenny hate the pup?
I already made the first introduction and even though Jenny would usually(in the past) be interested and would smell the pup she totally ignored it with her head in alower position acting as if she couldnt see it. What does this behavior mean? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

From the sounds of it, I wouldn't introduce MY puppy to this dog!!!! If there is any doubt as to whether the dog is good with puppies, don't do it. JMHO.

If I saw the "head lowered ignoring behavior" in one of my bitches, I would take that as a precursor to an attack. Without seeing it, but visualizing it, it's kind of a "you better not even look at me funny, or I'll tear you a new one" behavior. Not something you want to see directed toward a puppy.

Normally, lower body position and avoiding direct eye contact is a submissive posture. I'm putting it into context with the other info that you've given, and what I have observed with my own dog-aggressive bitch.

You must first realise that Jenny is not the dog she used to be. She is getting old. I have read in previous posts that she is in good shape but that doesn't change the fact that she is an old dog. She has no reasons to make friends with such a young puppy. She does of course have reasons to resent it. She is old enough to know that puppies are overexuberant and obnoxious(somehting Jenny is not in the mood for in her old age) and she may very well resent the attention the new puppy is getting -not to mention the fact that it gets to live INDOORS with the rest of the 'pack'.

It will be near to impossible for them to ever be friends. If it does happen it will only happen when the puppy is a bit older and therefore 'more interesting and calm' to Jenny. Given her age, if I was your sister, I would respect Jenny's wishes and keep the puppy out of her yard. Stress can be devastating to any 12 -year old dog. Your sister must find playmates in the neighborhood that are closer to her puppy's age, in order to properly socialise it and build a nice character. If Jenny attacks the puppy at such a young and sensitive age, she will make it needlesly nervous and fearful of all dogs.

Months down the road and if the puppy grows into a stable dog that has met MANY sweet natured dogs, it could take an snap from Jenny much more lightly than now and they MIGHT even learn to get along. I would leave both dogs be, at least for now (and another 6-8 months). "Experimenting" with our dogs may be fun sometimes but BOTH dogs in this case are in very sensitive periods in their lives and such experiments could be damaging to their health, character, and general well being. On a lighter note, a great thing your sister could do for BOTH dogs is walk them often together, only with you or your mother's help. Your sister walks the pup while you or someone else walks Jenny, without allowing any contact between them. This way Jenny won't feel left out and nobody gets hurt. If a day comes when Jenny's expression towards the puppy changes from indifference to a doggy-grin then you'll know there are less chances of her showing aggression and you could try letting Jenny off lead (IF SHE IS OBEDIENT) while the new dog is still held (so as not to pester her). This should be done on neutral territory NOT Jenny's yard. Any serious look from Jenny to the puppy should get her on lead again. Do not wait for a growl! And do NOT try this alone. The tricky thing is that most people try the LAST part of what I wrote WAY too soon and RUIN everything with an ugly dog-fight.
Then (with the dogs REALLY hating each other) only an expensive and experienced trainer will be able to help and if it was me, I'd just say "Hey, Jenny's 12- Leave her alone." and only work on teaching the puppy to not fear dogs.
I hope this helps...

Meh, just ignore me. I couldn't tell ya what was going on without seeing it. My mental images may be very different from the reality, and canine body language can be very complex. Was the 12yo standing, or lying down? Was her mouth open or closed? What was her tail doing? What was the puppy doing?

I do stick by what I said about introducing them, though. I would not introduce a puppy to any dog that I was not sure would be good with puppies. Just one bad experience can scar a pup for life, making them dog aggressive. Having a dog-aggressive bitch, I can honestly say that it is a huge pain in the butt, and I will do everything I can to avoid it in the future. Plus, I'm assuming that the 12yo bitch is a GSD? She could kill the little poofball. Just sounds too risky to me.

lisa
jenny was standing with her tongue "hanging" and her tail was wagging a little. i am not sure if it was because of the pup or because of the praising she was getting (forgive me for my spelling).The puppy seemed terrified probably because it is one tenth of jenny. By the way she is a gsd/collie mix.
anyway thankyou both for your help.