Speaking from personal experience, these things can escalate in an instant and even if you do everything by the book problems can still happen.

There is no reason to risk this by going too quickly.

Edited by Jennifer Lee (07/27/2010 03:52 PM)
Edit reason: TYPOS!!!

"... very conservative approaches - but good advice considering I don't know this dog."

It's also good to remember that the dog doesn't know you, either. A new dog has no idea of the pack structure, how secure s/he is, who calls the shots, or anything else.

A really clear perception of who makes the decisions and who does not ever allow pack members to be accosted is going to make a whole world of difference to the new dog.

 Quote: Connie Sutherland

A really clear perception of who makes the decisions and who does not ever allow pack members to be accosted is going to make a whole world of difference to the new dog.

AND the existing dogs!

okay. Well, bad on me - 1st impressions should not be made the first day home for a dog right after being spayed and spending 2 weeks in a shelter... This little video was made last night, her 2nd day home. As she walks w/ the little dog.

Yesterday I left her in a crate inside the house, tried to make a short work day. Came home and surprise! She greets me at the door. I expected the house to be amiss but nothing was out of place except for a pillow or two from the bed. The crate looked as if she had teleported out of it - she had squeezed out the door when the bottom latch came undone (I had locked the top half w/ an extra snap but not the bottom).

So I took her for a long walk in the pasture and then out came buddy Ivan and this is what happened (see video). nothing.

Doing well also on ignoring other dogs as she got to look at them thru the windows yesterday.

Wonderful dog already learning her sit and stay commands. Very very smart.

Youtube Video of Smokey and Ivan Walking

She is beautiful and the walk looks like it went well.

Donna, I can tell that you love your animals. I can tell that you want to do right by them, and you intend to give them the best life possible.

However, your video only confirmed my fears. Ivan's body language is stiff. Ivan is standing on his toes with ears/head errect, with an errect tail that is stiffly wagging. He is NOT comfortable with Smokey.

Friendly, accepting dogs have a low, loose, wagging tail, with neutral head carriage and low ear carriage.

Walking them together does help cement the bonds of a pack, but realize you are taking a risk. I would not drop the leashes under any circumstances (saw that in the vid). These dogs are not ready to be loose together, either.

I hope everything works out for you and your pack. My mom always says, "Anything worth having is hard to get." So true of animals, caring for them and socializing them properly is hard work - but the pay off is great.

Donna,

you're moving way way too fast with this.

You seem to want these dogs to just accept each other right away that you're seeing things that aren't there.
What you see as being calm and relaxed just isn't. Just because the new dog didn't lay any paws on him or expressed much interest in him doesn't mean all is well.
I agree with Lisa, that little dog is not comfortable at all. And although walking them together is a good idea, letting them interact too much right now is not a good idea.

Introducing 2 dogs takes more than a day or two. When done properly it should take at the least a couple weeks. This is a brand new rescue dog, correct???? That you've had for how long??
You don't know what the new dog is capeable of yet.

Concentrate on the dog bonding with you now, and don't concern yourself with it getting along with your other dog yet.

 Quote: donna j. deyoung

I saw the trick about giving dogs special treats when they are in same vicinity as each other in "It's me or the dog".

So can you tell me what the reasoning was behind this Trick?
Did they tell you what it was suppose to accomplish?
You said the new dog was in a crate and you were feeding the little guy treats while the new one was in the crate?

I know a video can't explain everything, where I've been, the dogs, how they change from second to second. what's going on behind the scenes....I'm also glad to hear another opinion because we all know we can get "pack blind" to our own dogs.

Ivan is a basenji mix - his tail curls over his back and he has erect ears naturally.

But you're right, he is being a little protective of himself. He should have reason not to be 100% comfortable yet. He is a street savvy dog and is wise to what big dogs can do.

His posture in that video was much less tense than the day before. This video shows a part where I noticed he was getting tense - i was pretty close to the invisible fence boundary and he didn't really want to be there. He also doesn't like being on a leash.

Guess you could say Ivan has a bit of an attitude and can be a little stubborn (hence the name I picked for him in jest, Ivan the Terrible) but he is very savvy and smart. He was found wandering a construction site with a larger dog and ended up at a kill shelter where I found him.

Even on a walk by himself he carries himself with "pride" - the fox terrier type of pride. tail up, ears erect, I'm in charge of the world. He would also show that pride (not fear) to a large dog standing next to him. As we all know, small dogs can get themselves in trouble by being tough little guys.

I only dropped Ivan's leash. Did not let GSD loose.

"you're moving way way too fast with this."
I train faster than most people.

This is dog-dog intro under discussion. There is nothing, really NOTHING to be gained by rushing it .... and plenty to lose.