Hi All:

I'm picking up an eight week old male GSD in two weeks and have a 1 year old neutered female GSD at home already. I have read Ed's article on introducing dogs and raising multiple dogs and have also watched the sections on the 8 week puppy video and basic obedience video. Is there anything different when introing a puppy to another young dog or is it the same steps as with an adult dog? My female is still very much a puppy but looks adult like. Any advice would be appreciated.

That is a good question, and to be honest, I do not have the answer. For some reason though, I'm thinking your one year old is the adult dog and to act, train and introduce the pup accordingly.

I will also say that it was recommended to me, if I do decide to "overlap" dogs and have 2, to purchase the opposite sex of what I currently have. (ie: have the male, getting female).

So, from the expert opinion I received on that topic, even though it seems rather obvious, you're doing the right thing there.

Thanks. Everything I read also said to get the other sex.

I'm just wondering since majority opinion is that most dogs don't mature until 18-24 months, is my 1 year old still considered a puppy, young adult or adult and how to introduce another puppy to her. She is submissive, has never expressed any aggressiveness to people or other dogs, animals, etc. and knows her rank in our household very well.

Hey Steve,I know this goes against what should be done,but it worked for me.I recently got a male GSD pup and brought it home where I already had a 3yr. old male GSD who was not aggressive but very obedient and also knew his place within the house.Upon first bringing him home I carefully showed the older dog the pup and repeated the word baby(which he already knew the word from other encounters with younger dogs and people) so he knew to be gentle.Without taking my eyes off them I let the older dog sniff and check out the pup and as long as all seemed well let the pup down to explore.All the while watching the older dog for any change in behavior.Everything went well.They played together and the older dog would actually be very gentle with the pup.Now 9mos. later things are still great .They play together and are inseparable.Sometimes the playing gets a little loud and I put a stop to it right away.I'm sure I've just been lucky with this as they have never fought.When we're away the pup stays crated while the older dog has the house,and that's the way it will stay.Again based on what I've seen on the DVD's this is NOT what to do ,but it did worked for me.I'm sure I'll be reprimanded for this post <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Well, if it ain't broke, don't fix it <:-) You know your own pet, so if he's not dog-aggressive & isn't a dominant alpha, then introductions could go rather smoothly...

Thirty years ago, when I was young & naive, my husband & I brought our highly dog-aggro intact male Basenji into his parents' home they shared with a highly territorial intact male GSD (both of which had unfortunately fought other dogs before) -- All any of us knew about introducing strange dogs way back then was to have their first meeting on neutral ground, so we chose a park...

Unexpectedly, those two dogs got along just fine, right from the get-go (!!!) Our little African beast even made instant friends with my parents-in-law's Siamese cats & Quarab horses (hooda thunk it?) LOL

I just went through the same introductions. My female then 18 mo is dominant and I thought I may have a problem, but I followed Ed's advice, feed them separatly, play-time is separate and crating the pup while introducing the female and letting her get used to just his presence will be my best advice. Now at 4 months my male pup is very rough and sneaky. He is constantly chasing/biting, and trying to steal the female's toy. She has much tolerance because she knows all she has to do is give a quick low growl and he backs off! She even lets him win an occasional game of tug-of-war! This is why I only give about 15 mins/day of SUPERVISED play. They are fed separatly, and have separate play/training sessions. They are also crated in different rooms during the night. At the beginning I was crating them next to each other during the night and found this helped the pup sleep without howling the night away, but at 12 weeks I started sleeping them in different rooms so he wouldn't depend on HER for his insecurities. They also spend some time together in adjoining outdoor kennels, but until he gets bigger and they each establish their individual pack order, I keep them separate for the most part. It has helped in my situation. But at 18 mo my female is still puppy-like in attitude. So it was a little tough in the beginning for her to learn to be gentle with the pup. Eventually after trampling him a couple of times and hearing him scream, She learned to watch where she is running, and not to hit him over the head with her paw! Yow will feel out their attitudes and do what is right for you eventually. But crating, separate play/feed times is what helped me.
Good luck!