poodle proud Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 Hi all, I have greatly appreciated all the information on the topics posted however I have some specific questions to ask. I am getting my toy poodle puppy from the breeder next week. She will be 10 weeks old. I currently have a 4 year old mini poodle boy. I have some time off with her initially however I will then return to work. I only work a few days a week and I am wondering what to do with the pups on these days. I have read on this forum that you should wait a month before leaving them alone together. I intend to do this and have bought a pen for the pup so I can keep them separated. Would this be ok or should I take the older dog to stay at my mums place and leave the puppy at home on these days? I want them to bond but I also dont want to push my luck with how much they can tolerate each other. Also I have a dog door installed however our new girl will be a fair way off using it. What is the best equipment to use and what is the best way to toilet train her so that when she is inside on her own she knows where to go aswell as training her to go outside when I am home? Thanks very much in advance for your help ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamuzz Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 How about asking your breeder for some advice? The month is a guide. For example, our puppy was 4 months old when he came to us and he has been with the big dogs from the beginning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saram Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 Are you planning on crate training? If so could you (or a neighbore) pop in every couple of hours and let your little girl out to the toilet and put her back in. Our pups stayed in their crates for up to 3-4 hrs as young pups without an accident and now they can hold on all night. During the day they just take themselves out but recently we had to crate Hoover as he hurt his leg and he was happy to stay in there for up to 6-8 hrs without needing a toilet break (16wks) This would alos solve the toileting issue as she would just go outside all the time. Hi all,I have greatly appreciated all the information on the topics posted however I have some specific questions to ask. I am getting my toy poodle puppy from the breeder next week. She will be 10 weeks old. I currently have a 4 year old mini poodle boy. I have some time off with her initially however I will then return to work. I only work a few days a week and I am wondering what to do with the pups on these days. I have read on this forum that you should wait a month before leaving them alone together. I intend to do this and have bought a pen for the pup so I can keep them separated. Would this be ok or should I take the older dog to stay at my mums place and leave the puppy at home on these days? I want them to bond but I also dont want to push my luck with how much they can tolerate each other. Also I have a dog door installed however our new girl will be a fair way off using it. What is the best equipment to use and what is the best way to toilet train her so that when she is inside on her own she knows where to go aswell as training her to go outside when I am home? Thanks very much in advance for your help ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 18, 2009 Author Share Posted January 18, 2009 Hi Saram I Had not intended to crate train her mostly because I dont know anything about it. I dont know if we would be able to do it if it requires taking her out every few hours. I could ask a neighbour to come around once a day but any more might be stretching the friendship. I did contact the breeder as kamuzz suggested and was told she has been going on paper in one spot. So sounds like she is off to a good start. Still wondering what the thoughts are on leaving them in the house together albeit separated. Any ideas anyone? :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamuzz Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 Personally I'm paranoid about leaving dogs in the house when we are not there. What if the house caught fire? (silly, I know) Your boy could escape through the doggie door but what about the puppy? Maybe you need to see how they are together and then decide on the best course of action. Leaving the puppy in a pen would cut down on potential mischief, like chewing. Is the pen big enough to put some newspaper down in a spot for her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 18, 2009 Author Share Posted January 18, 2009 Personally I'm paranoid about leaving dogs in the house when we are not there. What if the house caught fire? (silly, I know) Your boy could escape through the doggie door but what about the puppy? Maybe you need to see how they are together and then decide on the best course of action. Leaving the puppy in a pen would cut down on potential mischief, like chewing. Is the pen big enough to put some newspaper down in a spot for her? I think you are right. This is also what the breeder said. I'll just have to watch them. I think for the first few weeks I'll keep her in the pen when I am not there. I found out from the breeder she has been crated so shouldnt mind being in the pen. I understand your paranoia kamuzz. I am fortunate that my neighbours keep an eye on everything during the day. I think if my dog could answer the phone I'd call him at lunch to see how he was going :rolleyes: Thanks for you input Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Fox 001 Posted January 19, 2009 Share Posted January 19, 2009 When we introduced our standard poo pup to the older GSD I was home for a week so they were always supervised when together, after that the pup was often crated or kennelled seperately but they were next door to each other and so could talk as it were through the cage without the older dog doing any damage. This only continued for about 3 weeks and then we put them in together and now they spend every minute either with us or together and we haven't had any problems. Mind you our GSD is older and quite placcid so we never saw any real signs of aggression, the pup would squeal every now and again but it was mostly out of fright when the GSD was putting him back in his box and reminding him who the alpha dog still was Come and see us in the poo thread too, we love photos **hint hint** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 22, 2009 Author Share Posted January 22, 2009 (edited) When we introduced our standard poo pup to the older GSD I was home for a week so they were always supervised when together, after that the pup was often crated or kennelled seperately but they were next door to each other and so could talk as it were through the cage without the older dog doing any damage. This only continued for about 3 weeks and then we put them in together and now they spend every minute either with us or together and we haven't had any problems. Mind you our GSD is older and quite placcid so we never saw any real signs of aggression, the pup would squeal every now and again but it was mostly out of fright when the GSD was putting him back in his box and reminding him who the alpha dog still was Come and see us in the poo thread too, we love photos **hint hint** Hey blue fox, Thanks for ur msg. Pup is here and things are going ok. The pup is rambunctious to say the least and the older dog is taking a while to warm up. They have had a couple of tussles with a couple of squeals from the pup and a couple of snaps from the older dog but nothing serious. I think our older boy doesnt know his own strength and knocked her over in the garden. No real aggression as such. Pup has her own pen and seems quite happy to spend time in there. Any suggestions for how to teach the older dog to play gently or is this out of my control? P.S i will visit and upload photos when I transfer them to my new computer Edited January 22, 2009 by poodle proud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MayaBC Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 We had the same thing with our pup. We had a 14yr old dog, and a 4 yr old to introduce her to. We had an area of the backyard sectioned off that she couldn't get out of, but was around the other 2. The other two dogs could have jumped in there had they wanted to, but knowing their personality's, we knew there would only be a problem if she was allowed out with them and annoyed them. We kept her in that yard when we weren't around, for a couple of weeks until we had watched them playing together while we were around, to know that she would be alright. At a pretty young age though she was pretty confident and could look after herself! As for teaching them to play gently, ours just kind of knew, and the pup would yelp if it got a bit much for her too, and they would back off, but most of the time the pup was the rough one so we were more worried about the 14yr old with arthritis and bad eye sight getting beaten up by the crazy little pup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Fox 001 Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 We just kept reinforcing what we wanted from the older dog with a very firm NO when it looked like he was getting too rough. Our pup would squeal even if the older dog didn't actually bite him so it was hard to tell if it really was too rough but we figured if the little one was scared then it was too rough so we'd say NO. We did have some time outs where we seperated them if it was getting too full on but that was mostly so the pup would also learn what was acceptable behaviour. Our GSD is very responsive so a few No's or Leave it seemed to do the trick and he would give up. Now we take them to the beach and if a play fight erupts there is no stopping them but pup is nearly 7 months old now so he can hold his own and is usually the instigater of any rough play; but at home a firm NO will stop both of them in their tracks now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 23, 2009 Author Share Posted January 23, 2009 Thanks everyone I will use those tips. We are a bit disheartened this morning as all our older boy is doing is sooking off and looking depressed. He is not at all happy about her presence and will avoid her at any cost. She just wants to play with him and his just gets timid and runs away. I know these things take time but HELP! This is exactly what I was concerned about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Fox 001 Posted January 23, 2009 Share Posted January 23, 2009 Well it doesn't sound like you'll have any problems with the older dog bowling the pup over and generally playing rough It might just be a matter of time for the older dog to understand that the pup isn't going anywhere and for him/her to warm up to the idea. I certainly wouldn't force the issue, I'm sure they will come to some sort of understanding even if they don't become the best of buddies. We always acted like we got the pup for the older dog not that the pup was ours. So not patting the pup excessively or spending a lot more time with the pup than the older dog - this was very hard throwing the ball together, patting both at the same time. Ours had to share the back of the car together when we went places so the pup didn't get any special priviledges that the older dog didn't. Good luck, give it some time and see how they go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 23, 2009 Author Share Posted January 23, 2009 Well it doesn't sound like you'll have any problems with the older dog bowling the pup over and generally playing rough It might just be a matter of time for the older dog to understand that the pup isn't going anywhere and for him/her to warm up to the idea. I certainly wouldn't force the issue, I'm sure they will come to some sort of understanding even if they don't become the best of buddies.We always acted like we got the pup for the older dog not that the pup was ours. So not patting the pup excessively or spending a lot more time with the pup than the older dog - this was very hard throwing the ball together, patting both at the same time. Ours had to share the back of the car together when we went places so the pup didn't get any special priviledges that the older dog didn't. Good luck, give it some time and see how they go. Thanks! We are doing the same thing as you did it seems. The older dog is getting lots of attention and praise when he sniffs the puppy and basically allows her anywhere near him. Things have improved since yesterday. Our next door neighbours are away and we have been able to take them both over a few times a day for a run around on some fairly neutral territory. Its a night and day difference when we go there. The older dog relaxes and wags his tail and goes into a play stance. She gets bowled over a bit and this morning he was so enthused he just ran and did a leap over her whole body! Its been better at home too. When we got home last night they both had a sleep one metre apart for a couple of hours. I guess I just dont want the pup to miss out on attention that it needs because I have to consider the older dog so much. How is your pup now considering you had to minimise the attention the pup got? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirra_Bomber_Zeus Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 We are a bit disheartened this morning as all our older boy is doing is sooking off and looking depressed. He is not at all happy about her presence and will avoid her at any cost. She just wants to play with him and his just gets timid and runs away. I know these things take time but HELP! This is exactly what I was concerned about. Hello Its been a few years since I have posted to these forums but I too have a new pup - so I thought I would join in again Glad your older dog seems to be doing a bit better with the pup now - I understand your pain! When we first got our second pup (6 years ago) our 5 year old dog was completely depressed and afraid of her - I ended up getting quite upset because I thought they would never get along and we'd made a huge mistake. I kept trying to praise him for being near her etc but he just ran and hid right down the back of the garden everytime he saw her! After a couple of weeks I came out one morning and they were happily sleeping on the same bed. :cool: He just needed time to get used to the idea. Now we have another new pup, our older dog is now 11 and our other dog is 6. Our older dog is acting exactly the same this time. Our 6 year old was a bit standoffish and 'stiff' around him for the first few days but by this morning they were starting to play together. Ive kept our pup inside in a play pen and the older dogs outside while Im at work - just until I am 100% sure that they are all cool together Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Fox 001 Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Ohhh he still got heaps of attention and he is a very well adjusted little man :rolleyes: I don't think he is any different to if he had been an only dog, or had the heck smothered out of him. He is relatively obedient, but when he isn't it's our fault cause we haven't done enough with him but apart from that he is great, very outgoing and confident; but then I think that has a lot to do with the breed and the breeding as well as his formative first weeks with the breeder AND us of course. I am so glad to hear the tide seems to be turning for you and the dogs. Eventually they'll be the best of mates like our two I'm sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle proud Posted January 29, 2009 Author Share Posted January 29, 2009 UPDATE Things are going much better. Thank God! They play together and the older dog is even letting the pup pull on his tail and doesnt get phased. The pup wants to cuddle up to him but knows hes not keen on that yet so she will get inches from him and lie down. its so cute! The only real issue is the older dog is a bit snarly and snappy if hes on the lounge and she approaches him. I had some advice from someone that if he starts to get protective of items liike the lounge to lie him down, head on the floor and just firmly remind him that although he is top dog, I am the leader. I have done this a couple of times and this has helped a lot. This is lucky as we suspect she is part mountain goat and has learnt how to climb up on the lounge already! Kirra_bomber_zeus, I hope your new pup settles in just as well as your previous dog. I totally empathise with your experience. I know many people wouldnt think twice about bringing a second dog home and how the original dog would feel so its been nice to see people thinking similar things to me. Blue Fox, I think what you said in the post about "not smothering the heck out of the pup" is what I was thinking I should be doing . I probably normally would have done this but dont really have the option this time. Ive kept the pup in the pen when I am not around and have made sure the older dog gets to go on walks on his own and has time away from the pup. Thanks everyone for the advice, its been such a help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now