Teddy is not standing up for himself...

Hi all of you experts!
As previously noted, Teddy, 3 years old is a very calm and submissive dog. Enter now Katydid the puppy. She insists on chasing him all over the place grabbing at his tail and ears and Teddy just takes it with his eyes bugging out of his head. I try and stay back and let them work it out. Teddy is not letting her know that she is getting on his very last nerve. It has been over a week since Katy came into our family and they will cuddle on the couch with me...Teddy insists on being on one side of me---the opposite side of Katy.
That's okay, I want him to be comfortable. How can I help him?
He would be okay if she would not harrass him. Is it still too soon?
What behavior should I expect him to exhibit to tell her to back off?
I feel bad for him. Katy is being pure puppy and then some with him!

Thanks!
Nancy
NJ

Phoebe chased the living daylights out of my sister's big dog.But it soon passed. It was a puppy thing . However they don't live together!!
Good luck.

Hi Nancy, I don't know enough about this to be much help to you. I have added a puppy to a puppy household, and an adult to an existing 2 adult household. But have not yet added a puppy to an adult.

I'm hoping experts like Sandy or Bruce will advise you.

Until then, you might want to manage their time together closely and use an xpen for little Katydid. I'm going to look in Patricia McConnell's booklet "Feeling Outnumbered?" about multi-dog households to see if she addresses this situation.

Can't wait to see more photos of them! :flwr:

Thank you, Cathy Moon! :flwr:
Katy does have an expen and uses it but she needs to run around and play and I think she thinks Teddy is one of her toys...... !

Hi Nancy,

Maybe try and distract her away from Teddy a bit? It's hard, I know. Charlie is only just having his puppyhood now and Maxx is so soft and dopey just like Teddy.

Eventually, Teddy will learn to growl gently at Katydid - just enough to warn her - when he gets fed up!

In the meantime, try not to make too much fuss about it when she's driving him mad - it'll only reinforce the idea that there's something to be upset about. Just try and ignore it - even though it's hard.

It's late now and I'm half asleep, but I'll have a think on this a bit more and get back to you tomorrow xxx

A lot of dogs don't really seem to mind all the harrassment -- including ear chewing etc -- those are things adults tolerate from puppies -- and when they do get tired of it, they will make it clear to the puppy. But if you feel he is really being tormented I agree with others' advice; get an xpen where you can pop the puppy in to play on its own with its toys. Or give Teddy somewhere he can go that the puppy cannot follow. Generally it is easier to stick the puppy in an xpen however. As the pup gets a bit older it won't be quite as bothersome. Also make sure there are lots of toys to distract the puppy with.

Thanks---I want you all to know how much I appreciate your knowledge.
Teddy will run upstairs then bark for me at the top to see if the coast is clear. My dad was away all week and came home and, this man is soooo good with dogs. He has BOTH up on the couch and Teddy was vegging out as this is his place to do so BUT Katy was distracted on purpose by dad and he settled her down and she did exactly what he told her to do. SHe behaves so well for him (with me she attacks the seat cushions as well as Teddy). She (with Dad) calmly approached Teddy and sniffed him and kissed him and nuzzled him but when she tried to bite his tail or ears, Dad distracted immediately and she was fine---and Teddy was fine TOO! The ex-pen is a real life-saver! She gets plopped in at various times of the day and ENJOYS it!
The first week was a big adjustment for all of us. Going into the second week now, is still trying for Teddy but I see a tiy bit of progress. Just waiting for the day he puts her in her place. DO you think he knows she is a baby???

Again, I DO appreciate ALL of the help I get here. You people are the best. :flwr:
Thank you!

Hi Nancy, it sounds like your dad is working his magic on them!! :lol:

Well, I couldn't find anything about puppies in Patricia McConnell's booklet, but one thing might be helpful - she says that the pack leader needs to be a leader and set limits on what behavior is acceptable in a multi-dog family.

However, your little Katydid is so young, all you really can do is distract her and give Teddy breaks from her, which you are doing. Before you know it she will grow up a little more and learn how to behave. :flwr:

Nancy

I am also going through the same thing as I mentioned in my PM to you,
I can tell you it will get a bit better with time.
Dudley like Teddy tolerated and still does tolerate a lot from Darby, but Dudley will let Darby know when he has had enough. :wggle: He never used to play with Darby much in the first few weeks, but as time passed he got used to this pesky little puppy that has an endless amount of energy. :shock:

Teddy I believe has a similar personality to Dudley, and Nancy he just needs more time. :hug:
When Dudley has had enough of Darby he heads for his crate and enjoys his time alone. :slp:
Like Donna said, try not to let on that it is upsetting you as it will only reinforce the behaviour from both of them. :shock:
Darby is always nipping at Dudley's ears and wanting to play, Dudley has learned to put him in his place when he is fed up and Teddy will do the same. Although you may not think he will now, he will I promise you in another month you will see a huge difference in Teddy. :w**h**:

I would make sure that you are still giving Teddy the same attention that you were before but he also has to learn that little Katy is not going away too. :l*v: Frank was afraid to bond with Darby the first few weeks, as Dudley looked so so sad and upset. :cry*ing:
But this was only reinforcing this behavious in Dudley so Frank started cuddling with Darby and yes Dudley did get upset Nancy but he also had to learn that his little brother was not going away. :shock: He has accepted Darby, but I am finding out that Dudley does not do to well and seems to stress when put into a situation with more than a few other dogs. :cry*ing:

Keep your chin up, Teddy will be fine and I bet in another month you will be posting a thread about how he is accepting her.


Having two dogs, takes getting used to. It is a huge change for both yourself and Teddy, but with time it will get better. :hug:
We have had Darby almost 3 months now, and I see a huge huge difference in Dudley. :w**h**:

If you want Pm me and we can share stories. :hug:

Like others have said, it really is a puppy thing that Katydid will outgrow at least to a certain extent. When we have a puppy we are keeping, we go through the same thing. Seems like the puppy figures out which dog will take the most "abuse" and then is relentless! If it looks like it's getting a little too rough (Hey! He needs those ears to show!!!), we yell at the puppy and give it a time out in an x-pen. Right now our two youngest, Grant & Deuce, have decided to pick in Pixxie. But lately as we watched very closely, if those two would let up for a second, Pixxie would attack them and start it all over. So, while it looks like Pixxie is really getting it, she also must enjoy it too.

Just be patient and break it up if things get too out of hand. Dogs seem to have a way of working things out eventually. Sooooooo. Aren't puppies fun? A lot of work, but fun?

BTW, you should see what happens with a litter of puppies. We let our litters out with the adults once they become big enough to interact. Once in a while you just see those furry little minds working together and they will all gang up on one of the adults all at once! It really is so funny to watch. And it is also amazing how patient and gentle the adults are with the puppies. Even when they discipline the puppies, it's more noise than anything.