Any tips for introducing new dogs?

[Betsy1313]

My family and I are adopting two four year old cavalier gents as their current mommy is too overwhelmed with all her animals to keep them all. We have one cavalier and are a wee bit nervous about introducing two new dogs into the house, as we've always been a one dog household.

Soo. Any tips, stories of introducing cavs to each other, techniques, things to watch for or expect? I know most of you have multiple cavs, so I would love to hear how they get along!

 

[Moviedust]

I suggest introducing the new dogs to your current dog individually, so that your current dog is not overwhelmed. I also suggest that you do the first introductions on neutral territory, like a park. Once your dog has met each of the new dogs separately, bring all three together at once, still on neutral ground. If all goes well (and it generally does), then you can introduce the new dogs to the yard and house. If the park meeting goes splendidly, you can probably do this with all three dogs at once. However, if there's even a hint of "unsuredness," I'd introduce the new dogs to the house and grounds without the current dog. Then once they have explored, reintroduce them to your current dog inside the house.

The reason for meeting on neutral ground is to avoid issues of territory guarding--you want all dogs involved to meet each other without the concerns about territory. When they meet again the second time in the house, the territory grounds could be an issue, but it is helpful if the dogs are not "new" to each other.

These are the steps that I've used when introducing my three dogs to each other. I have not had any serious problems, and they've sorted out their little pack quite easily.

Good luck!

 

[Betsy1313]

Thank you for your response! We'll be starting the process on Saturday and I appreciate hearing what has worked for you!