luvzcavs
Well-known member
As you may be aware my Mum got her new puppy (Toby) on Tuesday, when we introduced my boys to Toby we did it one at a time and things went reasonably well. My men were a bit scared but I was not all that surprised as they are not very well socialised at all and have had fear issues since being attacked by a jack russel when they were pups.
Every now and then when Toby does something puppy like, run around or mouth in their direction they really freak out and start to get aggressive toward him. If it is one on one eg Harry and Toby they are ok as Harry will give a tiny nip but you can see he is just setting the boundry and teaching manners but if it is Harry and Digby they get really nasty and almost herd him and give some more serious bites in his (Toby) direction. I try and get their attention onto me and they will not respond, like they are in some kind of frenzy ? All I can do is either drag them off till they calm down or pick up the little one to get him out of their reach.
I realise this will take time and patience and there are jealousy issues aswell as fear issues but in the mean time how do I stop this aggression and keep Toby safe, I am concerned Toby will get hurt. He is a really well socialised pup and quite sure of himself he has no problems holding his own and does not really care when they start their carry on unless of course they do the nasty biting, herding thing. I really do not want this knocked out of him by my two being bullies, and realise that due to the size difference alone this can not go on regardless of how well balanced he is.
I also feel like I do not know my own dogs, and do not understand why they are doing this. Is it pack like ?
We can not take lots of time introducing them as at times they have to be in the same space (Mum babysits when I am doing nightshift and double shifts) but at present we could and would never have them together without there being at least two of us.
I am really upset about it and feel stupid and naive again to think it would of just worked because they are lovely cavaliers. :x
I have all these thoughts going through my head........
Should I employ a professional straight away ?
Should I keep introducing them little and often which is what I'm doing at present ? lots of rewards for positive interaction and remove when negative occurs.
Should I put a muzzle on Digby (he is the aggressor) or will this make him worse or like a punishment and attack more when the muzzle eventually comes off ?
Should we put Toby in his crate when/if this occurs ( he loves his crate) but then is this fair on Toby ? He is just being a pup.
Do I have to give up and wait a long while so Toby is big enough to hold his own ? This will be extremely difficult due to work commitments and even then will it work ?
oh oh oh I want to slap myself so hard for not knowing these answers, I can just imagine watching myself on one of those programs doing eveything wrong like the people that feed their dogs icecream and chocolate.
I need help and lots of it. Please don't be too harsh in your feedback as I know I have it wrong but can not figure out which part or how to fix it and I'm afraid if this advice is too harsh I might slip into a bigger pool of self pity.
Every now and then when Toby does something puppy like, run around or mouth in their direction they really freak out and start to get aggressive toward him. If it is one on one eg Harry and Toby they are ok as Harry will give a tiny nip but you can see he is just setting the boundry and teaching manners but if it is Harry and Digby they get really nasty and almost herd him and give some more serious bites in his (Toby) direction. I try and get their attention onto me and they will not respond, like they are in some kind of frenzy ? All I can do is either drag them off till they calm down or pick up the little one to get him out of their reach.
I realise this will take time and patience and there are jealousy issues aswell as fear issues but in the mean time how do I stop this aggression and keep Toby safe, I am concerned Toby will get hurt. He is a really well socialised pup and quite sure of himself he has no problems holding his own and does not really care when they start their carry on unless of course they do the nasty biting, herding thing. I really do not want this knocked out of him by my two being bullies, and realise that due to the size difference alone this can not go on regardless of how well balanced he is.
I also feel like I do not know my own dogs, and do not understand why they are doing this. Is it pack like ?
We can not take lots of time introducing them as at times they have to be in the same space (Mum babysits when I am doing nightshift and double shifts) but at present we could and would never have them together without there being at least two of us.
I am really upset about it and feel stupid and naive again to think it would of just worked because they are lovely cavaliers. :x
I have all these thoughts going through my head........
Should I employ a professional straight away ?
Should I keep introducing them little and often which is what I'm doing at present ? lots of rewards for positive interaction and remove when negative occurs.
Should I put a muzzle on Digby (he is the aggressor) or will this make him worse or like a punishment and attack more when the muzzle eventually comes off ?
Should we put Toby in his crate when/if this occurs ( he loves his crate) but then is this fair on Toby ? He is just being a pup.
Do I have to give up and wait a long while so Toby is big enough to hold his own ? This will be extremely difficult due to work commitments and even then will it work ?
oh oh oh I want to slap myself so hard for not knowing these answers, I can just imagine watching myself on one of those programs doing eveything wrong like the people that feed their dogs icecream and chocolate.
I need help and lots of it. Please don't be too harsh in your feedback as I know I have it wrong but can not figure out which part or how to fix it and I'm afraid if this advice is too harsh I might slip into a bigger pool of self pity.