Dogs are sociable animals that, in the wild, usually form groups that maintain a hierarchical structure, in which members protect themselves and collaborate for mutual nutrition to ensure the survival of their species. For this reason, many guardians think of adopting a puppy to keep their dog company and encourage him to be more sociable.
However, this desire that is yours, at the same time, lives with some doubts, like “what if my dog is jealous of the new puppy?” or “how do you get two dogs to get along?” Here’s what we’ll help you in this Animal Expert article that explains how to get used to a dog to another puppy.
- The first thing you should know.
- Before presenting your dog with a new puppy.
- Is that adaptation is a gradual process.
- In which each individual can take their time to get used to a new reality or a change in their daily life.
- This means that the adaptation of a dog to other dogs.
- Whether puppies or adults.
- Does not occur overnight and requires planning by its guardians.
Each dog will have their own time to adapt to the presence of a new puppy in their territory and you will have to support your hair to go through this process as best you can. In addition to ever forcing him to share his territory and objects, you’ll need to stimulate his curiosity so that he’s attracted to interacting with the new member of your family.
Using this article, we will give you several tips to help you understand how to get a puppy used to another puppy safely and positively.
territoriality is present in all species and, without it, would hardly survive in the wild. How kind and sociable your dog is, territoriality is part of the canine nature and, in one way or another, will appear in your daily behavior. That is precisely why it is so important to socialize puppies from an early age, to teach them to have positive relationships with other animals and strangers.
Se você começa a socializar o seu cachorro desde que ele é um filhote, perceberá que a sua adaptação ao novo integrante da família será mais simples. Porém, se você adotou um cão adulto ou não teve a oportunidade de socializar seu filhote no tempo ideal, deve saber que também é possível realizar com sucesso a socialização de cachorros adultos, sempre com muita paciência, afeta e a ajuda do reforço positivo.
Your dog understands, of course, that his home is his territory and his instincts will lead him to reject or suspect at first the presence of strange individuals who, in his opinion, may pose a threat to the balance of his environment. Therefore, an excellent practice to help your dog adapt with another puppy is to keep their first encounters in a neutral place, such as a friend’s house for example. As a puppy that has not yet completed its vaccination schedule, it is recommended to avoid public spaces with unknown dogs.
During the first encounters, you should be attentive to the body language of the dogs to check that they are in a positive relationship and that there are no signs of aggression. If there is no indication of possible aggression, it should not interfere with their interactions, as dogs have their own body language and social codes of conduct. And don’t be afraid to let them interact, as the puppy may be in contact with another vaccinated dog and current treatments for worms and parasites.
Improvisations and lack of planning are often the worst enemies in the dog process with other dogs. Before the puppy reaches their new home, you’ll need to prepare your home to welcome you with the comfort and safety it deserves at this important time in your life. It is also essential that the environment is designed to promote the integration of dogs, but without forcing them to share moments and objects against their will.
In this sense, it is essential that each dog has its own accessories, including food and drink cans, bedding, toys, etc. In addition, initially, the rest and play areas of the two dogs should not be so close, to avoid conflicts in the territory.
After the first meetings on neutral ground, it’s time to guide your first interactions at home. Your dog must be the first to enter the house without a collar so that he can move freely, just as he returns from all his daily walks.
Later, you can arrive with the puppy who has to hold the leash for the first few minutes inside the house. When you let go, the furry one will probably want to explore the house and feel all the smells of this new environment.
At this point, you should be very attentive to your dog to see how it reacts to the farming behavior of the puppy. If you feel uncomfortable or reject the presence of the other dog, you should limit the space where the puppy may be loose and gradually enlarge it, as your dog becomes accustomed to the presence of this new family member.
To encourage them in this process, spend a special moment of your days playing with your dogs, learn them and reward them for their good behavior. But remember that dogs can only be free at home without supervision when the older dog has already accepted and feels comfortable interacting with the puppy.
Some dogs may express a feeling very similar to jealousy after the arrival of a new member in their family. In Animal Expert we have a specific article about jealous dogs, in which we teach you what to do to improve coexistence and encourage your adaptation to your new routine.
However, in the most severe cases, the dog is so possessive with its caregivers and its properties that it responds aggressively to any person or animal that tries to approach its “favorite human”. This is called resource protection and occurs when a dog realizes that something or someone is such an important resource for their well-being that it even calls aggression to avoid losing them. In nature, resource protection is critical to species survival. But when it comes to pets, it becomes an extremely dangerous behavioral problem that requires proper treatment.
Therefore, if you notice that your dog is behaving possessively, trying to attack the new puppy, it will be essential to seek the help of a properly trained professional, as a canine educator or ethologist. These professionals will help you understand the causes of this misconduct as a best friend and promote your coexistence with other animals and strangers.
Although unusual, the older dog eventually flees from the younger after arriving home. Problems of interaction between dogs are usually related to poor socialization (or in some cases non-existent). As mentioned above, socialization is a key aspect of canine education because it allows them to develop their self-confidence and teaches them to have positive relationships with people and the stimuli that make up their environment.
However, if you’ve just adopted a dog, you realize you’re afraid of other dogs, your new best friend may have had traumatic experiences and/or have a history of physical and emotional abuse. Again, your best alternative will be to seek the help of an ethologist or canine educator to investigate the possible causes of this excessively fearful behavior and try to restore the confidence and security your dog needs to enjoy his social life.
If you want to read articles similar to How to get used to a dog to another puppy, we recommend that you go to our Basic Education section.