Help Unhappy Dog

[wba_stephen]

We have a 21month Whippet dog, who we have had from a pup. 3 weeks ago we added a 2 year old Whippet bitch to the house. Believeing she would be company for the dog. However we are having problems with the dog accepting her. He will not allow here to do anything i.e she runs up the garden he chases her growling and pins her to the ground. If she tries to get close to him he moves away and sits in another room. He can be quite nasty to her.

Is this normal or should he have accepted her by now? Any suggestions to help him accept her?

Thanks

 

[jinnyfizz]

Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, a whippet relationship just isn't a happy one

They all differ and it sounds as though your boy is quite possessive of his home and he sees your new girl as an intruder. You don't say if either or both of them are neutered but hormones play a huge part in a dog's life and can dictate virtually every move a dog or bitch makes!

After a couple of weeks I would have expected things to have settled although it can take longer. They are very close in age and this can also be an issue. Sometimes it is better to bring a puppy into the home which is much easier for the older dog to accept.

Give them a bit more time and see what happens. If you can pre-empt your dog's behaviour and distract him from unwanted dominance over the bitch then that would help. Let him know that you don't approve of him acting in that way and reward him when he leaves her alone. Another way to create a "bonding" situation is to scatter a handful of small kibble (such as James Wellbeloved puppy food) on the floor so that they have to move around each other to pick up the bits. They learn to share and tolerate each other in this way.

Ultimately, a good long walk in each other's company every day should help the bonding too as they will become a team outside the house and normally that will strengthen their relationship at home, fingers crossed! :thumbsup:

Good luck! Let us know how things go and if you want to give us a ring at Scruples for a chat about it all then please do - 0845 625 6211

 

[Lisa S]

Hi, we have a male of 5 years and recently got another male but a puppy. My older dog just ignored the pup at first and he growled if he came anywhere near when he was lying down and was very dominant with him so exactly how you are describing really.

We are 2 to 3 months down the line and although things are not perfect they are much much better. They will sort of lay together (bums only touching) but he will still not allow him to lay in his bed with him or snuggle up so i reckon this will happen in time or it will never happen which is fine as they do now get on in other ways and are both happy dogs which is the main thing. They do a lot of play fighting which is usually good natured although sometimes gets a bit out of hand but the pup gives as good as he gets and is not worried by it at all so I just let them get on with it.

They are starting to play together quite nicely but my older dog still pins the little one down when he gets too excited but he does not hurt him and the little one could not give a hoot.

So what i would say to you is give it time, make sure you give the older one plenty of attention (we always give him stuff first etc so he never feels pushed out). I love the fact that they have each other for company and having 2 dogs is good fun and hopefully things will get even better so please persevere with them and good luck.

 

[Hula]

It can take up to 6 months to settle a new dog in so its still very early days .

Give them both time and space and I'm sure everything will eventually be fine .

Don't expect too much too soon

 

[gypsysmum]

We often, mistakenly, think that single dogs want another dog around. If a single dog is happy with his lot then another dog coming in to the house can be a big upset.

I would try to give each dog individual attention so that they know they are special to you. Also I would ignore any interaction that goes on between the two dogs as it is very easy to upset the delicate balance that they are trying to achieve. As they are both young I am sure that, in time. they will work out their own relationship.

 

[wba_stephen]

Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, a whippet relationship just isn't a happy one
They all differ and it sounds as though your boy is quite possessive of his home and he sees your new girl as an intruder. You don't say if either or both of them are neutered but hormones play a huge part in a dog's life and can dictate virtually every move a dog or bitch makes!

After a couple of weeks I would have expected things to have settled although it can take longer. They are very close in age and this can also be an issue. Sometimes it is better to bring a puppy into the home which is much easier for the older dog to accept.

Give them a bit more time and see what happens. If you can pre-empt your dog's behaviour and distract him from unwanted dominance over the bitch then that would help. Let him know that you don't approve of him acting in that way and reward him when he leaves her alone. Another way to create a "bonding" situation is to scatter a handful of small kibble (such as James Wellbeloved puppy food) on the floor so that they have to move around each other to pick up the bits. They learn to share and tolerate each other in this way.

Ultimately, a good long walk in each other's company every day should help the bonding too as they will become a team outside the house and normally that will strengthen their relationship at home, fingers crossed! :thumbsup:

Good luck! Let us know how things go and if you want to give us a ring at Scruples for a chat about it all then please do - 0845 625 6211

 

[wba_stephen]

Thank you for all your comments.

We have been away to the Lake District for the last 2 weeks with the dogs and they generally were OK. They are starting to spend more time close together and they will sleep on the sofa touching.

We still have the issue of when she is off the lead running he gets aggressive and chases her. This is worrying and only last night she managed to escape here lead (I still do not know how) and he chased her out of the fields onto the road. Since we returned home he is continually trying to mount her and is generally bullying her.

The dog is neutered and the bitch is booked in at the Vet on 13th September, she had pups in June so we have had to wait 3 months.

We have been trying to distract him from dominance over the bitch and letting him know that we don't approve of him acting in that way and reward him when he leaves her alone. They eat together and in fact swop bowls with no aggression. They walk in each other's company every day on a double lead and again no problem.

We are going to discuss with the vet and will keep you updated, any further ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[bertha]

That's it, she is not long off a litter and her hormones will be all over the place, even though your dog is castrated they can still get interested. My castrated dog will happily mate an in season bitch!!!!!!

I am sure after she is spayed things will settle down. Chasing and attacking, well that's another thing. I can't let my castrated dog run with any of mine as he just wants to down them all the time, that's him. Some are like that. There are no set rules on running free, dogs will do what they want unless you are prepared to spend a lot of time training.

You will find that in time they will find their own level. Don't give up.

:luck: