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Puppy annoyance with older dog
Hi everyone,
Do you have any suggestions for a playful 8 month old puppy and a 7 year old (not so playful) dog to get along better ? Would redirection help in this case ?
The puppy is annoying the older dog, getting in his face and the older dog air snaps and gives clear signals of wanting to be left along but the puppy continues. It may not have been a good match to begin with but here we are 🙂
Thank you !
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18 Replies
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Navigating the dynamics between a senior dog and a rambunctious puppy can be a delicate balancing act. Supporting your senior dog without correcting them when the puppy is being “too much” requires thoughtful strategies. Here are a few:
Create Safe Spaces: Designate areas where your senior dog can retreat to when the puppy’s energy is overwhelming. Baby gates, crates, or separate rooms can give your older dog a peaceful sanctuary. Always feed separately and supervise how they are using toys and beds. The resident/older dog should have preferential treatment; don’t scold or punish if they are claiming their space or taking their toy back (so long as they are being fair about any corrections.)
Structured Playtimes: Manage the puppy’s activity with the elder by scheduling supervised play sessions. This ensures the puppy learns boundaries while giving the senior dog a break. Choose times when the older dog is at their best, perhaps early in the day before night time aches and pains show up.
Puppy Pen and Leash: Utilize a puppy pen or keep the puppy on a leash indoors to prevent them from constantly pestering the older dog. If you are setting them up for success, the senior doesn’t have to “yell” quite so frequently.
Mental Stimulation: Engage the puppy in mental enrichment activities like puzzle toys or training sessions. Meeting the puppy’s needs is critical. Don’t leave out the senior, either! Make sure they have plenty of 1:1 with you and their own special things away from the pup.
Support & Training: Focus on teaching the puppy appropriate behaviors through positive reinforcement. Reward calm interactions and redirect inappropriate behavior gently but consistently. Don’t hesitate to remove the puppy after the senior has said, “nope” or been avoidant.
Balancing their needs takes patience and consistency, but with the right approach, you can foster a harmonious relationship between your senior dog and puppy. Let us know how it goes! And photos, please; we’d love to meet the characters in question!
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@Catherine – this is great , will definitely look into management in the home and see how we can make some changes that benefit all involved ! I’m big into canine enrichment and have already implemented that into our training sessions.
Thank you very much !
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Happy to help, @juli Keep us posted please!
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Hi @juli , you’ve already gotten such great advice from Catherine. Just want to add that you should plan on most if not all of the youngster’s aerobic exercise coming from activities that don’t involve the older dog – swimming, fetch, flirt pole, hide and seek, treasure hunts, etc. This helps shift the younger dog’s focus to the human who is providing so many fun activities, and this will allow the older dog to have peace and quiet.
And once the youngster has a good bout of aerobic activity, that could be the ideal time to bring the dogs together for a calm, “let’s just settle in the same room together” training session where each dog is rewarded for settling calmly in the same area.
If it’s possible to find the youngster other dog friends so he can have regular playdates, that’ll take away the sting of not being able to play with the older dog in the home.
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Fabulously wise recommendations here, @virginiad – Wonderful contribution to the discussion; thank you!
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Such amazing tips! I also love a play pen gate in the main area that they can see each other and reward calm behavior and reward older dog being in same area. I agree with @virginiad abput playing games with pup and than bringing into situation.
When I worked in daycare we always redirected the pups when needed before the older dog had enough. Even a simple head turn from the older dog we redirected.
@catherine is totally right it’s a balancing game!
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“Senior Support” was the phrase I used a LOT when I was teaching puppy classes (oh, how I miss puppy classes!) The older dog shouldn’t have to yell to get their needs met.
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That is SO true. I always recommend the pet parent intervene after the senior dog gives a moderate signal for the youngster to stop or give them space. With consistency, the youngster can learn to register the more subtle signals rather than needing to be screamed at before they get the message.
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I had that problem too with my puppy and senior dog. When Violet, my puppy looked at my senior dog, PD, I would capture it with a reward marker “yes” then treat. What Violet learned after many captures was the correct behavior was to look and not touch. It actually worked. You could also teach a leave it when the pup looks at the older dog.
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That is absolute genius, @JCongdon ! So glad you shared that!
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That “look, don’t touch” is freakin’ BRILLIANT, @JCongdon – I’m guessing the pup would disconnect and come to you for the treat as well!? LOVE LOVE this!
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Yes. She usually did or just disengaged. I didn’t make her come to me as long as she left PD alone. I was vigilant about capturing disengagement which was a lot in the beginning. PD was so old that I never let Violet play with her. You could obviously teach a “ play cue” for when they could play. And a disengagement cue for leave alone.
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Lovely, just lovely. The trick to all of this is coaching the pet owners who may be less vigilant than we are… any tips there? How would you communicate this strategy so that it seems workable for a busy family who have two dogs and, well, less interest than we typically do about such things? How do we make it a priority for them? Did you see results right away?
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Yes for families with children it is difficult. Management may be a better solution. Probably tethering the pup to an adult so the “annoying” behavior isn’t practiced. As trainers, it is easier for us to implement these things because we are so invested in it. I am working with my 3 grandchildren now and their new pup and there will be NO capturing in that house! Fortunately they have a tolerant adult dog but I do encourage them to let the older dog have her own space. I guess all we can do is explain what may work and hope they cooperate! If not, go to plan B!
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So true, Jackie… a home with little people is rarely calm, quiet or predictable which just adds to the stress for the dogs, especially an older dog. who didn’t grow up with the kids. Solutions that are management vs training/capturing are a win for sure.
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Related – I once helped a woman who had trained a sniffing dog and had a tight relationship. She’d gotten a puppy and her working dog HATED the puppy. He wasn’t terribly dog social to begin with, but having to share his mawm with a puppy was simply too much. In addition to having a puppy pen to keep them apart, I suggested:
Puppy Tax: When you take the pup out for training or play, give your senior something they wouldn’t ordinarily have, like a special chew or packed Kong. They’ll start to look forward to you interacting with the pup!
She implemented this and called me 2 weeks later saying her working dog was starting to show affiliative signs toward the pup and especially enjoyed getting his Kong when she’d take the pup out to train. Within two months, she was starting to be able to allow short sessions together. Later, they became fast friends.
Success!
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That’s awesome! Looks like some counter conditioning happened!
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Indeed. That, plus some really careful management and not rushing introductions and there was a really happy relationship built. Woot!
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