How do I keep a new dog from exerting his dominance in a new home?
I just brought home a new 7 year old lab mix male (90lbs). My home already has an IG (20lbs). With his food and treats and toys he is very gentle with myself and my 3 year old son. Without toys his plays well with my IG (that is used to being around only big dogs.) But when he has a toy he snarles and growls at my IG. Not at my son or at me, just at my IG. I get that he is trying to establish his dominance in his new home, but is there a way to keep from doing that. If he ever did go after him it could be fatal? (90 lbs against 20!) When I leave I am kenneling him until I can trust him but can I do when I am home? Any suggestions are welcome! Just as a side note, he is terrified of my two cats, any suggestions there would be nice too!
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March 9th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Your dog does not see you as his Pack Leader. If he did, he wouldn’t be growling at your IG, in your presence. Your new dog and the IG have pack/rivalry issues. Your new dog is already trying to take over, and he probably already knows how to work the owners. It is good that you keep him kennelled up while you’re not home. If your new dog and the IG do end up in a dog fight (in your case, it’s only a matter of WHEN it will happen) the results will be devastating. It sounds like you’ve never seen a dog fight. I’ll tell you, it is fast, vicious, violent, and loud. If you can’t control your lab now, you will NOT be able to control him during a dog fight. You shouldn’t attempt it, either. Dump a bucket full of water right between them. Trust me, it works. I used to own a pack of 4 dogs when I was a kid, and this would work with all my dogs. Your lab should be wearing a prong collar, and should be getting a correction by it. When your lab acts aggressive towards your IG, in a calm-assertive manner, say "NO!" and jerk the leash. The prong collar needs to be on while you do this. How hard you jerk the leash depends on the temperament of your dog. If it’s a stubborn dog, it most likely has a hard temperament. These dogs require strong corrections. Soft dogs, or dogs with soft temperaments, need soft corrections. You’ll have to experiment with these corrections. Start off by giving soft corrections and work your way up, until you find a level of correction that gets your dog to pay attention to you. Once you find the level of correction for your dog, apply that same level of correction each time he does not want to listen. Your goal is to teach the dog that the word "NO" means to stop what he is doing because it is wrong. I taught this to my stubborn, hyper rescue Malinois dog. This breed is not recommended for average pet owners because of their temperament. They’re dominant, hyper and require a Pack Leader, if not, it will drive you crazy, period. Police and Search and Rescue teams like to use this type of dog. Another thing, like someone had already mentioned here, don’t let them play with toys when they’re both running around at the same time. It’s common sense. If there are problems because of toys, don’t give them toys anymore. In fact, dogs don’t even need toys, they need good pack structure and exercise. That means that they need a strong and fair Pack Leader. Dogs crave a Pack Leader. If they have that, they’ll be happy dogs.