Too rough with new pup?

C

Chinchi

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Tonight my neighbours popped round with their 9 week old King Charles spaniel puppy Romeo. He's so small!! They wanted to introduce him to Darla as he hasn't met many dogs and they know how friendly Darla is. He was nervous at first but seemed fine with Darla, but I just want to check that Darla was playing nicely with him and not being too rough.

She has always had this obsession of having to touch everything new with her nose, so that came as no surprise, but she didn't leave the poor little guy alone. She was constantly in his face with her schnoze and he seemed to take it well, but I felt I had to constantly pull her back to give him so space ( he sat in his owners lap the whole time). Should I try and correct her?

The naughty bit that I did notice and told her off for was she slammed her front paw in the pups face and raked him with it. She does this to us sometimes when we ask for 'paw' and it can really hurt. Romeo let out a cry and we told her off but she went straight back to nudging him with her nose.

When I did hold her back to give him some space she started whining to get near him again. I made the mistake of telling her no (giving her attention when she is fussing), but of course she didn't listen, she's too fixated on little Romeo. When she started whining again I put her outside for a time out to give Romeo a little break as he was getting tired at that point.

I know she needs more socialisation with older dogs to get her used to behaving with a little more respect, but was her behaviour bad with Romeo or was it just typical puppy excitement? She's a year old next week!
 
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I'm also curious to know what people have to say about this behaviour.
I have the same problem when my friend brings her mini schnauzer over, but her dog is 3 years old. Unfortunately I haven't figured out a solution yet. The only thing that seems to provide a temporary solution is to distract him with a treat. My sheltie (9 months) goes to the dog park where he behaves very well so I'm starting to think that it's not so much lack of socialization but just puppy over-excitement in a one-to-one situation.
 
I'm no dog expert or anything, but I have four dogs who do this with each other all the time. The paw going across another dogs face appears to be an invitation to play. Mine do it all the time. At first I thought it was a warning to the others to back off, but as soon as one dog clubs another the game is on. Other times one will walk over to a sleeping dog and give him/her a little nip, and again the game is on. They dont seem to do this at the dog park but at home it happens daily. When another dog comes over they sniff for what seems like hours and then out comes the paws to play.
Becky mom of Bristol, Charlotte, Sparky and Phoenix
 
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Yep, 6-month-old Sammy and our daughter's 4-1/2 month old Lab/Retriever mix do this all the time. The only difference is, they're pretty close in size (although the Lab/Retriever is quickly gaining on him). They growl at each other, too, and generally carry on like hooligans. Sammy plays like this with a little 1-1/2 year old Puggle that we met at the park, and also tries it with the cat, which he does not get away with. She can take care of herself quite well, thank you very much.

I think older dogs know how to be gentle with a much smaller puppy, but puppies are less controlled. Janet
 
I'll have to post a vid of Cadbury (my lab) whacking Merlin on the head during play. It is a very common dog behaviour, however I would not allow her to do this to a very young pup. I waited until Merlin was six months before I allowed proper play with my two.

When doing introductions like this I would always play it cautious and if you think the pup has had enough remove Darla, like you did. As the pup gets older he will want to play more, so Darla can have fun then.
 
Thanks all for sharing your knowledge and experiences. Romeo didn't seem too upset at being nosed and clawed, but I won't let Darla push him around too much as there is such a big size and strength difference. Plus, I want all doggy experiences to be good for Romeo too!

Thanks again :smile2:
 
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