New Puppy

[Jillyc]

Hi we have just had an addition to our family, her name is Chloe and she is 12 weeks old, but we are having problems with Harvey who is 5 years old and keeps running away or when he does get by her he growls which so out of character, Does have any words of wisdom that could help.

Love jill xxxxx

[Coco-Ben]

Hi Jill,

we had a new little girl when my Benji was coming up for 3. He was a bit cautious at first and would run away from her and didn't like to get too close. I did try putting Coco closer to him when he was lying down and quiet but as soon as he noticed that she was there, he'd jump a mile.
If like Benji, Harvey had been 'the only child' so to speak then it will be strange for him and he's most likely running away from her as he doesn't know her or what she's all about. The growling will be his way of letting her know that he's in charge.
I learned that just letting them get on with it was best and they are now inseperable and play fight is about as nasty as they get. Benji will now allow Coco to stand beside him with her paws on his back, he doesn't even make a fuss when she pounces on him when he's asleep.
The most important thing is not to show alarm when he growls and ensure that he gets just as much attention as he was before she came along and before you know it, they will be best of friends.
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[dieselsmummy]

Hi Jill.

I have Diesel who is 3, and Gucci who is 5 months.
I got Gucci at 7 weeks, and experienced EXACTLY the same thing...
For nine long days and nine long nights Diesel TOTALLY ignored Gucci...he ran off whenever Gucci came near, like he thought Gucci had the lurgy! And, if they did get close then Diesel would growl, which wasn't in his nature at all.
I was quite distraught, thinking I had made a whopping huge mistake in getting Gucci.
So, we all made an effort not to fuss over Gucci when Diesel was about...taking Diesel for extra walks meant the remaining people in the house could then play with Gucci while Diesel was gone etc...
On day ten I was in my kitchen having a cuppa with a friend who loves dogs...she made a huge fuss of Diesel, and then when Gucci came running out she stroked him too, and before I knew it, Diesel and Gucci were playing!!
Whether it was because there was a "neutral" person around, I dont know...but after that it got better.


Now, 3 months on, they are fine. Gucci aggravates the life out of Diesel - stealing his toys and food, chomping on his ears and tail...and Diesel is very, very tolerant. He will however make a stand when he has had enough...and he knows just how to put Gucci in his place without hurting him. Gucci is testing him a lot at the moment, but Im careful to stay out of their disputes, as Diesel has to be Alpha Male!!!

Good luck, and try not to worry. I hope this helps xxx

[Jillyc]

Thank you have made me feels so much better and that the man with the torch will stop running soon as there is light at the end of the tunnel:-D

[dieselsmummy]

Good good!!!

[Keris]

Hi Jill,

All I can say is what you have been advised already.

From my own experience's,
when introducing a new family member,
it is very important that you make more of a fuss of your existing apso,
and less fuss of the new apso.

Apso's are like children,
they get their noses pushed out of joint.

Once they start to realise that the new apso is not going anywhere,
that they are there to stay,
something just clicks,
they start to tolerate each other,
then the sharing of food & water bowls,
then playing and eventually sharing toys.

Let us know how the introduction goes,
and how they settle down together in the near future.