Behavior ?

bella'smom · Post by **bella'smom** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 1:03 pm

Hi! I have 2 bichons - Lucy, 2-1/2 yr old and Bella, 10 month old. I have a question about what to do in a situation that happens alot at our house! Whatever Lucy has, Bella wants! As Bella approaches Lucy, Lucy does a low growl as Bella stands and barks loudly at her. Sometimes Bella gives up and goes and gets something else. Sometimes Bella tries to grab it from her and they play tug-o-war. Usually in that case, Bella wins and gets the toy/bone.

Should I try to stop Lucy from growling? Should I let Bella know she needs to let Lucy have her toy/bone? Or should I do nothing?

Since I got Bella I have always tried to treat Lucy as the top dog, by letting her out the door 1st, feeding her 1st, etc. It seems to me though that Bella is more dominant. Am I doing the right thing?

Thanks everyone for your help! I've never owned two dogs at a time before!

Mollysmom · Post by **Mollysmom** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 2:33 pm

leave them alone

its your older dog's place to teach the pup dog manners.
Let them growl, the older dog may also snarl, show teeth and snap or bite at the younger dog.
DO NOT reprimand or become involved, stay out of it... that older dog will teach the younger one things about dog behavior the rest of us can only hope for. It sounds and looks a lot scarier than it is.
I promise you'll only do more damage than good if you try to intervene.
Don't ever attempt to teach a dog not to growl... its a good way to get a dog to bite "without warning" growling is dog for "back up Bub."
Also, you can't teach a dog to share or to leave a toy alone, they have to figure that out themselves.

bella'smom · Post by **bella'smom** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:09 pm

Thank you for your response! I sometimes feel bad for Lucy (my 1st and "good" girl) because it seems like Bella gets her way most of the time, plus another of my concerns is that Bella will act the same way to other dogs and they won't be as tolerant as Lucy!

I love Bella and I want her to be GOOD dog too!

Mollysmom · Post by **Mollysmom** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:27 pm

haha, she is a "good" dog too! she just has a vastly different personality than your older dog. Trust me, as she starts to get a bit older you'll notice a shift in what the older dog tolerates. (much like with human children there's a time frame in which certain behavior is no longer acceptable)

You should be socializing the younger dog with other dogs at this point so that she learns that what she can get away with at home doesn't carry over to ALL dogs, there will be more lenient dogs and less in the world and its good for her to learn the signs of an intolerant dog before she's an "adult" and bumbling around getting into trouble.

if you want a slightly humorous mental image think of a 30 year old woman tugging on your pant leg, whining and demanding to be "picked up"
acceptable with a toddler, less so when they're "grown"

bella'smom · Post by **bella'smom** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 7:50 am

Yes, you're right, Bella IS a GOOD dog just with a different personality than Lucy! I guess I'm doing to Bella what my Mother did to me - comparing me with my older sibling!

I have been socializing her since I got her at 12 weeks old, as I did with Lucy (although I got her at 8 weeks old). We take them everywhere possible!

I like the analogy of the 30 year old woman!

SO I guess that's why it seems like they aren't getting along quite as well lately?? Lucy's putting her foot down, so to speak, since Bella's growing up!

In any case, I think mainly I just need to RELAX!! Thanks for all your help, Mollysmom!