Introducing a new dog into the household...I need advice!!!

[thedarkrocker]

I have recently introduced a new dog into the household. I am seeking any tips on things I should do and watch for.

I only have one other dog which I have had since a puppy. Both dogs are pitbulls, and from the same litter. My dog is a female and the new dog is male. Both are 1 1/2 years. Both dogs are very friendly, well behaved, and house broken. The female frequently mounts the male when they play. She seems to be a little more serious while the male remains more happy-go-lucky. The male is also not neutered yet (will be soon). He was raised in a family with young children. The family took good care of him and trained him well.

It would seem like things should be about as good as I could ask for, but I am most worried about any dominance issues.

Thanks for any help!

[Fundog]

Lucky you, it sounds like the hard part has already been done for you (the house training)! So other than the female trying to mount the male during play (that's sort of normal, by the way), do they seem to get along well then? Is the female spayed or intact? That could make a bit of a difference later on, in regards to dominance order between the two.

Do exercise caution with meal times, and make sure they each have their own dish and their own personal space to eat in, keep them separated while feeding, etc. If they have something to chew on, try to keep an eye on the whereabouts of those items-- sometimes one dog might drop his somewhere, or bury it, and forget where he left it, then see the other with her chewy and try to take it from her, and vice versa. This situation can result in a quarrel, which needs to be prevented and/or broken up immediately. Same with toys.

And sometimes one might develop an attachment to a certain toy, and won't want to share, so watch for that. You can try to work it out however is good for your household. I've got one that at first developed an attachment for soft stuffed toys, and the other doesn't give a rat's behind, so it was fine. Now that none of the toys are new, they are not so important anymore.

Well have fun with your latest addition-- I've found dogs are like potato chips: I can't have just one. And if one is fun, two is double the fun!

[MaiasMom]

When you have more than one dog in the house there is going to be one that is more dominate. Unless they are ripping each other apart, let it be what it will be. Humping is normal, sometimes my three will get playing and one of them will get "the humpies" the humpee gets a bit wicked and puts the humper in his/her place.

Now Tre is funny. He has doggy CP. he will be walking along and get what I call a case of "the air humpies" he will just start humping nothing. We were at the off leash and he got a case of it and some guy standing next to me looks down at him and says "way to go Man!" Everyone started laughing, poor Tre put his tail down. Tre came butt first and was a bit oxygen deprived. He has some issues I call Doggy CP. He will forget where he is going or why he was going there. He is a very sweet big boy but has his issues, guess that is shy his mother Maia would take him and stuff him under my bed when people came to select one of her puppies, she knew something was not right and wanted to keep him so I did.

[Mattie]

It is your house you set the rules, if you are not comfortable with what they are doing, rough play etc. then interupt it to stop it. I don't allow racing round the furniture but do allow playing on the rug. I don't allow humping but do allow sniffing etc.

At feed times I would feed in seperate rooms for a while to be on the safe side, food is very high on the survival needs and dogs will fight over food. Once dogs feel safe they don't normally fight.

Good luck, start and watch how they interact with each other and learn about body language, you are in for some fun.

[thedarkrocker]

Thanks for advice everyone...I feel a bit more comfortable now!