Male dog not bonding with female puppy

Zuisse

We got a new german shephard puppy 2 weeks ago. She's settling in well, chewing everything in sight! We also have a 2.5 yr old male german shephard dog. He's a quiet submissive dog.
We thought they'd get on great but the problem is that the male seems to be a bit down since the puppy has arrived. He also seems to be a little afraid of her. She has a tendancy to bite everything and everyone at the moment so she'll go over to him and bite his coat, tail etc. I'm sure she only wants to play but he never stands up to her, instead he'll move away to another part of the room. If one of us are petting him and she comes over he'll move away. Before she arrived he was always looking to be petted and seemed much more content. They sleep in the house; we have a large crate that the puppy sleeps in so they're kept separate somewhat at night etc.
Has anyone any advice on how to get them to interact better and get him to be more comfortable around her? The main reason for getting her was for company for the male dog.

peasant

He's probably just a bit overwhelmed by this noisy, biting, attention seeking nuisance and just wants his peace and quiet.

Give it time for her to calm and him to warm up to her.

Also make sure that he gets the same treatment as before.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Zuisse wrote: »

Has anyone any advice on how to get them to interact better and get him to be more comfortable around her? The main reason for getting her was for company for the male dog.

Time!.

My two guys were exactly the same, 'Richo threw a major strop when Ruby was introduced and carried on the very same for two or three weeks.

After that things settled down and now if one of the other is out of the house the other frets after 'em!.

The only thing left over is that Richo (male) will always give up his food to Ruby, neither has shown any kind of food aggression but Richo is way too submissive so I feed them separately.

Jinxi

Lots of walks together so he realises she is part of the pack. My dogs did the same years ago. it was like the older one was just putting up with the pup until we came to our senses and got rid of her. When they were going on walks together they were both equally excited about it and bonded over that!

Bearpup

We also had the same problem when we got a new pup... We have a 2 yr old rescue female german shep- and decided to get a female german wire haired pointer. When we got the pup initially, Bonnie our GS was quite put out... she didnt seem herself at all for the first few weeks- would rather be on her own, if pup went over to her bonnie would move away etc, didnt come looking for cuddles etc.

We just made sure to give bonnie the same amount of attention she got before pup arrived (lots!). Couple of weeks later and they are now the best of friends... I now think bonnie would miss her like crazy if pup wasnt around. Pic of my lil women attached.

Magenta

As above...

1. Make sure the older dog is treated the very same as before.

2. If the puppy is annoying him (biting his tail, jumping up on him, disturbing him when he's resting) and he growls or snaps at her (or otherwise tells her "No"), let him. The puppy needs to know when she is overstepping the line. Her mother was probably more patient with her, and her brothers and sisters probably wanted to play all the time, but she needs to understand that she has to be respectful to other dogs and that they might not always want to play!

texas star

I have a puppy Molly three months old and want her to be pals with my parents dog Dusty who is an old lady(13).But I though 2 bitches would fight.Is it ok for Mollys and Dusty to play?Im the one thats nervous.Sorry for throwing in the question.

Sigma Force

It took a good while for our girls to get used to our newest addition, he was really in their face and they found that annoying and let him know.
But he's calmed down and now the collie and him play away for ages, he livens them up.
It did take a few months mind, he was very tiny not sure they knew what to make of him but it gets better.

Perhaps taking them for walks at the same time, giving the puppy a good run around and then bringing her back when she's more calm.
Taking her to puppy classes will help her mix with dogs her own age as well.

2 weeks is short give it a few more months, it takes a while for some dogs to adjust. Older dogs can find smaller bouncy pups annoying or scary depending on their nature.

mymo

My older fella was a year when our girl pup arrived, and though he loves other dogs and will let any dog into the house, he was a bit put out when he realized the pup was staying. He behaved exactly the same way, we just left them to it, or told her off if she was annoying him too much (she'd hang out of his ears or tail), he'd growl and move away and she soon learned how to behave.
It took about 3-4 weeks for him to settle again, he sulked a little but we tried to keep things normal for him. I walked him alone at first and fed him alone, kept their beds apart and made sure they both had their own toys.
They get on great now and don't like being apart, but he still doesn't like her sleeping with him but is happy to roll around on the floor and be climbed on by her.
Only problem I had is that they like to get up to mischief together(she taught him to dig), so I have to watch them closer now:rolleyes:

Zuisse

Thanks for the replies- good to hear that others have the same problem!
They're starting to get on much better now. Although she still annoys him at times, they're playing alot more now. Took them for a very short walk today as per some of the advice above. Only let her walk for about 10 minutes as a treat - I know she shouldn't be walking for another while yet. He was very protective of her - usually he runs ahead but he stayed very close today watching out for her.
They've also started sharing their food a bit - she'll want some of his and vis versa. They should be inseparable in a few weeks!