We currently have 2 dogs & 2 cats. We’ve had the cats since they were kittens, & they are now 10&1/2yrs old. We also have 2 dogs. A yellow Lab (10&1/2yrs) & a Beagle/Pug cross (6yrs), whom we rescued about 2wks apart, over 3yrs ago. We recently learned our Lab has Sarcoma. Just prior to learning this, we had decided to take in a 1yr old Pug who needs to be re-homed due to allergies. We had considered our Lab’s age, & how our younger dog follows her to do his business, & thought it might be a good idea to take the Pug in, so our younger dog wouldn’t be left alone in the coming yrs.
I wanted to introduce the dogs, off territory, over 2-3 separate visits, to have them familiar with each other, before I bring the new dog into our home. However, the current owner has been told by a breeder that we shouldn’t introduce them, just bring the Pug in & leave him in a room alone for a few minutes, while the dogs sniff each other from each side of the closed door, then let the Pug out & go from there.
We are avid Cesar Milan fans & he has always advised to introduce new dogs off familiar territory & my instinct is telling me that that is the safest way to do this (& on leash).
Our Lab was being given away by their former owners at the age of 7rs, & she came to us with alot of (what appeared to be, by her behaviour), fear-anxiety. She has come a long way in the 3+yrs we’ve owned her, but she still has alot of anxiety, as she barks, jumps, & gets her back up, at anyone who comes in the front door. She will sniff them & settle down a little while after (we all talk to her & reassure her it’s okay), but when she hears their voices during their visit (if they are laughing or something), she’ll come running back downstairs upset, barking again, & we have to redirect her behaviour again. She has only recently tolerated it if we give someone a hug that is coming or going. She even repeats the behaviour of when they come, when they go to leave, as well.
Due to her sheer size over the Pug, as well as her anxiety level, I don’t feel safe bringing the Pug in, as he is only 14lbs. (without the prior introduction off-territory). Our Lab is 57lbs & the Puggle is almost 34lbs. My fear would be they could gang up on him, in that scenario, seeing him as an intruder into our home, having never seen him before. She is the eldest, the female, & therefore the pack leader of the 2 dogs we currently have. The current owners are willing for us to introduce them first, but would prefer to do it only once, then bring him home immediately following that initial introduction, but I’m a little nervous of doing it so suddenly (because of the anxiety level of our Lab) & want to ensure the little Pug is safe when we do bring him in.
I’ve researched this online & it seems that both scenarios are given as suggestions (but mostly introducing them 1-1, but not so much about a 2-1 scenario, especially with a seniour dog who is somewhat unbalanced). I would like some objective, yet experienced advice on this. We are going to introduce them for the first time tomorrow.
We intend to walk our dogs for a good 45 min’s right before their introduction, so they are tired & relaxed before they meet him.
Thank you in advance.
1 Answer
I always prefer the one on one method, that pack mentality isn’t there than. We also do it right in our home, first one, than the other , and so on. As for the cats, We are lucky in that I have built a kitty city on a wall. It runs floor to ceiling and gives the cat its own safe zone. Some dogs and cats don’t get along. You seem to know what you want, just remember first impressions can mean little even in the dog world.
Source(s): Expierance doing the same thing