Introducing Your New Puppy to Your Other Dogs

Although you are excited to add a new puppy or dog to your home, please remember that this is a big change for your other dogs. From your other dogs’ perception, the established routine and pecking order has suddenly shifted. Please follow these steps to make the transition as stress-free as possible for all your pets.

1. Introduce the new dog on neutral ground. Let your dogs meet and greet the new guy in a park or neighbor’s yard. This will allow your dogs to view the dog as less of a threat. Let them get acquainted for about half an hour before going home.
2. Give your puppy his own space. It would be best to offer a crate in a spare room or other low traffic area. Place the crate in an area where your other dogs do not spend much time. This allows the puppy to slowly become part of the pack without being thrust into the other dogs’ space.
3. Do not feed your newest dog with your other dogs together for a few months. Guarding food is a very primal urge for a dog, so avoid feeding your new dog where he could be perceived as a threat.
4. Maintain a normal routine. Spend some time with your other dogs without the puppy present. The other dogs should not perceive the puppy as a threat.
5. Maintain Supervision. For the first few months, never allow the pup and other dogs to be together unsupervised. If the other dogs show aggression toward the puppy, put the puppy back into his crate and ignore the other dogs. You must remain calm and assertive or the other dogs’ behavior may escalate.
6. Do not bring any of your dogs around non-family dogs for several weeks. Your other dogs may become protective of the new puppy and lash out in defense at other dogs. You cannot predict the flight or fight instinct. As your puppy grows, the other dogs will become less defensive.

Do not be frustrated if your dogs do not become best friends immediately. Your other dogs will probably bully the puppy a little to reinforce their places in the pecking order. This is normal dog behavior. It may take a few weeks for their relationships to develop. Following the steps listed above will help the process along.