[Ima0401]

Hello! I have a 8mo pitbull puppy named Ima. He was found on the streets and had no previous owners and therefore no previous training. The thing I’m most concerned with is that when my dad brings his dog (4yo pitbull) she instantly runs away from Ima because she knows how he is going to jump on her the second he sees her from excitement. He is never scary aggressive (like growling) but they do sometimes play so hard that they start bleeding from bites or scratches.
I have tried many times to separate them by putting Ima on a leash, but that doesn’t seem to help because when I let him go, he goes right back to being too crazy.
He also will not relax in a room that another dog is in. I have never seen him lay down when my dads dog is the room. He is too excited and just needs to play. It’s beginning to get too overwhelming to keep them in the same house.
Does anyone have any tips?? I would be so appreciative!

Best!

 

[Madra Anamchara]

tghe first thing in my opinion is that you need to manage the situations. this means that you either keep the dogs separate until your puppy has grown up a bit and learned some impulse control, or you keep the puppy on a leash while meeting with the other dog. this would allow you to reel him in (gently, please), when he starts to get too rowdy. It may be necessary, if he doesn't calm down (and at first he won't) to put him into another room for a time out, or to ask the person with the other dog to come only for very short visits while you are working on this.

If your dad's dog is really afraid of him, then why bring her to see him at all? It clearly is not fun for her! Don't force these interactions.

My suggestion is you start doing some serious daily training with this dog, starting with impulse control exercises. Here is one video on that:

There are other good videos as well, such as this one from KIKOPUP, whose YouTube channel I highly recommend.

take note that these trainings need to be done consistently and without the presence of any other dog or other distractions because you want to set your dog up for success from the beginning. You want to make it as easy as possible at the start for the dog to do what you are asking, and only add in distractions very slowly.

Teaching a SETTLE, again starting with no distractions, will help a lot also. KIKOPUP has a video on that.

Finally, making sure your dog gets plenty of active exercise, and doing a lot of fun training teaching the dog many things as well as what is needed, will strengthen your relationship and help the dog to work off mental and physical energy, which will make the settle down training a little bit easier. A tired puppy is a good puppy.

 

[Ima0401]

tghe first thing in my opinion is that you need to manage the situations. this means that you either keep the dogs separate until your puppy has grown up a bit and learned some impulse control, or you keep the puppy on a leash while meeting with the other dog. this would allow you to reel him in (gently, please), when he starts to get too rowdy. It may be necessary, if he doesn't calm down (and at first he won't) to put him into another room for a time out, or to ask the person with the other dog to come only for very short visits while you are working on this.

If your dad's dog is really afraid of him, then why bring her to see him at all? It clearly is not fun for her! Don't force these interactions.

My suggestion is you start doing some serious daily training with this dog, starting with impulse control exercises. Here is one video on that:

There are other good videos as well, such as this one from KIKOPUP, whose YouTube channel I highly recommend.

take note that these trainings need to be done consistently and without the presence of any other dog or other distractions because you want to set your dog up for success from the beginning. You want to make it as easy as possible at the start for the dog to do what you are asking, and only add in distractions very slowly.

Teaching a SETTLE, again starting with no distractions, will help a lot also. KIKOPUP has a video on that.

Finally, making sure your dog gets plenty of active exercise, and doing a lot of fun training teaching the dog many things as well as what is needed, will strengthen your relationship and help the dog to work off mental and physical energy, which will make the settle down training a little bit easier. A tired puppy is a good puppy.

Hello! Thank you for your great response and tips! I guess I should have mentioned in the initial post that my dad is a truck driver and isn’t home often so when he comes home his dog comes home with him! So it’s not like I can’t have him bring his dog home LOL! Thanks again for the videos and tips! I appreciate it so much!!

 

[Madra Anamchara]

Hello! Thank you for your great response and tips! I guess I should have mentioned in the initial post that my dad is a truck driver and isn’t home often so when he comes home his dog comes home with him! So it’s not like I can’t have him bring his dog home LOL! Thanks again for the videos and tips! I appreciate it so much!!

When your dad comes home, then, manage the situation carefully and don't let your puppy play rough with the other dog. One or the other should be taken into another part of the house after the first few minutes, before things get really ramped up.
Best of luck and let us know how it is going!