# puppy playing with adult dog



## OttosMama (Oct 27, 2011)

Hi everyone!

I'm looking for some advice from those that have experience raising a puppy with an adult dog at home.

Otto (3 yo) and Rowan (3 months old) seem to get along great. They snuggle together, romp together, do well on walks, etc.

Otto has always seemed somewhat submissive to me and out of the two, Rowan appears to dominate or will be the dominant dog when he gets older.

I'm wondering about resources and how I should approach the sharing of toys. So far, I've let them do their own thing and if things seem to get out of hand I take away the toy or redirect them. Now, Rowan seems to take the toys and although I can tell Otto wants to join in and chew a toy with him, Rowan will turn away and take the toy out of Otto's reach. Obviously, Otto could get the toy if he chose to but he doesn't. He just stares longingly at Rowan and the toy.  

When they play, Rowan is very vocal and sounds vicious, but I know he is only playing. He is generally on top and always with his teeth. On occasion, Otto seems more the "aggressor" (not the right term but not sure how else to word it) and goes for Rowan's neck. But as I said earlier, it seems like Rowan is leading the interactions for the most part. 

They are playing now and Rowan just humped Otto. Otto did nothing to correct him. This is the first time I've seen Rowan hump Otto since we first brought him home, and at that point, Otto gave him a firm correction. On a side note, at puppy class last night, a puppy humped Rowan and the trainer said this is normal. The two puppies were just highly aroused and this is how they channel that energy. She also said that if a young pup does this to an older dog the older dog will likely give him a stern warning or correct him.

Should I do anything to make Otto feel like this new puppy isn't taking over? Or is this how they work out their place in the pack? Is Otto not doing a good job of teaching the puppy manners or is the puppy too young at this point and Otto is giving him a pass? Sorry for all the questions! I just don't want to be raising a little monster!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Mine worked most things out on their own, but I did buy 2 (now 3) of every toy.
Rowan still has a puppy license, but it will be expiring soon. So its not uncommon that Otto is giving in to him. Most puppies hump when they get over excited, and a older dog will put a stop to it. It helps the pup learn that its not acceptable behavior. We don't really have a choice on which dog has the stronger personality, and becomes leader of the two. That part is genetics, and when its clearly defined between them, they will get along just fine.


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

OttosMama said:


> I'm wondering about resources and how I should approach the sharing of toys. So far, I've let them do their own thing and if things seem to get out of hand I take away the toy or redirect them. Now, Rowan seems to take the toys and although I can tell Otto wants to join in and chew a toy with him, Rowan will turn away and take the toy out of Otto's reach. Obviously, Otto could get the toy if he chose to but he doesn't. He just stares longingly at Rowan and the toy.
> 
> When they play, Rowan is very vocal and sounds vicious, but I know he is only playing. He is generally on top and always with his teeth. On occasion, Otto seems more the "aggressor" (not the right term but not sure how else to word it) and goes for Rowan's neck.
> 
> Is Otto not doing a good job of teaching the puppy manners or is the puppy too young at this point and Otto is giving him a pass?


I would guess Otto is being nice and giving him a pass for being a puppy. I bet that will change  I'd say to just give it time. I'm sure Otto will start correcting him. Our V humps our weim pup a lot and she used to just let him. Now she'll really correct him. He also used to grab her by the neck a lot (other dogs did this to her a lot as well) but as she's gotten older, that's diminished quite a bit. I think it just takes them a while to figure out where they want their boundaries!

As far as toys, I don't know if this is recommended, but since Dexter has had guarding issues as a pup, I want them to think every toy belongs to ME, not them. So if I notice the pup has taken Dexter's toy and he's crying for it or staring at it, I will go take it from her and give her something else. We do a lot of "taking turns." Occasionally, he will go to take it himself, but he often ends up ignoring the toy in the process and just being a jerk to her. (Fair enough though, I suppose.)

We didn't buy two of everything, just their kongs and high value items like antlers. Usually the pup just wants whatever Dexter has, regardless of what it is. So I settle for two similar items (like Dexter will get the pickle pocket and the pup will get the Kong bone - or he'll get the kibble ball and she'll get the wobbler). 

I do wonder if I should let them sort it out a bit more, but it's very chaotic when they do. I thought for sure our pup would be dominant, because Dexter's very submissive with other dogs. All bets are off when it's his pack though I guess. She was labeled a dominant pup by the breeder, and although I don't entirely see that, she can definitely be bossy about certain things (going outside first, taking over the water bowl, stealing toys). Dexter has still been the boss up until now, but she's hit teenagerhood and is starting to give it right back to him. It's interesting because I really have no idea who will end up the leader (I would have put all my money on the pup at first).


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## OttosMama (Oct 27, 2011)

Thanks for the responses! This reassured me to just let them be for the most part. I just want to be sure that Otto will let Rowan know when enough is enough eventually (I'll probably be eating my words in a couple months)! 

Dextersmom, we don't but two of everything either bc ours behave like yours do. We brought home two antlers and they both just want each others. Same thing with toys and food so I just monitor them anytime there are resources involved.

Thanks again!!


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

When we got Chase, he would mount Miles as well. Miles is submissive in general, but has grown to be dominant over Chase at home in regards to bed space, toys, and play time. In public, Miles defers to Chase to determine if something or someone is scary or not. They have a great relationship, Chase is 19 months now and it is still changing. I caught them snuggling in the cave bed last week, their first time ever. Their bond continues to grow ;D 

Good luck! 2 is better than 1!


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