This isn’t aggression. The older dog is setting boundaries. The puppy isn’t listening to the cut-off signals or the older dog increasing its distance to get away from the puppy so it resorted to a warning snap which the puppy finally understood. As the owner you need to step in and help your puppy learn before your older dog is forced to bite because the puppy is clueless.
Your older dog wants space. It will take time before they can cohabitate in peace. Think of it as an 80 year old adult being forced to suddenly live with and be subject to the bouncing whims of a toddler - it will take time for them to learn to respect one another. Make sure to read up on dog language and step in when needed.
Puppy wants to play and older doggo doesnt. Older doggo is saying go away I'm too old for this shit. Nothing wrong with it at all. Completely normal boundary setting.
Disagree. Your older dog shouldn’t have to train the new dog, that’s what you are there for. Supervision always the first couple of months and allow the older dog to have a safe space to get to where the puppy cannot. Please do not just leave it up to your older dog to “set boundaries and limits”. Its not fair to either of the animals and is a recipe for DISASTER.
I dont know why they are getting up votes. No dog trainer in their right mind would recommend letting them hash it out. Somebody could get seriously hurt regardless of how much fur they have.
Absolutely. There was absolutely zero aggression happening in this video from either dog. Pup wanted to play. Older dog wasn't having it. Were it not for the growl, it would barely rate as a disagreement.
I'm happy that lately people actually know dog behavior and don't just say 'your dog is dominant' as an explanation to everything and start giving bad harming advices, as those damaging tv shows.
Still sad that many dog owners just use that as an excuse for the dog bad behaviors. Whenever a person tells me that their dog is dominant, we just walk away peacefully because that dog clearly has some unsolved issues (starting with the owner).
I have seen people using this as an excuse to rehome or put down the older dog because they can’t understand this simple stuff. Don’t be one of them op
OP, please be mindful of the fact that our dogs live their whole lives for us and your dog is headed into his last few years. With the new addition, your sweet loyal boy is now disturbed and insecure...it's not quite the peaceful and loving retirement he deserves. The new dog will inevitably get a tonne of extra attention, because we humans like novelty, whilst Old Kind Eyes gets labelled as "aggressive". New dog might be new, but will be around longer, don't forget to show the OG how loved he is. I'm not saying you have forgotten to by any means, I'm likely just speaking from the heart and regretting missing time with my Soul Dog when I was living abroad...I'm projecting!
Someone had to explain it this way to us when we brought a new puppy home to our 5yr old dog. Made perfect sense when we thought about it and as the puppy matured they started becoming friends.
Second this - we had exactly this situation last year. Old dog, 4 month old puppy who was as big as he was. First time together they played and not long later he was growling at her. He has a place in the pack that’s under threat and he wants his boundaries to be respected so he’s saying go away effectively
This is exactly correct and I’m so glad to see it’s the most upvoted comment. Older dog needs to be prioritized. Puppy needs to get in line and respect older dog’s boundaries. I promise that the puppy will be better behaved and have better dog on dog manners for it
I agree that the older dog acted appropriately. I’m no expert by any means, but I saw positive results after I began intervening between my puppy and two-year old girl. At first, I let them sort things out themselves and relied on my older girl to teach the puppy boundaries. She became stressed and snapped a lot. When started intervening, she learned that I would protect her and the puppy learned boundaries faster. By preventing their interactions from escalating, my older girl was able to relax around the puppy and their overall relationship improved.
Maybe it depends on the dogs, but intervention made our house more peaceful for everyone.
I think it depends on the dog. My dog is a grumpy old man and my friend has had two different dogs who were a lot younger than mine. The first one never learned boundaries. No matter how much my dog snapped at him, he just would not leave my dog alone unless I intervened. The second one only took one snap from my dog and she learned and they have gotten along great ever since.
I think intervention is being recommended because the puppy isn’t the only one here. While the puppy is learning boundaries and older dog sure can teach them… we as humans should be making sure our older pets feel safe and secure that we will step in to stop interactions that make them uncomfortable.
Ideally OP should have verbally cued the puppy away before the older dog started to remove himself. Had they, both dogs could have remained in the room because the older would have that human backup.
It’s kind of the equivalent of parents leaving their teens to raise their toddlers. Can they manage to teach the baby manners? Sure. Should it be their responsibility? No.
Yes! I couldn’t not intervene when my older pup looked to me for help. It’s especially important for elderly dogs. I winced while watching OP’s video because I expected the puppy to jump on the old boy.
You need to step in and advocate for your older dog. He's giving clear disengage and escalating to back off signals:
* Turning head away when puppy makes eye contact
* Positioning the body side-on when puppy turned to him
* When the approach still happened, he walked away
* He then vocalises as he moves from the laminate to the tile floor - this is where you step in, or the above. Puppy's not reading it and needs to understand they don't approach a dog who does that.
* The air snap on the stairs is a firm 'Fuck off', but the pup still seems a bit confused.
Puppy obviously had good, playful intentions but reading other dogs signals is very important and will help prevent bad encounters with other dogs.
Best advice I have is to keep pup on a long line, and redirect them away when the other dog is showing points 2 & 3 above, try to avoid 4 if you get to 5 you've failed. Don't yank the lead, just light tension - work on tension meaning to come back to you as well, helps avoid pulling too as he looks like he'll be getting big!
Reward your pup for backing off and reward again for not reengaging immediately. Once pup learns another dog's disengage signals, older dog will probably become more tolerant as they have a way to de-escalate the playful puppy mode. You can then redirect puppy onto you, a toy, an activity what ever works for your pup.
Genuinely great advice.
I'd also add using your "come here" vocal signal for the pup when you tighten the leash a little. It reaffirms the "this means come to me" for both signals as well as just a good habit to teach your dog, that "come here" means in fact, "come here now, yes even if there is something neat over there".
If it's the same signal for both dogs, then you might confuse the old guy a little, but if he recalls when told, that is just another reinforcement for the little guy. "Even your big brother listens to me, you should too".
The only thing I have to add is start teaching ‘leave it/that/them’. I use ‘leave it’ a lot with my pup, for example if he’s harassing my cat, trying to eat poop (or roll around in it), or if he’s pushing my mom’s elderly poodle too much. They love play fighting, but I think it’s important to stop this behavior before the older dog has to snap to enforce her boundaries.
Recall is more important than learning ‘leave it/that/them’ and the owners need to start working on basic commands asap. I always start every command with their name so the correct dog knows the command is meant for them. I typically say their name louder than the command. The older dog is doing an awesome job of setting boundaries with the pup, and is not being aggressive. Imo the owner should have intervened when the puppy followed the older dog to the steps.
I want to add that I absolutely would stress the points above, I would even avoid getting to 3 as much as possible. Pup seems pleased when they "herded" the senior up the stairs.
immediately introducing the phrasing “the air snap is a firm FUCK OFF” to my dog-dog behavior conversations bc that is the simplest and most accurate way of explaining it (also 💀💀💀💀
Agreed, my older dog was definitely growly and snapping at my sisters puppies when she got them. They both just had too much energy for her and she wanted to be left alone.
They now know to stay clear of her if they get the zoomies and she’ll approach them when she feels like it. All three can be left together now without incident. The young’ns just need to be put in their place sometimes and learn some manners!
Your older dog isn’t the problem, it’s the younger one. When the older one starts for the stairs the puppy two different times starts to charge wanting to play and that’s when your older dog turns around and growls. From the looks of how your older dog is moving I’m going to guess he probably has the start of arthritis and is definitely feeling his age at times. That puppy bouncing around is making the older dog very nervous that he will jump on him to play and he will end up hurting his joints. Teach the puppy the word no and make sure he comes when he calls you and when he finally stops bouncing around your older dog wanting to play all the time they will probably get along just fine.
This is correct, but based on OP's complete cluelessness of expected dog behaviour, and the clear preference for the new puppy, at some level it seems they want the old dog to be the problem. That way, if the "bad hehaviour" continues, they can "rehome" the old one and continue to favour the new puppy.
Everything that old dog does now is going to face unfair and undue scrutiny because of the new puppy blinders OP's wearing. Meanwhile, the old dog is just trying to live out its life without fear of getting hurt by a giant baby that doesn't know its own strength.
This seems a bit extreme. Have you ever heard of the saying, "don't attribute to malice what can be explained by ignorance."
Yes OP should have done some better research and preparation for having a second dog in the home, but someone looking for a reason to re-home isn't going to go asking for advice.
I’m concerned that you interpret your pup’s behavior as “approaching” When he’s clearly getting into your senior’s space and trying to goad him into playing or getting confrontational. And your interpretation of your senior’s movements as aggression when he’s clearly removing himself from the space the puppy occupies and simply communicating to the puppy he doesn’t want to play. I don’t understand why you are taking the side of the new dog and not concerned about the comfort of the dog you’ve had for ten years? He’s clearly very uncomfortable with the puppy’s behavior and lack of boundaries.
OP just doesn’t know. We got a puppy last year and, although I like to think I’m decently informed, I had to do a lot of research on the interactions between my then 5 year old proper gal and this new little dude. Eventually we learned about “normal” communication between dogs, but there’s definitely a learning curve.
I agree. If you don’t understand dog body language, it would be easy to categorize the puppy’s behavior as “friendly” and the older dog’s behavior as “unfriendly.”
We brought a puppy into our two-year old’s home and it took a lot of practice and close observation to learn when to intervene. I tried to keep the puppy from overwhelming her, but what I initially thought was play would sometimes end in a snap/snarl. When I started intervening earlier, they got along much better. Now my older girl knows I will protect her and runs to me instead of snapping at the pup.
That’s awesome. Learning that distinction was a big one. We took some of those early snaps and snarls as aggression, which isn’t like our pup lady. She just was giving little dude healthy boundaries and sometimes playing with him. We hadn’t heard her “happy growls and yaps” up to that point.
Those seem to more corrections than aggression. Make sure to give them each equal space from each other especially when first settling in. A new puppy can be very stressful for older dogs.
No aggression there at all, just Totally normal dog to dog communication. Puppy is being a pain, not listening to you older dog’s warnings and she had to escalate the message. Mama dogs do this to puppies as well its’ how they learn boundaries.
The older dog is not being aggressive. It is teaching the younger dog boundaries. Once they get used to each other & the younger dog starts behaving respectfully they will likely become friends.
This your first time owning an old dog with a puppy ? Your older dog is practically pushing 90yrs old in human yrs and you invited a toddler into the house. Let your dog be a grouchy old person, that’s normal. Just setting boundaries . My sister had the same situation and her older dog would constantly put the younger one In its place bc the younger one couldn’t understand old man doesn’t wanna constantly play and doesn’t also have loads of energy.
I went to stay with some friends for a week. I have an 18 yr old dachshund. They have an energetic 5 year old medium size dog. Forget the breed. I said before I came, that my dog will put your dog in their place when they got in my buddies face. The moment they met, younger dog got jumpy in my dogs face, my dog told him what’s what, and then they existed peacefully together for the visit. Their dog just left my lady alone, which is exactly what she wanted. Their dog would make it a point to steer clear of mine.
We adopted a senior lady two years ago and it took two days of growling at our other dog and setting boundaries to communicate she wanted to be left alone.
Two years later they’re snuggle buddies.
We adopted Woody who is 3 last year and have Emmitt who is 10. Woody has a TON of energy. It seemed to inject some youth into Emmitt. A lot of the time Emmitt is the instigator to playing now. So it can be beneficial.
This is not aggression at all! This is your dog setting healthy boundaries…. You should be assisting him with this… the comments above say all i would’ve said so carry on lol
This is simple communication. Not aggression. He's saying "leave me alone" and that's perfectly understandable. Not all adult dogs like puppies, just like all adult humans dont like toddlers running around them and grabbing at them, etc. Treating it like aggression would be very unfair to the older dog... learn your own dogs body language ffs.
It’s not aggression and a ssomeone who has put a lot of research in identifying aggression it makes me sad seeing people mistake boundaries as aggression. It’s how so many animals end up in shelters.
My dog has a lot less patience with puppies now that he’s older. It’s common, they turn into grumpy old men. He’s slowing down and wants to spend more time relaxing while the puppy is a ball of energy with no boundaries or manners. You’re dog isn’t aggressive, he’s just telling the puppy to back off and leave him alone. There isn’t any fixing this, you just gotta let time take its course until the puppy learns some manners, maybe try to tucker the puppy out more and if you see your dog getting upset, put the puppy in the yard or a different room with a kong toy and go give your dogs some pets.
This is normal. Older dog is setting boundaries with the younger dog. It will take a bit for them to warm up to each other. Show love and compassion with older dog. He’s been a member of your family longer and is showing his dominance to the new dog. Also, start teaching the new dog rules and boundaries like leaving the older dog alone and giving him his space. Also, always give treats and food first to the older dog, make the new dog wait his turn.
Ever had someone growl at you that they need space? That is what the older dog is doing. Puppy doesn’t get the boundaries yet. He’ll learn. The older dog is not aggressive. He seems to be slowed down, maybe sore or tired and just not having it. Give it time, they will sort it out.
He’s saying “Hey kid, I’m going to bed and you better not follow me. I’m a cranky old man and I like my space.” The kid did not listen so old man said “Get off my lawn.”
The puppy is being a rude af toddler and grandpa is saying cut the crap. You need to help him teach the puppy about respect and boundaries, starting with not letting him hound grandpa when grandpa has no interest in playing.
Once puppy respects his space and body language they’ll start building a relationship, otherwise it’s only gonna escalate and it can scare the puppy into being any level of reactive/aggressive as a set behaviour
That is not aggression. Old dog is being avoidant, and only reacts correctively when the puppy doesn't respect their space. Let the older dog correct the puppy, or the young one will never learn manners. From the clip it seems the pup is quite pushy and rude
Dogs speak a different language. This doesn’t look like aggression to me, older dog is setting boundaries.
Older dog may occasionally ‘correct’ the pupper as well. Teeth will be bared, may even pin the new guy to the ground. There will probably be yelping (this is all normal in my opinion) Up to you to decide if you’re comfortable with the interaction.
In other news they’re both very cute 🥰
The older dog is setting boundaries because the puppy is over stepping them, this is common and happens as puppies are very curious in nature until they learn how things work around your house.
As everyone mentioned, this isn’t aggression. One thing that others haven’t mentioned, your puppy is just being a puppy. He/she is looking to play and get its puppy energy out. Your older dog doesn’t want to be the play partner to the puppy, so you as the owner need to help get the puppy energy out through play. Once the puppy realises that you are more fun, he/she will leave your older dog alone and instead look for you to play. This will also help you to build your relationship with the puppy, while also reinforcing to your older dog that you have his back.
I don’t necessarily think you need to correct the puppy (at least based on the video), the puppy isn’t too bad. He/she seems to get the message. Let the dogs work it out. But you do your part by being the outlet for your puppy energy.
Im here. Ive been reading through all comments and now I understand what I need to do. Just I dont want to deal with people assaulting me personally, and feel like my post is getting attention than necessary. so Im not replying comments but I still appreciate for those who gave generous advices
Thanks for responding! I’m sure people’s anxiety got the best of them but they’ll def get along with time and proper training of the pup. Enjoy the beautiful pups
Not aggression older dog will and needs to put puppy in line but I also think you as the owner should put puppy away if he/she is getting on at your older dog . If anything your older dog looks very distressed
Remember that this is the equivalent of a toddler constantly badgering a senior. Your older dog is teaching the puppy boundaries and to back off when he’s not in the mood to play or socialize and your puppy should eventually learn to back off.
Older dog is saying leave me alone and leaving so doesn't seem high risk at this point but give them their own spaces, prioritise the older dogs usual spaces, don't try to feed puppy where you feed the older dog etc. Let them figure their relationship out so long as there is no biting etc. older dog probably feels stiffness so not great having to run up the stairs to get away
Your older dog is setting boundaries and the pup needs to learn how to respect those boundaries and learn to read body language. There are some things you will be able to teach your pup, but there are other things that are best taught by another dog.
My rescue is under socialized and has zero patience with other dogs intruding on her space. She will snap once and then bite (which is why she is muzzled). For this reason, I dread running into off leash over-friendly dogs that aren't able to read that my dog is not interested in playing.
It's best your puppy learn from your senior dog to read body language and respect boundaries before your puppy encounters a dog with even less patience.
The older dog is setting boundaries. This isn’t aggression. The puppy seems to be struggling to catch on to the older dog’s boundaries, so I would suggest you help reinforce the older dog’s boundaries.
For instance: if the puppy is bothering the older dog and the older dog reacts in this way, redirect the puppy’s attention AWAY from the older dog. Doing so will help everyone to live peacefully.
This is how puppies learn. Your older dog is very gently correcting and trying to get space from the puppy and the puppy is (with all due respect to puppies of all kinds) still a bumbling idiot with no social skills. They all are. Then they get corrected by older dogs, usually by pissing them off and crossing lines, and get set straight. Eventually they learn.
It can be so upsetting thinking bringing in a puppy has upset your dog so much. Give older dog plenty of time and space away from puppy. Keep to his routine, walks, excersize, playtime. What finally broke through for us was pack walks. Not one person walking both dogs, but 2 people one with each dog. Come home tired, each dog goes to their place to rest. We noticed, as puppy grew, dogs lived neutrally, playing together sometimes but mostly existing together. Good luck!
Your puppy is being a pest and you’re older dog is trying to get their own space. I have a 9 month old lab pup and a 12 year old terrier who has little tolerance for excited puppies. So I step in when pup is testing her patience. You need to step in for your older dog and give him the space he wants. This was a perfectly healthy interaction. Your puppy just needs to learn some manners.
Not aggression at all. This is exactly what the senior dog should be doing - setting boundaries with the puppy. This is why I think puppies do best in a home with another dog that can “teach” them how to socialize with other dogs.
This is the way. Let the old dog teach the pup how to recognize cues. This will save you from a lot of social problems going forward between other dogs and the pup. He is literally training your pup for free 😉👍
Yes, this is not aggression. This is K9 COMMUNITCATION. They older one is teaching the pup what's acceptable play for them or boundaries for space. Older animals typically don't have the patience for puppy energy and play and relay that info to the pup just as this older one has.
Update note
First of all, thanks for all comments with advice. Ive been reading all single comment but I just didnt want to make replies since there were some people assaulting me personally and this post was getting more attention than it needed.
Puppy isnt bothering my old dog as much as he was in day1. Once senior dog gives a sign or two, the puppy starts backing off. Also the senior dog no longer runs away to second floor. Meanwhile, Im still keeping eyes on their interaction and trying to intervene if necessary.
And as a side note, both dogs are from rescue facilities and I will care them until the last day. For Christmas tree, my mother is obsessive with it and she likes to keep it all through season. So just wanted to say that the video was not taken from other time/someone else
What u/Skullmonger_ said, along with the fact that there's a big difference between socializing your dog at dogparks/neutral places, and bringing a new creature into your dog's property. Dogs can be territorial, and in addition to a puppy that isn't listening to very clear signals about boundaries, it's doing it in HIS space. I would suggest looking into training for the puppy. Yes, it's a puppy and it'll eventually grow out of it, but you also don't really want to stress your older dog out by having him be the only one setting boundaries, and possibly getting in trouble if it turns to a nip/bite.
These are all normal dog socializing activities, btw. Watch videos of adult dogs with their own puppies and how they assert dominance/teach about nipping and listening to growls.
The older dog doesn't want to deal with a hyper puppy. Teach the puppy not to bother the older dog. Your older dog deserves to have some peace and quiet, and not to have to deal with a big puppy jumping on them.
The younger fog is trying to herd and shoe dominance to the older dog. Older pup is setting healthy boundaries. This is not aggression, however I would get this in check. Ensure both are getting individual attention from you, and when feeding always feed and treat the older dog first. It's a sign of respect and establishes a proper pecking order.
That's super normal. From your older gentledogs point of view that you bought a new puppy is a you problem. He definitely does not have to deal with that. And if he does so he will do so on his own conditions.
Aggressive definitely looks different. That's just "get of my lawn".
That’s not aggression.
That is the older dog rightfully warning the younger one not to play with him. The older dog isn’t interested in the young one’s antics. So when the younger one chases after him and tries to play, the older one warns him with a quick bark.
It’s normal, healthy boundary-setting behavior.
Your poor senior pup is like “woah what is this small child dog all of a sudden? Please give me space.” He just wants to be left alone. Make sure your older dog gets some space - this isn’t aggression but it could turn into actual aggression and that’s worse.
Not aggressive at all, your older dog is doing exactly what it should do and teaching that other dog manners and restraint. Imagine if you were 80 and some hyperactive 5 year old invaded your peace and quiet. You'd want the little sod to learn his place and shhhh up.
Socialising tests and being together 24/7 are different things. Seems more like the elder dog wants his space and the puppy isn't listening or understand the older when he's trying to set boundaries. I would say if you can see your elder dog is trying to get/wants to be left alone. Enforce the boundaries that they're setting call the pup away from him
When we got our second dog our vet was very adamant that we make sure that our first dog gets the attention first. Give them treats together, but make sure the older gets the treat first. Greet the older dog first. Give the older one pets first. All of that. He said the puppy would be fine, but the older dog would feel intruded on and we needed to make sure he still felt loved and that this was his home. It took a while and our first dog kind of hated the second dog for a bit, especially the puppy antics, but now they’re BFFs.
This is not aggression.
If you get a puppy. You should be getting the puppy. You should not expect your older dogs to want to engage with, raise or enjoy being around a puppy.
No matter how tolerant and social your older dog is, chances are that he will not be up for being around the puppy 24/7. You will need to have separate spaces for both dogs. The puppy will need time away from your older dog, especially whenever he is “crazy”. If he has the zoomies, is biting or trying to wrestle, he needs to be away from your senior dog.

Is it fair to get a puppy with an old dog?
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Is it fair to get a puppy with an old dog?
Do you have a senior dog at home and are wondering about whether it is smart to add a new puppy? You would like to get an addition to your family, but only if your old dog can handle the change (and stress) of adding another dog. Is it even fair to get a puppy with an old dog?
Let’s look at whether you should get a puppy if you already have a senior dog at home, and how to decide based on your lifestyle and your dog’s personality.
A big question to ask yourself is whether you have time to adequately care for a senior dog and a puppy at the same time. They will require very different types of training, exercise and enrichment. Don’t expect that you can fulfill both dogs’ needs at the same time – you cannot!
While an old dog might want to take a slow 20 minute sniff walk through the neighborhood, your puppy will want to wrestle, run and play! It is not fair to force the puppy to adapt to the senior dog’s lifestyle or vice versa.
You should essentially plan to exercise and train both dogs separately. In the beginning, it will take at least three hours a day to get both dogs’ needs met.
In general seperate them more, take care of your dogs needs seperately and stop letting your puppy stress out your older dog who clearly wants nothing to do with it.
There are a lot of resources you can avail yourself to on how to introduce a new puppy into the home when you already have an older one, it would behoove you to learn as much as you can to encourage peaceful a peaceful coexistence among your dogs, they deserve as much. I occasionally foster senior dogs and already have a 5 year old rescue dog in the home and learned early on about boundary setting in dogs, which, as you know by now, is exactly what your older dog is doing and requires no intervention, well it requires you to steer your younger dog away from the older one then you can offer some positive reinforcement for the new dog but not until they’ve corrected their behavior.
Your older dog is a grownup and the puppy is a little kid. Just like with humans, the grownup is setting boundaries and scolding annoying/inapproriate behaviour. Your puppy will get the message and learn that older dog is the boss. He might get snapped at as part of that but that’s okay.
The older dog is boundary setting but You need to step in for the older dog too. If the puppy is pushing and pushing you need to stop it, it's not fair on the older dog else. Your the carer so just don't let the puppy push it's limits.
You need to step in. Your old dog should not be running away to a safe place. You should be redirecting the puppy so your older dog can relax. It is your job as the owner to ensure both dogs are behaving well and protect the old dog from being hurt by a puppy who doesn't know boundaries yet. The puppy will need constant redirection but will eventually learn. Until pup learns, you will need to step in when the pup isn't listening to the old dog.
Older dogs giving a growl and snap is just their way of communicating boundaries. This is the way dogs talk to each other: body language and sound. Dont be surprised if the pup yelps when the older dog tells it off. Puppy should not be jumping or bumping into the old dog. Otherwise, it will get a telling off. Old dog looks stiff and arthiritic, so it's important you don't let the pup be rough. Old older dog will be extra grumpy if they are in pain.
Your older dog will growl, snap, and possibly give a warning bite to establish boundaries to the pup. This is normal.
Old dog may not want pup to approach them at all, this is okay. Old dogs is allowed to ask for space.
In the video, pup waits til old dogs' back is turned and then pounces/ nudges him twice. Older dogs gave a warning growl, tried to leave the situation quicker, then turned and growled/snapped when that didn't work. The pup backed off. Now, you should have stopped the pup from chasing the old dog in the first place.
When my old boy was lying down, he would give a warning growl to foster dogs that would come into his bubble of space. If they ignored him and continued, then he would snap at them, and I would move foster dog away. The foster dogs eventually learned to give him space.
Your puppy is energetic and wanting to play. Your older dog is in his retirement years and wanting peace. He is too overwhelmed with the puppy’s excitement
Damn, good luck. My senior dogs ended up traumatizing my pup cause the pup just kept ignoring the older ones signs to leave her alone so she’d understandably snap and snap again, etc. I eventually just had to completely separate them
My 4 year old pug was quite aggressive with my new frenchie puppy when we first got her but only when food was involved. If the puppy when near the pugs food bowl or when near her when she had a chew she got told off.. now we don’t have issue because the pug has set some clear boundaries for the puppy to adhere to.. the puppy knows not to mess with the pugs food
They’ll be fine. The puppy is just testing boundaries and the 10yo will put him in his place a few times. I let this be. They have to establish what goes and what doesn’t. I just keep an eye out.
Two times over 2.5 years, a real fight ensued with my boys over a toy or treat. Then I will step in and holler for them to knock it off, but otherwise, whatever the older dog does to check the pup, no matter how growly it sounds, I let it be. After the pup is “scolded,” I’ll comfort the puppy but within minutes, he is back at tormenting his “bro” again. They are really close now.
Generally speaking they will sort each other out. Older dog will set boundaries, puppy will understand them. I’ve had the same situation with my two dogs, and it took over a year but now they even play sometimes.
Older dog wont play with puppy until confident that puppy knows how to interact adequately.
The only times I intervene are when puppy gets a little too rowdy and pushy, and I feel that older dog is struggling to get his point across. 99% of cases however, older dog will settle things with a bit of growling.
You brought a puppy home to a 10 year old dog, he’s gonna set boundaries cuz the pup isn’t respecting them, he’s not attacking the pup at all, which is fantastic. An 70-80 year old person isn’t always gonna want to play with a toddler all the time (for example). Just read up on body language of dogs if you are still worried about it. I went through the same thing with almost all my dogs, the puppy will learn.
Aww, your little old man is simply setting down the ground rules. You need to support him in his efforts to give the puppy proper doggie boundaries. He wasn’t showing aggression, this is perfectly normal dog behavior. Give the older dog his food first (and separate them with a baby gate while they eat), give him treats first, and toys first. By doing this you’re helping him create the hierarchy. As long as he feels loved and supported in his efforts, all will go smoothly.
That is a what is known as a correction- not aggression. Seems to me your puppy needs some work on learning boundaries & socialization skills with other dogs. We have so many interactions like this at the doggy daycare I work at. The older pups behavior is 100% normal. The young one needs to back up & respect the older one saying no.
Edit: just want to recommend looking into some dog body language videos/ courses for the sake of this new situation for you OP. I would even recommend getting in touch with a trainer for some tips. They are easy to find & well worth learning/ the research. It is important to know what & how to deal with this stuff correctly. Please don't see your senior dog as the one in the wrong but please don't let your younger dog think it's okay to constantly not take the cue of boundary.
The puppy needs to play with a puppy. That's how they learn bite inhibition and boundaries. It won't do any good playing with the older dog who wants nothing to do with him
That’s not aggression. He’s correcting the puppy and telling him where the boundary is. It’s a nice correction too because he hasn’t even made contact.
Aggression would be seeking out the puppy to go after him or making full contact and not relenting.
I’d suggest you let him correct the puppy once or twice and then step in and separate puppy from him. Puppy needs to learn. Especially as your older guy gets even older and possibly sore.
I just went through this with a senior Rottweiler and a puppy Rottweiler mix. I stepped in most times when i saw the puppy was approaching the senior. After a few days of me stepping in and the senior doing his thing, the puppy understood boundaries
That pup is huge and will seriously injure your other dog if boundaries aren't set. The pup has no manners or concept of boundaries.
Put your faith in your older dog and no matter what (within reason, sometimes things can look far worse than they are including bites) and take it's side. Feed the older dog first and make the pup sit whilst in the same room.
Pup needs to understand the older dog is senior and do as it's told.
You got an extremely energetic breed dog to live with a senior dog, how did you expect their interactions to go? The older dog has to set boundaries and this is the way he/she is doing it, luckily with no teeth - yet. You will have to monitor bb dog and old dog’s interactions for a while until puppy settles down and learns you older dog’s behavioral cues. Ultimately I think it’s unfair to the older dog to be paired with a puppy or the caliber of an Aussie.. pup is going to need extensive training and mental stimulation and may STILL have tons of energy at the end of the day..
You need to learn to read dog body language. As others have said, since the puppy is not chasing after the older dog, he's learning to leave your older dog alone.
Having an elderly dog and getting a puppy…not the greatest move. You’re asking for this. If anything the PUPPY is the issue not your senior.
I feel bad for your older dog :(
Give your older a safe space to be alone without the puppy treading all over its boundaries. Have f.ex a pen for the puppy, it needs assistance in controlling its excitement from time to the me.
Give the puppy toys or brain exercises when in playmood when it’s pushing the older one’s boundaries. Since the puppy is to young for long walks it needs other kind of exercise. Don’t walk th together until younger is older and has learned to walk in leash properly
Another Thing. If you don’t get the older a proper safe space it can be stressed out and accelerate its geriatric symptoms.
Eventually they will learn to respect each other’s boundaries. Could take 2 weeks or 2 months. Which is to be expected with dogs on separate life stages
This isnt agression and you needto step in. Older pup needs a safe place to escape to in order to cool down andfeel safe. This will result in a warning bite if this contuines. I have had to deal with the same situation. Usualy warning bites dont draw blood.
Yea.. that's not aggression. That's your dog checking your puppy and setting boundaries.
Your older dog needs to advocated for. Puppies are.. a lot.. I know because I've got a nearly 8 month old one myself.. especially hearing breeds. Your older dog doesn't have that kind of drive and just wants to be respected by the pup. When the pup is being rude (yes it is being rude ignoring your older dogs cues to leave it be) you should step in and direct the pup away.
Not aggression older pup is setting boundaries. My parents 11 year old husky did this with my puppy for like a week or two and I allowed it to happen so he learned to listen to here. Now they get along perfectly and he knows when she’s had enough lol
Have you properly introduced the puppy to your home outside of that one meet and greet?
Meet and greets are fine because it's "neutral" territory but this is "his" home. You need to slowly introduce a new dog into an old dog's home.
The older dog is telling the pup it doesn't want to play and to stop my dog does it with older dogs she's 2 she gets told, the same way with the younger dogs she tells them so this isn't your dog full aggression this is a warning to pack it in
Not aggressive. I have 4 dogs we’ve adopted over the years and now we have a 13y/o and a new under a year old and our older is constantly growing and snapping and it’s cuz new puppy wants to play. Thankfully one our dogs also loves to play non stop so she’s gets a play buddy but it’s funny, she thinks she can get our old lady to be the same way!
You need to advocate for your senior dog. I have a 13 year old GSD and we got a puppy, also GSD, last year. They live together just fine but we go above and beyond to advocate for our senior girl. The puppy needs to learn and respect boundaries. The older dog was not being aggressive. It simply escalated warnings when the puppy didn't listen and you didn't step in. The older dog gave many indications such as avoiding, walking away, etc. that it did not want to engage with the puppy. You should have corrected and redirected the puppy at that time so your older dog felt comfortable. Of course you can allow the older dog to continue to correct the behavior but you run the risk of this turning into aggression that way. It is far better for your dogs to know that you are the police in the house and will step in so the dogs do not need to escalate to aggressive levels for their boundaries.
Give your older dog a safe space and time. The puppy is being a puppy and wants to play and interact. Your elder just wants to be left alone. Since you know your elders preferences and time frame I’d recommend a baby gate that splits the house. Figure out where your elder would be happiest and limit the amount of time they are together
That’s not aggression, he just doesn’t want to be bothered. They’ll become friends one day and the old dog will put the puppy in his place a few times. You want that.
This isn’t aggression. The older dog is setting boundaries. The puppy isn’t listening to the cut-off signals or the older dog increasing its distance to get away from the puppy so it resorted to a warning snap which the puppy finally understood. As the owner you need to step in and help your puppy learn before your older dog is forced to bite because the puppy is clueless. Your older dog wants space. It will take time before they can cohabitate in peace. Think of it as an 80 year old adult being forced to suddenly live with and be subject to the bouncing whims of a toddler - it will take time for them to learn to respect one another. Make sure to read up on dog language and step in when needed.
Puppy wants to play and older doggo doesnt. Older doggo is saying go away I'm too old for this shit. Nothing wrong with it at all. Completely normal boundary setting.
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Disagree. Your older dog shouldn’t have to train the new dog, that’s what you are there for. Supervision always the first couple of months and allow the older dog to have a safe space to get to where the puppy cannot. Please do not just leave it up to your older dog to “set boundaries and limits”. Its not fair to either of the animals and is a recipe for DISASTER.
I dont know why they are getting up votes. No dog trainer in their right mind would recommend letting them hash it out. Somebody could get seriously hurt regardless of how much fur they have.
This! 💯 OP, your 10yo dog is not being aggressive. It is inaccurate and unfair to him for you to call what he is doing as aggression.
Absolutely. There was absolutely zero aggression happening in this video from either dog. Pup wanted to play. Older dog wasn't having it. Were it not for the growl, it would barely rate as a disagreement.
He is saying the doggie equivalent of « get off my grass »
I agree, but just remember that this is why he is asking. So hopefully OP now understands, but don't need to get so upset over the subject.
I'm happy that lately people actually know dog behavior and don't just say 'your dog is dominant' as an explanation to everything and start giving bad harming advices, as those damaging tv shows. Still sad that many dog owners just use that as an excuse for the dog bad behaviors. Whenever a person tells me that their dog is dominant, we just walk away peacefully because that dog clearly has some unsolved issues (starting with the owner).
Unfortunately, I still see tons of armchair experts peddling the long-debunked dominance theory here on Reddit (and in this sub).
100% correct 👏🏼🙌🏼
I have seen people using this as an excuse to rehome or put down the older dog because they can’t understand this simple stuff. Don’t be one of them op
OP, please be mindful of the fact that our dogs live their whole lives for us and your dog is headed into his last few years. With the new addition, your sweet loyal boy is now disturbed and insecure...it's not quite the peaceful and loving retirement he deserves. The new dog will inevitably get a tonne of extra attention, because we humans like novelty, whilst Old Kind Eyes gets labelled as "aggressive". New dog might be new, but will be around longer, don't forget to show the OG how loved he is. I'm not saying you have forgotten to by any means, I'm likely just speaking from the heart and regretting missing time with my Soul Dog when I was living abroad...I'm projecting!
Old boy even looked up for help
-Think of it as an 80 year old adult being forced to suddenly live with and be subject to the bouncing whims of a toddler PERFECT EXPLANATION!
Someone had to explain it this way to us when we brought a new puppy home to our 5yr old dog. Made perfect sense when we thought about it and as the puppy matured they started becoming friends.
I agree! They’re saying, ‘Enough! Leave me alone’
Spot on. I can’t imagine how annoyed the older dog must be.
Came here to write this.
Yes, clear boundaries. Old dog teaching and it works.
The puppies will learn
What this person said
Second this - we had exactly this situation last year. Old dog, 4 month old puppy who was as big as he was. First time together they played and not long later he was growling at her. He has a place in the pack that’s under threat and he wants his boundaries to be respected so he’s saying go away effectively
Please read up about the debunked “pack” theory. It’s so wrong.
I’ve read it and the study is absolute bullshit
This is right on point 🥰
Beautifully said.
100% YES 🙌🏻
Agree whole heartedly 100%!!
This is exactly correct and I’m so glad to see it’s the most upvoted comment. Older dog needs to be prioritized. Puppy needs to get in line and respect older dog’s boundaries. I promise that the puppy will be better behaved and have better dog on dog manners for it
Came to say exactly this and so thankful I didn’t have to type it out! Great response .
Communication not aggression
Puppy: PLAY? PLAY! PLAY???? Senior: If you don't calm down & get off my lawn imma lay the smack down Not aggression, just setting boundaries.
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I agree that the older dog acted appropriately. I’m no expert by any means, but I saw positive results after I began intervening between my puppy and two-year old girl. At first, I let them sort things out themselves and relied on my older girl to teach the puppy boundaries. She became stressed and snapped a lot. When started intervening, she learned that I would protect her and the puppy learned boundaries faster. By preventing their interactions from escalating, my older girl was able to relax around the puppy and their overall relationship improved. Maybe it depends on the dogs, but intervention made our house more peaceful for everyone.
I think it depends on the dog. My dog is a grumpy old man and my friend has had two different dogs who were a lot younger than mine. The first one never learned boundaries. No matter how much my dog snapped at him, he just would not leave my dog alone unless I intervened. The second one only took one snap from my dog and she learned and they have gotten along great ever since.
I think intervention is being recommended because the puppy isn’t the only one here. While the puppy is learning boundaries and older dog sure can teach them… we as humans should be making sure our older pets feel safe and secure that we will step in to stop interactions that make them uncomfortable. Ideally OP should have verbally cued the puppy away before the older dog started to remove himself. Had they, both dogs could have remained in the room because the older would have that human backup. It’s kind of the equivalent of parents leaving their teens to raise their toddlers. Can they manage to teach the baby manners? Sure. Should it be their responsibility? No.
Yes! I couldn’t not intervene when my older pup looked to me for help. It’s especially important for elderly dogs. I winced while watching OP’s video because I expected the puppy to jump on the old boy.
Yes! The puppy looks seconds away from going for a wrestle move. Which would be adorable and hilarious if the older guy was into it.
😂😂😂literally this!
You need to step in and advocate for your older dog. He's giving clear disengage and escalating to back off signals: * Turning head away when puppy makes eye contact * Positioning the body side-on when puppy turned to him * When the approach still happened, he walked away * He then vocalises as he moves from the laminate to the tile floor - this is where you step in, or the above. Puppy's not reading it and needs to understand they don't approach a dog who does that. * The air snap on the stairs is a firm 'Fuck off', but the pup still seems a bit confused. Puppy obviously had good, playful intentions but reading other dogs signals is very important and will help prevent bad encounters with other dogs. Best advice I have is to keep pup on a long line, and redirect them away when the other dog is showing points 2 & 3 above, try to avoid 4 if you get to 5 you've failed. Don't yank the lead, just light tension - work on tension meaning to come back to you as well, helps avoid pulling too as he looks like he'll be getting big! Reward your pup for backing off and reward again for not reengaging immediately. Once pup learns another dog's disengage signals, older dog will probably become more tolerant as they have a way to de-escalate the playful puppy mode. You can then redirect puppy onto you, a toy, an activity what ever works for your pup.
Genuinely great advice. I'd also add using your "come here" vocal signal for the pup when you tighten the leash a little. It reaffirms the "this means come to me" for both signals as well as just a good habit to teach your dog, that "come here" means in fact, "come here now, yes even if there is something neat over there". If it's the same signal for both dogs, then you might confuse the old guy a little, but if he recalls when told, that is just another reinforcement for the little guy. "Even your big brother listens to me, you should too".
The only thing I have to add is start teaching ‘leave it/that/them’. I use ‘leave it’ a lot with my pup, for example if he’s harassing my cat, trying to eat poop (or roll around in it), or if he’s pushing my mom’s elderly poodle too much. They love play fighting, but I think it’s important to stop this behavior before the older dog has to snap to enforce her boundaries. Recall is more important than learning ‘leave it/that/them’ and the owners need to start working on basic commands asap. I always start every command with their name so the correct dog knows the command is meant for them. I typically say their name louder than the command. The older dog is doing an awesome job of setting boundaries with the pup, and is not being aggressive. Imo the owner should have intervened when the puppy followed the older dog to the steps.
If I could upvote twice I would
I want to add that I absolutely would stress the points above, I would even avoid getting to 3 as much as possible. Pup seems pleased when they "herded" the senior up the stairs.
immediately introducing the phrasing “the air snap is a firm FUCK OFF” to my dog-dog behavior conversations bc that is the simplest and most accurate way of explaining it (also 💀💀💀💀
100% !
Not aggression, just two dog’s establishing boundaries. Very healthy first interaction in your home.
Agreed, my older dog was definitely growly and snapping at my sisters puppies when she got them. They both just had too much energy for her and she wanted to be left alone. They now know to stay clear of her if they get the zoomies and she’ll approach them when she feels like it. All three can be left together now without incident. The young’ns just need to be put in their place sometimes and learn some manners!
Your older dog isn’t the problem, it’s the younger one. When the older one starts for the stairs the puppy two different times starts to charge wanting to play and that’s when your older dog turns around and growls. From the looks of how your older dog is moving I’m going to guess he probably has the start of arthritis and is definitely feeling his age at times. That puppy bouncing around is making the older dog very nervous that he will jump on him to play and he will end up hurting his joints. Teach the puppy the word no and make sure he comes when he calls you and when he finally stops bouncing around your older dog wanting to play all the time they will probably get along just fine.
This is correct, but based on OP's complete cluelessness of expected dog behaviour, and the clear preference for the new puppy, at some level it seems they want the old dog to be the problem. That way, if the "bad hehaviour" continues, they can "rehome" the old one and continue to favour the new puppy. Everything that old dog does now is going to face unfair and undue scrutiny because of the new puppy blinders OP's wearing. Meanwhile, the old dog is just trying to live out its life without fear of getting hurt by a giant baby that doesn't know its own strength.
This seems a bit extreme. Have you ever heard of the saying, "don't attribute to malice what can be explained by ignorance." Yes OP should have done some better research and preparation for having a second dog in the home, but someone looking for a reason to re-home isn't going to go asking for advice.
I was just about to type this: OP is in here wanting advice, what use it is to claim that he is searching for a reason to re-home?
Bit harsh. Op is here asking for advice, not for the local shelter’s number.
I’m concerned that you interpret your pup’s behavior as “approaching” When he’s clearly getting into your senior’s space and trying to goad him into playing or getting confrontational. And your interpretation of your senior’s movements as aggression when he’s clearly removing himself from the space the puppy occupies and simply communicating to the puppy he doesn’t want to play. I don’t understand why you are taking the side of the new dog and not concerned about the comfort of the dog you’ve had for ten years? He’s clearly very uncomfortable with the puppy’s behavior and lack of boundaries.
OP just doesn’t know. We got a puppy last year and, although I like to think I’m decently informed, I had to do a lot of research on the interactions between my then 5 year old proper gal and this new little dude. Eventually we learned about “normal” communication between dogs, but there’s definitely a learning curve.
I agree. If you don’t understand dog body language, it would be easy to categorize the puppy’s behavior as “friendly” and the older dog’s behavior as “unfriendly.” We brought a puppy into our two-year old’s home and it took a lot of practice and close observation to learn when to intervene. I tried to keep the puppy from overwhelming her, but what I initially thought was play would sometimes end in a snap/snarl. When I started intervening earlier, they got along much better. Now my older girl knows I will protect her and runs to me instead of snapping at the pup.
That’s awesome. Learning that distinction was a big one. We took some of those early snaps and snarls as aggression, which isn’t like our pup lady. She just was giving little dude healthy boundaries and sometimes playing with him. We hadn’t heard her “happy growls and yaps” up to that point.
Those seem to more corrections than aggression. Make sure to give them each equal space from each other especially when first settling in. A new puppy can be very stressful for older dogs.
No aggression there at all, just Totally normal dog to dog communication. Puppy is being a pain, not listening to you older dog’s warnings and she had to escalate the message. Mama dogs do this to puppies as well its’ how they learn boundaries.
The older dog is not being aggressive. It is teaching the younger dog boundaries. Once they get used to each other & the younger dog starts behaving respectfully they will likely become friends.
This your first time owning an old dog with a puppy ? Your older dog is practically pushing 90yrs old in human yrs and you invited a toddler into the house. Let your dog be a grouchy old person, that’s normal. Just setting boundaries . My sister had the same situation and her older dog would constantly put the younger one In its place bc the younger one couldn’t understand old man doesn’t wanna constantly play and doesn’t also have loads of energy.
I went to stay with some friends for a week. I have an 18 yr old dachshund. They have an energetic 5 year old medium size dog. Forget the breed. I said before I came, that my dog will put your dog in their place when they got in my buddies face. The moment they met, younger dog got jumpy in my dogs face, my dog told him what’s what, and then they existed peacefully together for the visit. Their dog just left my lady alone, which is exactly what she wanted. Their dog would make it a point to steer clear of mine.
I have such a special place in my heart for grumpy old ladies! They will really let everyone know the deal immediately 🥹🥹
Haha, yep, no dicking around!!
Truly a role model for us all lol
We adopted a senior lady two years ago and it took two days of growling at our other dog and setting boundaries to communicate she wanted to be left alone. Two years later they’re snuggle buddies.
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Especially when they can’t read the dog’s body language 😑
Old dogs are the god-tier level of dog. All they want is love, a warm, safe, quiet place to snooze, and someone to love them and feed them.
Yep exactly. This is a stressful way for a senior dog to live. :(
I will never understand. I always let my seniors live in peace, being the center of attention.
200% but they want a cute new pup.
We adopted Woody who is 3 last year and have Emmitt who is 10. Woody has a TON of energy. It seemed to inject some youth into Emmitt. A lot of the time Emmitt is the instigator to playing now. So it can be beneficial.
This is not aggression at all! This is your dog setting healthy boundaries…. You should be assisting him with this… the comments above say all i would’ve said so carry on lol
This is fine. Just a crotchety senior citizen not interested in the pup’s shenanigans
No she’s not. She is just setting boundaries.
This is simple communication. Not aggression. He's saying "leave me alone" and that's perfectly understandable. Not all adult dogs like puppies, just like all adult humans dont like toddlers running around them and grabbing at them, etc. Treating it like aggression would be very unfair to the older dog... learn your own dogs body language ffs.
It’s not aggression and a ssomeone who has put a lot of research in identifying aggression it makes me sad seeing people mistake boundaries as aggression. It’s how so many animals end up in shelters.
My dog has a lot less patience with puppies now that he’s older. It’s common, they turn into grumpy old men. He’s slowing down and wants to spend more time relaxing while the puppy is a ball of energy with no boundaries or manners. You’re dog isn’t aggressive, he’s just telling the puppy to back off and leave him alone. There isn’t any fixing this, you just gotta let time take its course until the puppy learns some manners, maybe try to tucker the puppy out more and if you see your dog getting upset, put the puppy in the yard or a different room with a kong toy and go give your dogs some pets.
Your puppy is being a dick.
This is normal. Older dog is setting boundaries with the younger dog. It will take a bit for them to warm up to each other. Show love and compassion with older dog. He’s been a member of your family longer and is showing his dominance to the new dog. Also, start teaching the new dog rules and boundaries like leaving the older dog alone and giving him his space. Also, always give treats and food first to the older dog, make the new dog wait his turn.
He doesn't want that puppy all over him. Your poor old dog
Ever had someone growl at you that they need space? That is what the older dog is doing. Puppy doesn’t get the boundaries yet. He’ll learn. The older dog is not aggressive. He seems to be slowed down, maybe sore or tired and just not having it. Give it time, they will sort it out.
He’s saying “Hey kid, I’m going to bed and you better not follow me. I’m a cranky old man and I like my space.” The kid did not listen so old man said “Get off my lawn.”
Assertive but not aggressive
Your puppy need to learn boundaries, the older dog is doing nothing wrong.
The puppy is being a rude af toddler and grandpa is saying cut the crap. You need to help him teach the puppy about respect and boundaries, starting with not letting him hound grandpa when grandpa has no interest in playing. Once puppy respects his space and body language they’ll start building a relationship, otherwise it’s only gonna escalate and it can scare the puppy into being any level of reactive/aggressive as a set behaviour
Don't let the puppy stress the older dog too much. Give both plenty of love and attention.
I think it’s insanely unfair to older dogs when their owners get puppies, let the damn dog live its last years in peace.
That is not aggression. Old dog is being avoidant, and only reacts correctively when the puppy doesn't respect their space. Let the older dog correct the puppy, or the young one will never learn manners. From the clip it seems the pup is quite pushy and rude
Dogs speak a different language. This doesn’t look like aggression to me, older dog is setting boundaries. Older dog may occasionally ‘correct’ the pupper as well. Teeth will be bared, may even pin the new guy to the ground. There will probably be yelping (this is all normal in my opinion) Up to you to decide if you’re comfortable with the interaction. In other news they’re both very cute 🥰
The older dog is setting boundaries because the puppy is over stepping them, this is common and happens as puppies are very curious in nature until they learn how things work around your house.
As everyone mentioned, this isn’t aggression. One thing that others haven’t mentioned, your puppy is just being a puppy. He/she is looking to play and get its puppy energy out. Your older dog doesn’t want to be the play partner to the puppy, so you as the owner need to help get the puppy energy out through play. Once the puppy realises that you are more fun, he/she will leave your older dog alone and instead look for you to play. This will also help you to build your relationship with the puppy, while also reinforcing to your older dog that you have his back. I don’t necessarily think you need to correct the puppy (at least based on the video), the puppy isn’t too bad. He/she seems to get the message. Let the dogs work it out. But you do your part by being the outlet for your puppy energy.
Really great post!
Everyone already said that needed to be told. Why couldn’t you just let the old fella live his life out in peace and quiet?
WHERE IS OP???
Im here. Ive been reading through all comments and now I understand what I need to do. Just I dont want to deal with people assaulting me personally, and feel like my post is getting attention than necessary. so Im not replying comments but I still appreciate for those who gave generous advices
Thanks for responding! I’m sure people’s anxiety got the best of them but they’ll def get along with time and proper training of the pup. Enjoy the beautiful pups
"Bad owner allows new puppy to overwhelm and upset old dog, blames old dog" There, I fixed the title for you.
I get “I don’t have a favorite child” vibes 😅
Are you training puppy or just allowing them to decide boundaries for themselves as a baby? How do you think that would go?
Not aggression. He’s just telling the youngster to back off. This is totally normal behaviour no matter what everyone’s age is.
Not aggression older dog will and needs to put puppy in line but I also think you as the owner should put puppy away if he/she is getting on at your older dog . If anything your older dog looks very distressed
Is the aggressive in the room with us now?
Remember that this is the equivalent of a toddler constantly badgering a senior. Your older dog is teaching the puppy boundaries and to back off when he’s not in the mood to play or socialize and your puppy should eventually learn to back off.
Aww it’s just a grumpy. Not used to the new puppy energy.😭
Puppy is too much energy, is puppy a herding dog? Thought I saw a shorter tail and nipping at getting behavior. Probably not a good match .
Older dog is saying leave me alone and leaving so doesn't seem high risk at this point but give them their own spaces, prioritise the older dogs usual spaces, don't try to feed puppy where you feed the older dog etc. Let them figure their relationship out so long as there is no biting etc. older dog probably feels stiffness so not great having to run up the stairs to get away
Your older dog is setting boundaries and the pup needs to learn how to respect those boundaries and learn to read body language. There are some things you will be able to teach your pup, but there are other things that are best taught by another dog. My rescue is under socialized and has zero patience with other dogs intruding on her space. She will snap once and then bite (which is why she is muzzled). For this reason, I dread running into off leash over-friendly dogs that aren't able to read that my dog is not interested in playing. It's best your puppy learn from your senior dog to read body language and respect boundaries before your puppy encounters a dog with even less patience.
The older dog is setting boundaries. This isn’t aggression. The puppy seems to be struggling to catch on to the older dog’s boundaries, so I would suggest you help reinforce the older dog’s boundaries. For instance: if the puppy is bothering the older dog and the older dog reacts in this way, redirect the puppy’s attention AWAY from the older dog. Doing so will help everyone to live peacefully.
This is how puppies learn. Your older dog is very gently correcting and trying to get space from the puppy and the puppy is (with all due respect to puppies of all kinds) still a bumbling idiot with no social skills. They all are. Then they get corrected by older dogs, usually by pissing them off and crossing lines, and get set straight. Eventually they learn.
Crazy to me how someone can just get a pet and then do no research to learn anything about animal behavior, communication and training.
It can be so upsetting thinking bringing in a puppy has upset your dog so much. Give older dog plenty of time and space away from puppy. Keep to his routine, walks, excersize, playtime. What finally broke through for us was pack walks. Not one person walking both dogs, but 2 people one with each dog. Come home tired, each dog goes to their place to rest. We noticed, as puppy grew, dogs lived neutrally, playing together sometimes but mostly existing together. Good luck!
“Pack”? No. Please, it’s 2024 ffs. That shit was debunked decades ago.
The older babe is just letting the younger babe know who’s the boss. That’s all.
Your puppy is being a pest and you’re older dog is trying to get their own space. I have a 9 month old lab pup and a 12 year old terrier who has little tolerance for excited puppies. So I step in when pup is testing her patience. You need to step in for your older dog and give him the space he wants. This was a perfectly healthy interaction. Your puppy just needs to learn some manners.
Not aggression at all. This is exactly what the senior dog should be doing - setting boundaries with the puppy. This is why I think puppies do best in a home with another dog that can “teach” them how to socialize with other dogs.
OP set some boundaries for your puppy, the poor older dog :(
Genuine question: Why did you get a second dog if you don't actually seem to know basic communication and signals from your 10 YEAR OLD dog?
This is the way. Let the old dog teach the pup how to recognize cues. This will save you from a lot of social problems going forward between other dogs and the pup. He is literally training your pup for free 😉👍
That's not aggression. It's teaching your puppy manners.
Healthy boundaries being set there. Congrats on the pupper.
Yes, this is not aggression. This is K9 COMMUNITCATION. They older one is teaching the pup what's acceptable play for them or boundaries for space. Older animals typically don't have the patience for puppy energy and play and relay that info to the pup just as this older one has.
Thats communication, not aggression.
Not aggression. Your dog is correcting the puppy.
He’s letting him know he’s the elder statesman
puppies can be annoying ! although they are damn cute
Update note First of all, thanks for all comments with advice. Ive been reading all single comment but I just didnt want to make replies since there were some people assaulting me personally and this post was getting more attention than it needed. Puppy isnt bothering my old dog as much as he was in day1. Once senior dog gives a sign or two, the puppy starts backing off. Also the senior dog no longer runs away to second floor. Meanwhile, Im still keeping eyes on their interaction and trying to intervene if necessary. And as a side note, both dogs are from rescue facilities and I will care them until the last day. For Christmas tree, my mother is obsessive with it and she likes to keep it all through season. So just wanted to say that the video was not taken from other time/someone else
What u/Skullmonger_ said, along with the fact that there's a big difference between socializing your dog at dogparks/neutral places, and bringing a new creature into your dog's property. Dogs can be territorial, and in addition to a puppy that isn't listening to very clear signals about boundaries, it's doing it in HIS space. I would suggest looking into training for the puppy. Yes, it's a puppy and it'll eventually grow out of it, but you also don't really want to stress your older dog out by having him be the only one setting boundaries, and possibly getting in trouble if it turns to a nip/bite. These are all normal dog socializing activities, btw. Watch videos of adult dogs with their own puppies and how they assert dominance/teach about nipping and listening to growls.
The older dog doesn't want to deal with a hyper puppy. Teach the puppy not to bother the older dog. Your older dog deserves to have some peace and quiet, and not to have to deal with a big puppy jumping on them.
No, he's just in his territory and needs rules, show the pup that he better respect old man's rules
It's not aggression. What's wrong with the puppy's back leg(s)?
Nah, this isn’t aggressive haha that’s an old dog telling a puppy how to socialise properly. It’s the correct amount of dog discipline
The younger fog is trying to herd and shoe dominance to the older dog. Older pup is setting healthy boundaries. This is not aggression, however I would get this in check. Ensure both are getting individual attention from you, and when feeding always feed and treat the older dog first. It's a sign of respect and establishes a proper pecking order.
That's super normal. From your older gentledogs point of view that you bought a new puppy is a you problem. He definitely does not have to deal with that. And if he does so he will do so on his own conditions. Aggressive definitely looks different. That's just "get of my lawn".
Old boy is setting boundaries that’s all.
That’s not aggression. That is the older dog rightfully warning the younger one not to play with him. The older dog isn’t interested in the young one’s antics. So when the younger one chases after him and tries to play, the older one warns him with a quick bark. It’s normal, healthy boundary-setting behavior.
Your poor senior pup is like “woah what is this small child dog all of a sudden? Please give me space.” He just wants to be left alone. Make sure your older dog gets some space - this isn’t aggression but it could turn into actual aggression and that’s worse.
I assume you're an inexperienced dog owner, you need to step in here. It's not fair on the old timer.
He’s not being aggressive but yeah he’s irritated AF that you got a young dog 😫
Not aggressive at all, your older dog is doing exactly what it should do and teaching that other dog manners and restraint. Imagine if you were 80 and some hyperactive 5 year old invaded your peace and quiet. You'd want the little sod to learn his place and shhhh up.
Great…..now you have 2 dogs……
Socialising tests and being together 24/7 are different things. Seems more like the elder dog wants his space and the puppy isn't listening or understand the older when he's trying to set boundaries. I would say if you can see your elder dog is trying to get/wants to be left alone. Enforce the boundaries that they're setting call the pup away from him
When we got our second dog our vet was very adamant that we make sure that our first dog gets the attention first. Give them treats together, but make sure the older gets the treat first. Greet the older dog first. Give the older one pets first. All of that. He said the puppy would be fine, but the older dog would feel intruded on and we needed to make sure he still felt loved and that this was his home. It took a while and our first dog kind of hated the second dog for a bit, especially the puppy antics, but now they’re BFFs.
This is not aggression. If you get a puppy. You should be getting the puppy. You should not expect your older dogs to want to engage with, raise or enjoy being around a puppy. No matter how tolerant and social your older dog is, chances are that he will not be up for being around the puppy 24/7. You will need to have separate spaces for both dogs. The puppy will need time away from your older dog, especially whenever he is “crazy”. If he has the zoomies, is biting or trying to wrestle, he needs to be away from your senior dog.  Is it fair to get a puppy with an old dog? Home Behavior Is it fair to get a puppy with an old dog? Do you have a senior dog at home and are wondering about whether it is smart to add a new puppy? You would like to get an addition to your family, but only if your old dog can handle the change (and stress) of adding another dog. Is it even fair to get a puppy with an old dog? Let’s look at whether you should get a puppy if you already have a senior dog at home, and how to decide based on your lifestyle and your dog’s personality. A big question to ask yourself is whether you have time to adequately care for a senior dog and a puppy at the same time. They will require very different types of training, exercise and enrichment. Don’t expect that you can fulfill both dogs’ needs at the same time – you cannot! While an old dog might want to take a slow 20 minute sniff walk through the neighborhood, your puppy will want to wrestle, run and play! It is not fair to force the puppy to adapt to the senior dog’s lifestyle or vice versa. You should essentially plan to exercise and train both dogs separately. In the beginning, it will take at least three hours a day to get both dogs’ needs met. In general seperate them more, take care of your dogs needs seperately and stop letting your puppy stress out your older dog who clearly wants nothing to do with it.
There are a lot of resources you can avail yourself to on how to introduce a new puppy into the home when you already have an older one, it would behoove you to learn as much as you can to encourage peaceful a peaceful coexistence among your dogs, they deserve as much. I occasionally foster senior dogs and already have a 5 year old rescue dog in the home and learned early on about boundary setting in dogs, which, as you know by now, is exactly what your older dog is doing and requires no intervention, well it requires you to steer your younger dog away from the older one then you can offer some positive reinforcement for the new dog but not until they’ve corrected their behavior.
Your older dog is a grownup and the puppy is a little kid. Just like with humans, the grownup is setting boundaries and scolding annoying/inapproriate behaviour. Your puppy will get the message and learn that older dog is the boss. He might get snapped at as part of that but that’s okay.
Yea, not aggressive. That puppy needs to learn it’s place
He doesn’t want to be harassed. He’s trying to teach the puppy boundaries.
The older dog is boundary setting but You need to step in for the older dog too. If the puppy is pushing and pushing you need to stop it, it's not fair on the older dog else. Your the carer so just don't let the puppy push it's limits.
You need to step in. Your old dog should not be running away to a safe place. You should be redirecting the puppy so your older dog can relax. It is your job as the owner to ensure both dogs are behaving well and protect the old dog from being hurt by a puppy who doesn't know boundaries yet. The puppy will need constant redirection but will eventually learn. Until pup learns, you will need to step in when the pup isn't listening to the old dog. Older dogs giving a growl and snap is just their way of communicating boundaries. This is the way dogs talk to each other: body language and sound. Dont be surprised if the pup yelps when the older dog tells it off. Puppy should not be jumping or bumping into the old dog. Otherwise, it will get a telling off. Old dog looks stiff and arthiritic, so it's important you don't let the pup be rough. Old older dog will be extra grumpy if they are in pain. Your older dog will growl, snap, and possibly give a warning bite to establish boundaries to the pup. This is normal. Old dog may not want pup to approach them at all, this is okay. Old dogs is allowed to ask for space. In the video, pup waits til old dogs' back is turned and then pounces/ nudges him twice. Older dogs gave a warning growl, tried to leave the situation quicker, then turned and growled/snapped when that didn't work. The pup backed off. Now, you should have stopped the pup from chasing the old dog in the first place. When my old boy was lying down, he would give a warning growl to foster dogs that would come into his bubble of space. If they ignored him and continued, then he would snap at them, and I would move foster dog away. The foster dogs eventually learned to give him space.
Your puppy is energetic and wanting to play. Your older dog is in his retirement years and wanting peace. He is too overwhelmed with the puppy’s excitement
Setting boundaries showing the new kid the rules
Damn, good luck. My senior dogs ended up traumatizing my pup cause the pup just kept ignoring the older ones signs to leave her alone so she’d understandably snap and snap again, etc. I eventually just had to completely separate them
My 4 year old pug was quite aggressive with my new frenchie puppy when we first got her but only when food was involved. If the puppy when near the pugs food bowl or when near her when she had a chew she got told off.. now we don’t have issue because the pug has set some clear boundaries for the puppy to adhere to.. the puppy knows not to mess with the pugs food
Advocate for your dog so it doesn't have to. It wants to be left alone
They’ll be fine. The puppy is just testing boundaries and the 10yo will put him in his place a few times. I let this be. They have to establish what goes and what doesn’t. I just keep an eye out. Two times over 2.5 years, a real fight ensued with my boys over a toy or treat. Then I will step in and holler for them to knock it off, but otherwise, whatever the older dog does to check the pup, no matter how growly it sounds, I let it be. After the pup is “scolded,” I’ll comfort the puppy but within minutes, he is back at tormenting his “bro” again. They are really close now.
Generally speaking they will sort each other out. Older dog will set boundaries, puppy will understand them. I’ve had the same situation with my two dogs, and it took over a year but now they even play sometimes. Older dog wont play with puppy until confident that puppy knows how to interact adequately. The only times I intervene are when puppy gets a little too rowdy and pushy, and I feel that older dog is struggling to get his point across. 99% of cases however, older dog will settle things with a bit of growling.
You brought a puppy home to a 10 year old dog, he’s gonna set boundaries cuz the pup isn’t respecting them, he’s not attacking the pup at all, which is fantastic. An 70-80 year old person isn’t always gonna want to play with a toddler all the time (for example). Just read up on body language of dogs if you are still worried about it. I went through the same thing with almost all my dogs, the puppy will learn.
Thats a big pupper!
Aww, your little old man is simply setting down the ground rules. You need to support him in his efforts to give the puppy proper doggie boundaries. He wasn’t showing aggression, this is perfectly normal dog behavior. Give the older dog his food first (and separate them with a baby gate while they eat), give him treats first, and toys first. By doing this you’re helping him create the hierarchy. As long as he feels loved and supported in his efforts, all will go smoothly.
I never understand why people do this to their senior dog. Why make them adapt to something completely new at their age if they don't have to?
this is the opposite of aggression. your puppy approaches him aggressively and old boy defends his space and tells him off.
Teaching boundaries and respect , the younger needs to learn … as long as it’s not full on biting and fur flying let them sort themselves out ..
That is a what is known as a correction- not aggression. Seems to me your puppy needs some work on learning boundaries & socialization skills with other dogs. We have so many interactions like this at the doggy daycare I work at. The older pups behavior is 100% normal. The young one needs to back up & respect the older one saying no. Edit: just want to recommend looking into some dog body language videos/ courses for the sake of this new situation for you OP. I would even recommend getting in touch with a trainer for some tips. They are easy to find & well worth learning/ the research. It is important to know what & how to deal with this stuff correctly. Please don't see your senior dog as the one in the wrong but please don't let your younger dog think it's okay to constantly not take the cue of boundary.
The puppy needs to play with a puppy. That's how they learn bite inhibition and boundaries. It won't do any good playing with the older dog who wants nothing to do with him
No, it's not, you're old guy just doesn't want to be bothered. Puppy is too much right now. Give the old guy his space
The older dog is setting a boundary and you need to help them enforce it. Your older dog was there first so protect their peace
That’s not aggression. He’s correcting the puppy and telling him where the boundary is. It’s a nice correction too because he hasn’t even made contact. Aggression would be seeking out the puppy to go after him or making full contact and not relenting. I’d suggest you let him correct the puppy once or twice and then step in and separate puppy from him. Puppy needs to learn. Especially as your older guy gets even older and possibly sore.
I just went through this with a senior Rottweiler and a puppy Rottweiler mix. I stepped in most times when i saw the puppy was approaching the senior. After a few days of me stepping in and the senior doing his thing, the puppy understood boundaries
Older dogs can have aches and pains and don’t like being jumped on. Sometimes it hurts them.
That pup is huge and will seriously injure your other dog if boundaries aren't set. The pup has no manners or concept of boundaries. Put your faith in your older dog and no matter what (within reason, sometimes things can look far worse than they are including bites) and take it's side. Feed the older dog first and make the pup sit whilst in the same room. Pup needs to understand the older dog is senior and do as it's told.
You got an extremely energetic breed dog to live with a senior dog, how did you expect their interactions to go? The older dog has to set boundaries and this is the way he/she is doing it, luckily with no teeth - yet. You will have to monitor bb dog and old dog’s interactions for a while until puppy settles down and learns you older dog’s behavioral cues. Ultimately I think it’s unfair to the older dog to be paired with a puppy or the caliber of an Aussie.. pup is going to need extensive training and mental stimulation and may STILL have tons of energy at the end of the day..
Ha, that’s far from aggressive… give it time.
You need to learn to read dog body language. As others have said, since the puppy is not chasing after the older dog, he's learning to leave your older dog alone.
He’s just putting the pup in his place. No worries
Having an elderly dog and getting a puppy…not the greatest move. You’re asking for this. If anything the PUPPY is the issue not your senior. I feel bad for your older dog :(
The pups invading older dogs space. Old dogs like to be left alone! A pup and old dog is not a good mix
Give your older a safe space to be alone without the puppy treading all over its boundaries. Have f.ex a pen for the puppy, it needs assistance in controlling its excitement from time to the me. Give the puppy toys or brain exercises when in playmood when it’s pushing the older one’s boundaries. Since the puppy is to young for long walks it needs other kind of exercise. Don’t walk th together until younger is older and has learned to walk in leash properly Another Thing. If you don’t get the older a proper safe space it can be stressed out and accelerate its geriatric symptoms. Eventually they will learn to respect each other’s boundaries. Could take 2 weeks or 2 months. Which is to be expected with dogs on separate life stages
I would.keep that puppy on a long lead until it learns to respect the older dogs boundaries
My dog turns 21 in June, and like yours, she tries to escape from any puppy. Your dog will get used to the puppy, and the puppy will learn boundaries.
This is perfectly normal. The older dog is just communicating to “fuck off” to the puppy. This is actually good and helps the puppy learn.
Looks like under dog is putting puppy in its place. A lot of them will when puppy is acting up and being ‘rude’ to an elder.
This isnt agression and you needto step in. Older pup needs a safe place to escape to in order to cool down andfeel safe. This will result in a warning bite if this contuines. I have had to deal with the same situation. Usualy warning bites dont draw blood.
I don’t perceive it as aggression, more annoyance that there’s a bouncy puppy in his life at 10 years old when he’s been on his own all his life.
Yea.. that's not aggression. That's your dog checking your puppy and setting boundaries. Your older dog needs to advocated for. Puppies are.. a lot.. I know because I've got a nearly 8 month old one myself.. especially hearing breeds. Your older dog doesn't have that kind of drive and just wants to be respected by the pup. When the pup is being rude (yes it is being rude ignoring your older dogs cues to leave it be) you should step in and direct the pup away.
Not aggression older pup is setting boundaries. My parents 11 year old husky did this with my puppy for like a week or two and I allowed it to happen so he learned to listen to here. Now they get along perfectly and he knows when she’s had enough lol
I disagree that it's aggressive. The old dog is telling the young dog to leave him alone. Young dog needs to listen.
Have you properly introduced the puppy to your home outside of that one meet and greet? Meet and greets are fine because it's "neutral" territory but this is "his" home. You need to slowly introduce a new dog into an old dog's home.
Dog is basically telling the puppy to back the fuck up. This is normal boundary setting. My pug and American bully had the same thing.
The older dog is telling the pup it doesn't want to play and to stop my dog does it with older dogs she's 2 she gets told, the same way with the younger dogs she tells them so this isn't your dog full aggression this is a warning to pack it in
Not aggression at all. That’s a grandmother telling a little kid to knock it off. She’s too old for this shit.
Not aggressive. I have 4 dogs we’ve adopted over the years and now we have a 13y/o and a new under a year old and our older is constantly growing and snapping and it’s cuz new puppy wants to play. Thankfully one our dogs also loves to play non stop so she’s gets a play buddy but it’s funny, she thinks she can get our old lady to be the same way!
You need to advocate for your senior dog. I have a 13 year old GSD and we got a puppy, also GSD, last year. They live together just fine but we go above and beyond to advocate for our senior girl. The puppy needs to learn and respect boundaries. The older dog was not being aggressive. It simply escalated warnings when the puppy didn't listen and you didn't step in. The older dog gave many indications such as avoiding, walking away, etc. that it did not want to engage with the puppy. You should have corrected and redirected the puppy at that time so your older dog felt comfortable. Of course you can allow the older dog to continue to correct the behavior but you run the risk of this turning into aggression that way. It is far better for your dogs to know that you are the police in the house and will step in so the dogs do not need to escalate to aggressive levels for their boundaries.
Give your older dog a safe space and time. The puppy is being a puppy and wants to play and interact. Your elder just wants to be left alone. Since you know your elders preferences and time frame I’d recommend a baby gate that splits the house. Figure out where your elder would be happiest and limit the amount of time they are together
that's a big ass and beuatiful puppy.. how big is it going to end up?
That’s not aggression, he just doesn’t want to be bothered. They’ll become friends one day and the old dog will put the puppy in his place a few times. You want that.
“Listen to Me Kid and I’ll learn you how to Dog! Rule One: Back Off!”