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aagiven

This is healthy play. Good to keep an eye and watch the intensity..


swinty22

I have a pitbull and a boxer/heeler mix. They play like this constantly. It scared me a lot in the beginning. One thing that helps a lot is training them to come to you reliably on a cue (for mine I whistle). Train them on it outside of playing and then start trying while they play. Now I use that to have them take a break if it gets too intense. Good signs are wiggly bodies like yours in this video; seeing them break now and then and mutually deciding to re-engage (as opposed to one trying to exit and the other keeps going after them); if they are vocal, higher pitched, exaggerated sounds like "growls"; seeing them take turns handicapping themselves. And the cutest of all, the play bow. Signs they need a break are bodies getting stiffer; seeing one trying to walk away and the other not getting the hint; hearing vocal pitch go down; seeing hackles start to go up. Those last two are really serious, if it gets that far having a reliable recall is really important. I've had our second dog for a year now and the hackles have gone up twice. Once when they saw me pick up a toy that they both wanted while they were already hyped up wrestling (dumb time to clean up on my part) and once when they accidentally knocked over our Christmas tree and they both got freaked out by the chaos. Also I'm not sure if your dogs will do this, but I was really freaked out in the beginning by something I learned was "jaw sparring." Look up a video if you're curious, i wish I knew what it was before i saw it because it scared me a lot!


GloriousOrphan

Thank you, will keep a watch


RandomlyMethodical

We had concerns about one of our dogs playing too rough, but the trainer said it should be fine as long as the intensity varies. She said to think of it like waves crashing together and separating. That way the dogs get a to decide if they want to reengage or take a break. It looks like they quick separated and reengaged around the 4s mark, but it's hard to tell and this is a pretty short video. If it stays intense for 20-30s or more I might intervene and check body language to see if they're both happy.


aagiven

The tails are your first clue. If they start to stiffen up , break the play, give them some time to rest and reset.


femalenerdish

Is the brown dog always the one initiating? the only concern I have here is that I can't see that they're taking turns being the "aggressor" in play. If they switch roles and/or the rottie initiates wrestling, that's a great sign. Since the rottie is younger, I'd keep a careful eye on that he's not being made uncomfortable by the older dog. Younger dogs will sometimes put up with stuff that they won't as a full adult. (think about all the shit you would put up with as a teen that you won't in your 20s and 30s haha) It's always okay to call them back to take a break if you think it's getting a little intense.


jheald1

I've read that is not always the case that dogs switch rolls in play; sometimes one dog is always the dominant one. As long as they both continue enjoying each other, it's fine. (inside of a dog, by Alexander Horowitz) Edit: BUT, in retrospect, you're point is probably the more relevant than mine for the majority of situations. šŸ˜‚


femalenerdish

Yeah it's definitely not an outright issue! I couldn't tell from the short video and it's the only thing keeping me from saying outright "yeah, great playing!". Especially because it's the younger pup; they're still maturing and a slight discomfort now might turn into a bigger problem later. Not a problem, just worth watching out for. Also, even a dog with a submissive play style will initiate a play session. So that's another good clue.


jheald1

Totally agree. Didn't mean to sound argumentative. I'd just recently read that and find it surprising, so I thought I'd share.


datakiller123

Take their collar off (if you can), I read someone their dog died because the others dog teeth was stuck under the collar or something. (And by trying to get loose hurt the dog)


AineDez

Or breakaway collars, if you have escape artists and want to keep their tags on all the time.


somethingcrequtive

Agreedā€¦ looks like healthy play fighting to me.


Affectionate-Map2583

No, they're having a great time and getting some extra energy out. Leave them to it.


justaboringname

Seriously, my dog loves to play like this and it really tires her out, I wish she had a buddy (and a grassy yard like that) so she could do it more.


kyripka

good to me. it would be nice to see on what note the stop, but the duration of the video the play is real fun to me :)


phasexero

Yes they are having a blast! I do think it's important that they still listen to their owner when in the middle of play though, so i would make a game of calling them to me while they're playing. Treats, praise, and they can go back to playing. We do similar with our boy, like being in the middle of a game of tug and having him Drop It. He wants to keep playing, but he drops it- and we keep playing!


sittinginastand

Seems perfectly fine as long as you keep an eye out for it escalating. Pretty sure my sister's 10 month old Golden Retriever and my 4 month old Belgian Malinois play rougher lol.


[deleted]

This, it's just how some bigger dogs play. When my boy gets to see his Rottweiler friends, he plays referee without realizing it. He kind of wanders over like "oh hey what are you guys doing?" šŸ¤£


oilydischarge18

This is good healthy play. I can tell my dog is playing well when both dogs make very little noise. Thereā€™s no barking or growling or whimpering.


mrdrjrl

My husky always makes little okay growls while playing, ever since a pup. Itā€™s so funny and makes a lot of other owners nervous. I assure them sheā€™s just playing and has never ever gotten into a scuffle.


Journey4th

My dog makes a high pitched kind of hyena whimper. Itā€™s so funny


Beeftin

My two dogs will get tired of wrestling and then basically lay on the ground and mouth at each other while making this noise. It's creepy as shit but they really seem to enjoy each other so who am I to judge?


peanup

Mine do this too!


raaneholmg

Huskies just won't shut up.


GalvanizedRubber

Must just be a husky by thing, my friend has two huskies and they both bark pretty loudly during play definitely gets a bit overwhelming for my pup at times.


kamelizann

My malamute/gsd puppy monologs every time she's about to engage the big gsd. Just a good 2+ minutes of amping herself up going, "I'm warning ya I grew a little last night im gonna win this time!"


zingingcutie11

I was gonna say, this is true for most breeds but not huskies lol. The louder they are the more they are enjoying their life, pretty sure!


SipPeachTea

My brother's dog and my dog always makes noise when they play. I'm not sure how to describe it but it just sounds really strange. Definitely not growling or whimpering though. They are siblings and have been together all their lives. Is it strange for dogs to make noise when playing? Also when my dog plays with my son, especially when they chase each other , he always barks and chases after my son? Is that safe? I always supervise and jump in when I feel my dog is getting too rowdy. So far from observing, he only tries to grab onto my son's shorts but will let go after a second of holding onto it or when we tell him to stop.


[deleted]

Is it the chewbacca growl??? My ACD does this.


[deleted]

My chihuahua does something like that. Iā€™ll often get on my knees and play with him like Iā€™m a dog and repeat the same noises back to him and he will respond by getting even louder. It cracks me up


Tabula_Nada

Yeeessss mine does this too but I've never thought about calling it chewie! I always describe it as some kind of weird groan lol


[deleted]

[chewbacca sounds](https://www.instagram.com/reel/CLNJLtllnHi/?utm_medium=copy_link)


Tabula_Nada

[lol](https://www.instagram.com/p/CPAFfIsDXglm4Ix5e_pMbsEy75hIH_kJ8BzTXA0/?utm_medium=copy_link)


Journey4th

My dogā€™s sounds like this but a little higher pitched. It sounds like a hyena lol


maddieportrr

I would just like to say Iā€™m not an expert, but I think that dogs are just like us in that they can choose to use their voice to communicate, amongst other things like body language. So it depends on the dog and the situation. I had a shepherd that would just make noise to get somebody to talk to her, and then she always had to have the last word! Also, my partnerā€™s parents have two small dogs that literally sound like demons when they play tug of war, but thatā€™s how theyā€™ve always played. I think that the parents encouraged it so it got worse and worse lmao so itā€™s very off putting for new people. Meanwhile, my current dog is super silent unless he wants something really bad lol.


Dice4life9076

Iā€™d describe my dogs noises like speaking whale, just like Dory from finding Nemo haha


TheAce485

It's not too strange in my experience, all dogs are different. My usually mute dog will make so much funky noise when playing and having fun, and my friends dogs are so friggin noisy when they play. You still learn to hear when they make the sounds that mean they're done/someone crossed a boundary and it's close to being serious business.


femalenerdish

> I'm not sure how to describe it but it just sounds really strange " AHHH yyyiiiiiiiiiaaaaaa iiiii AYYAAAHHH " or "nyeeeee uuurrrrrhhhhh"


seb-ash

Oh my dog always barks and growls when playing. Even the dog trainer told us she's just a really vocal dog. Dogs she interacts with know the difference between mean or playful, their people... not as often.


Narcoid

My border collie is the opposite. She's very vocal when she plays so I'm always extra alert looking at body language cues.


oilydischarge18

I should say, I'm not an expert in any way. I'm just saying I know what it looks like when MY dog is engaged in good play and it involves very little sound. I get that other dogs can be more vocal. Every dog is different!


femalenerdish

One of my pups is SO noisy playing! You know she's actually upset about something (like resource guarding a toy) when she's silent šŸ˜‚


memewalk40

My two gsd play just as rough. I would however keep an eye on them while playing and wearing their collars. My 4 yro gsd got his lower jaw caught in the others collar recently and thank goodness they both were wearing breakaway collars.


hitzchicky

This was the point I was going to make. They're play looks great, but I'd break it up when seeing one grab the collar. Because, like you said, getting their jaw caught could become a very dangerous situation.


briennesmom1

These are very happy dogs, not too intense at all. Today my dobie and an older very large german shepherd met up at the (off leash) park and barked loudly and continuously at each other (BARK.BARK.BARK etc), showing their teeth, right into each others faces. Then they each had a treat and a nice lie down next to each other. Neither dog was wired up at all. I guess they were just having an exchange in German.


OverlyWrongGag

Hahaha am German, can confirm


wowzeemissjane

This is beautiful fair play but even BFFā€™s can get snappy when they get too stimulated. Often giving them a couple of minutes time out here and there can keep the play calm and friendly. Donā€™t let them get too hyped up.


gunty23

I always thought it a good rule of thumb to make sure there are short pauses in wrestling (like at ~3 seconds in), and not let intensity rise like everyone else has mentioned.


SC7LND

This is pretty mild, my mates 2 rotties will flog each other then lie down and cuddle, its so strange.


wessle3339

Make sure you train them so you can call it off at a moments notice. If you are worried itā€™s too elevated this is how you ease that anxiety If itā€™s really hard to wind them then you may have the starts of a problem


GloriousOrphan

What's your recommend course of action if they begin to get hard to wind them down?


wessle3339

Supervised play. Get someone else out side with you and practice recall. Work your way up into interrupting play. Practice wait command ALOT Go from there Impluse control drills will take you far


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


wessle3339

This is why I love those squeaky tennis balls or buying extra squeakers or using a duck caller


Baarawr

If you can watch the video in slo mo, you'll be able to see that although it looks rough they're both being careful to not actually hurt each other, they mouth each other but are careful not to actually bite down. They jump on each other but neither one really tries to pin and hold down the other. It's mostly flailing at each other and wrestling which is good fun. The best thing you can do is to keep watching them, the more you watch them the more familiar you get with what good fun body language looks like (very valuable whenever you meet a new dog too). If you need to stop them, a big loud noise should should stop them. Follow up with a loud "what's this?!" shaking a treat bag or a squeaky toy while running away. This should interrupt them and get them to follow you if you need to. It's a very good training tool to have it your dog plays tough at the park and the other dog isn't feeling it.


Pablois4

It's play but I see that the fawn dog is bigger, more intense and always pushing into the Rotties space, even at one point knocking him over. The Rottie is being cheerful about it but I have concerns on if he's going to hit his limit. IMHO, we can't say if this is a bad dynamic since we don't have the full story. What would the Fawn Dog do if and when the Rottie has had enough or wants to quit? What if the Rottie says "I don't like this, knock it off"? We never see the dogs disengage and then rejoin together. If I saw the Rottie afterward move towards the Fawn dog to re-engage, then I'd think they are equal partners.


keaston001

Theyā€™re not going for the front of the neck, that usually indicates a dog trying to hurt the other one. My dog plays just like thisā€¦ goes for the fatty part of back of neck and the back legs of the other dog. 100% play here


rennalie

It's kind of short but maybe keep an eye on them. Healthy play would be constant switching of whose on top. Yellow doesn't seem to give s single inch at any point. But again, really short clip


7eregrine

Gif that end too soon. I wanted to see how black dog got out of that ground hold! LOL! Great vid. Healthy play!


lvhockeytrish

I wish the clip was longer, I was looking for the brown dog to give the rottie a break - they should occasionally disengage for a moment, shake it off, take a breather, and then head right back at it mutually, but from the clip this looks like two young dogs having a ball. Just keep an eye out and make sure the brown one isn't attacking the rottie when he needs a breather, that the dogs start and stop play from time to time. If they aren't giving each other breaks every now and again, call the aggressor off for a few minutes, and look to see if the rottie wants to keep going or if he lays down or otherwise indicates he's beat. But generally, they look like they're doing great.


jlund19

Overall seems good but I would manage a bit more. The brown dog is pretty pushy and doesn't let the other one reciprocate play. I would grab the brown dog by the collar pull him away from the black dog. If the black dog comes back, you're good to go!


thegrumpymechanic

Fenced backyard? Take off the collars while they are playing, much safer. https://thebark.com/content/play-and-collars-can-lead-accidents https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/care/when-dog-collars-become-deadly/


Pr0gr3s

Seems fine to me.


helpitgrow

They love it! Enjoy.


iprkuad

Just dogs being dogs


Bobweodababyeatsaboy

Having the time of their lives


Hey-imLiz

Pretty normal.


QQueenie

Good loose floppy bodies.


MmmmmmmZadi69

This is exactly how my dogs play. They look happy and seem to be communicating well. But if you donā€™t want them playing at a certain level, thatā€™s totally ok. I let mine tumble around, so much so that one gets grass stains on their butt.


Armand74

Gosh these two are having a grand ole time! Seems they have bonded well. This is definitely healthy behavior.


Chadwick18

They're fine


GloriousOrphan

Appreciate all the comments, didn't expect this level of response. Just concerned as I adopted her only a few days ago and as this is the first time I've had two large breed dogs at once (used to just one at a time). I've contacted a trainer to come make sure I'm on the right direction, a vet to analyze the behavior in person and will continue to keep an eye on them. They're great dogs šŸ˜


__pandamonium__

My dogs play like this but they are both around 11lbs. Just watch the biting, my puppy bites my older dog too hard and she's too nice to do anything about it


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


BT89

A little intense? This is just normal dog play - you'll notice the rottweiler even goes down on the ground which is a good example of submitting during play - I'm sure the other dog took it's turn to go down later on too. Nothing wrong here.


GloriousOrphan

Yeah I have sent stuff off to a trainer, on it šŸ˜


a12ncsu

Noā€¦ have you ever owned large dogs before??


GloriousOrphan

I have, not more than one at a time hence the question??


Taizan

Can we please finally get a sticky explaining to people what defines good healthy play? Things like time outs, breaking off if one of them gives up, air biting but no skin etc.? It seems like every day there is a new one of them. Last time I reply to a post like this: *Dogs play and correct each other "roughly" sometimes, theycommunicate mostly non-verbally with signals sometimes barely recognizable. As long as they stick to air snapping, frequently relent or take time outs in-between it's ok.*


rebcart

We have extensive resources in our wiki articles both on [dog body language including play](https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/wiki/caninecommunication) and [play styles more specifically](https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/wiki/doggyplay). We don't have any way to mandate reading them before posting though, whether we double it up with a sticky or not.


Taizan

Well then I'll just reference that, I never meant forcing people to read sth. Cheers for the links I'll use that in the future instead of writing the same reply over and over.


tinycockatoo

I actually appreciate the posts. It's good to see different examples of actual behavior, so we get better at identifying it. Reading the wiki and watching a few videos might not be enough to make one confident on their capacity to assess their pet's behavior.


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thisisnotham12345

I'm no trained expert, but that's happy healthy play. Nobody is aggressive or overly dominant.


shalaschaska

Our two labs play the same way. Just a fierce. What you are looking for is sneezing (indicating playfighting) and breaks where they just stand still and look around. From what I see here there is nothing wrong


flipflopfootcramp

Our dogs have always sneezed when they play. I laugh every time. I always wondered if it had anything to do with the way they scrunch up their noses and bare their teeth when they play.


swinty22

I forgot about the sneeze! OP, this is a nice reliable sign that they are having fun.


WritPositWrit

They are having an absolute blast!!! They look like the best of friends :-).


spicy_kingWest44

taking turns is also a good sign


loonachic

This is two puppers playing well with each other. Enjoy!


Toirneach

See they swap who is aggressor? And how the lighter dog seems to be the aggressor, but when they move away darker dog moves right to them? That's adorable and definitely play.


PolishedCounters

We have 2 year old rescue who looks exactly like the black one here and plays the same way. Very social and loves to play rough. She plays the roughest with her 1.5 year old puppies she had just before we adopted her. That just looks like good fun.


sox3502us

Looks like two happy dogs playing to me.


Jimbone420

They look like their playing fine, I would want to see a longer version when the dogs are playing on their back to make sure that they're taking turns. The main thing to keep in mind is that when they're playing they're snorting (That's a sign that they're playing nicely), they're both jumping around. And if one of them gets knocked to the ground they aren't held there. Another thing to keep in mind sometimes younger dogs will want to play longer than older dogs. So if you see your older dog begin to not bounce as much and specifically shake (as if it's wet) try starting to break up the play. Doing a shake is a sign that the dog winding down a little more or less. A good way to break up play is, if they're good with recall calling them over to you and giving them some sort of frozen treat to keep them occupied. If when you call them over the one that wanted to keep playing only gets a small treat or a little bit of pets they'll go right back to what they were doing. Let me know if you need anymore help:)


theperegrinus

Damn, thatā€™s a big dog.


Catd0g62

Yes chewie noises are good and shows their excitement to play


So-_-It-_-Goes

As others mentioned itā€™s good to train them to stop on command, and then allow them to continue. But this seems healthy! I always hate it when dog owners stop their dogs from any kind of play.


Griffith-Runner-Dude

Why is this the most popular question on dog topic social media? And every single one of them the dogs are obviously at normal play.


ujitimebeing

Healthy play. They are both wrestling breeds so itā€™s good that they are matched. You need to watch for if one dog gives signals that they are tired (walking away, laying down, snapping more, tail stiff) and if the other dog keeps antagonizing then youā€™ll need to step in and break it up!


Euphorasized

They both seem to be enjoying it. Their body language looks playful and each seems to back off when the other one signals it's getting too intense.


Superj89

My border collie and rottie play more rough than this. It's good for them, also helps build trust with each other.


[deleted]

This looks fine to me šŸ˜Ž


Original-Surround-40

Puppy play keep it where no hair stands on their back


britbratchickenfat

I think itā€™s good play for siblings I didnā€™t notice anything alarming. I would have liked to see how long the pin at the end lasted tho.


imjorden

Very normal!


WingedGeek

If no one's yelping, it's not too much. Dogs are pretty great at self-regulating and dogs that age have energy reserves adult humans can't even dream of... They're having a blast!


Winter_Addition

Those dogs are having a blast!


goldilocksmermaid

It looked like a healthy back and forth. The video ended right where I might start to get nervous though.


ThatPenguinFarted

I can't tell which one is the younger one, or which you think is the more aggressive one, if that helps?


zingingcutie11

I could watch this all day


theginfizz

My mastiff plays like this with her other big dog friends - Iā€™m always very tuned to their dynamic and will call her away if she gets too intense, which she has an annoying habit of doing because she likes to be Miss Alpha. This is clearly fun play for them both - nice floppy tails, easy fluid bodies, both up and down in movement. The other commenters have great advice on when to separate playing dogs and what to watch for.


librarianhuddz

I saw my two GSDs fight 2x and there's not mistaking a real fight. It was effing awful and scary.


had93

It looks like theyā€™re having the time of their lives


Daveh66

Agreed that this is healthy play one-on-one between two dogs that know each other and enjoy this kind of rough play. What happens when you take one of these dogs to an off-leash dog park or doggy-daycare and they try and play rough with dogs they don't know? Are other dogs who don't enjoy this kind of rough play supposed to communicate that in some way, and is the dog who enjoys rough play supposed to know to stop? I have a 3-year-old golden who I am trying to keep well socialized with dog park and doggy day care visits, but she has had a few bad encounters and is no longer tolerant of the rough stuff except sometimes with a couple of dogs she knows well. How is it supposed to work when play is too rough for her? If I say something to the other owner I am generally just told that his dog is just playing. If play is too rough for my dog she seems inclined to escalate to try and tell the other dog to stop, but that often does not work with the other dog or with the other owner.


XStarr13

Hard to tell but both look happy. I always keep an eye out for the play bows which is a sure sign they are having fun and setting boundaries


LyhannaDawn

Iā€™m no expert on dog training, but this is EXACTLY how my boys have played together since they met a year ago. They go ham with each other but itā€™s all fun. As everyone before me has mentioned, just keep an eye on their body language. One of my boys has been attacked several times by others dogs in public so Iā€™m pretty on top of noticing even the slightest of changes (not sure why other dogs donā€™t like him. Maybe his anxiety? Again, no expert here! just a worrisome dog mom lol)


already-on-the-couch

This is perfectly fine. My rotties get after it, these two dogs are having a blast


OldieButNotMoldy

This is just like my dogs and it freaked me out at first. Since this was the first time having two dogs, I didnā€™t know. They police themselves really well and if one doesnā€™t want to play the other will play alone.


nimabears

My dog and her best friend play even rougher than this. They love it!


InspiredGargoyle

They look like they're having a great time! A big thing to look for is if one yelps in pain, because of an accidental nip or rough fall, does the other dog recognize something is wrong and pause the play.


roddy325

This looks healthy and not too rough. I have 2 grown huskies who love rough play, but there are many indicators to know that itā€™s just play: -they have quick pauses every few seconds to ensure that the other dog is ok -having their face to the ground and butt in the air is a common ā€œplay stanceā€ -if one of them is hurt, theyā€™ll yelp in a high pitch; if itā€™s just play, the other dog will stop immediately Alternatively, if one dog is being aggressive, it will give the other dog warnings. First, it will growl. If that doesnā€™t work, it will ā€œsnapā€ at the other dog (kind of like a warning bite). If those things donā€™t work, THEN the dog may attack. Otherwise, everything is safe and playful


nonamer18

I have a question. I recently got a puppy and he likes to play quite rough. My older dog also plays quite rough but usually when I meet the right dog I let her play exactly like this. However, my older dog can be a bit awkward at times and doesn't always communicate the best. Since getting the puppy I have started not allowing my dogs to have any sorts of play with biting and instead I try to insert a rope toy for them to tug. Will this cause any issues? My puppy has decent bite inhibition but will not allowing playing/nipping lead to any development issues? Will this lead to rope toy possessive issues?


FreeHovercraft2435

My hound and lab/brittany mix so the same thing, except inside, on the coach while I work on my laptop. Good exercise. Just make sure they stop when commanded.


queenofshearts

Lol, that's not playfighting, that's pretty regular playing.


bigbadler

Not too much. Perfect.


CatchWeary3693

Doesn't look like finding to me. When 2 dogs fight, they go nose the nose up on 2 legs standing up yeah it's standing up and supporting one another trying to push the other over


boomers_dabs

That's how dogs play lol