Hi, We have a 20 week old black lab and a 10 week old Fox red lab both bitches and the 20 week old has started to play rough and show her teeth a lot she also grawels at the little one when she has treats.. Is this a puppy thing and will she grow out of it..? Many thanks in advance Andy
Hi Andy, welcome to the forum! I believe play fighting can look very alarming between dogs that are friendly. Siblings, family members, best friends. There can be lots of growling, bared teeth, and rolling over and such like. But best to keep an eye on things and separate them if they look like they are overdoing it. You need to make sure that the play is appropriate for the environment too. What is okay out in the garden is not on in the house, for instance. Others on the forum have litter mates and unrelated dogs so hopefully can comment more. Jac
I have a fox red as well and she was/is pretty rough and tumble. She’s almost 6 months but we were “graduated early” from a puppy play group for large breed dogs of a similar age. She was latching on and wouldn’t let go, didn’t get it that other dogs didn’t want to play, etc. She is a lot better at home now with the 7 lb dog I have. I thinks it’s helped a lot that she goes to daycare and plays with some adult dogs and other puppies who are able to help her learn to read cues.
When my dogs play together you'd be forgiven for thinking that there is some sort of heinous murder going on from the noise. They growl, sing and bite (gently) at each other very loudly! It's how dogs learn from each other.
Dog play often looks rough and involve showing teeth etc. Whether the play is appropriate or not isn't possible to tell without seeing it. If you remove the youngest pup is she keen to get back to start playing again? All play should be monitored as a 10 week old can be hurt by a bigger, stronger dog. Again without more details on the growling with treats it's not possible to say what's going on but it could be linked to resource guarding. With two young dogs and concerns on behaviour I would be making an appointment for a positive trainer/behaviourists who can advise on appropriate play and also assess and put in place any behaviour modification on the growling around treats.
