Needing advice. I have a 4 yr old spayed pit mix and a 3 yr old neutered Pomeranian. We got a 7wk old sheprador who is now 19 weeks old (not yet neutered). Over the past month the pup has begun to attack (playfully but extremely rough) our Pomeranian as soon as they step out onto our back porch. He waits for the Pomeranian to step out and ambushes him. Hes also begun to grab his tail and will drag him across the yard. This behavior does not happen anywhere else except for on our back porch. We have resorted to taking the puppy out leashed, which he still is fighting and will jump on us and snap at hands or clothing (we are working on that). He still jumps at the Pomeranian even with the leash on so now we let them out at different times. I don’t know what else to do. If you have any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it
We experienced something similar when we first adopted our boy, Tank, at 7 months. Tank is a boxer/lab/dane mix. At the time we were also watching my aunt and uncle's 12 yo lab, Loki. Tank regularly launched himself at Loki and tried to engage her in rough play similar to what you describe. At the same time, we were also dealing with the arousal biting (jumping and snapping) that you describe. Both are super challenging and, for me, very emotional (particularly the arousal biting, which I know you're not really asking about). I think that both issues were related to his need to get out his energy, as well as his puppy/adolescence immaturity, and we tried quite a few things to manage the behavior! Like you, we did not take Tank and Loki on walks together and, if they were outside together, would have him tethered or leashed. If he launched himself at Loki while in the house we gave him a firm "no" and a time out (removed him from the rest of the family and had him stay in the basement or a corner in our kitchen for a few minutes to calm down). If he launched himself at us, we immediately left the room/removed all attention. If he launched himself at us while on a leash, we'd do the straight arm away from our bodies to keep him away from us and then just wait, "ignoring" him, until he calmed down. All the above helped, but probably most helpful was giving him opportunities to play with dogs his own age/energy level. As soon as he had a pretty reliable recall, we took him to a couple local dog parks where he could run and wrestle. We also starting enrolling him in doggy day care 1 day/week, which he loves. If those are not options for you, perhaps you can find a puppy friend in your neighborhood that he can play with. Obviously, use your best judgment regarding whether or not your pup is ready for that. We watch him very carefully when he is playing with other dogs, and remove him immediately if he was getting too rough/it is clear that the other dog was not having fun. However it happens, lots and lots of exercise (mental and physical) was and is key to managing Tank's behavior. We do regular training with him/took him to obedience classes, he gets most of his meals via a Kong, puzzle toy, or the "find it"-game, and we give him substantial amounts of physical exercise (running, biking, and swimming). We live in a city and are lucky to have access to large, beautiful dog parks where we can hike and run with him off-leash. Finally, if you're in the U.S., the Animal Humane Society has a free "Pet Helpline" that you can use to seek help with behavior issues. I found it very helpful - they gave good management tips and, even more important, validated that Tank's behavior was normal for his age. Our situation was different than yours in that Loki was only with us for a short time, and she is big enough that I wasn't super concerned about Tank accidentally hurting her. However, we saw Loki recently (around Tank's first birthday), and he left her alone. I've also noticed his behavior has improved substantially while playing with other dogs at dog parks. He's about 14 months now and still needs a lot of work, but is getting better all the time. I hope you find some of this helpful!
Very much so, helpful! I have noticed that he's starting to play with our larger female pit/Pressa Canerio mix now that he's getting closer to her size. She's moody though and put him in his place when she doesn't want to play. I heard most of all, more exercise. Easily done!
And don't forget more training too, using food rewards Several short (5 min) training sessions a day will help to wear out his brain. It doesn't really matter what you are teaching him...it's just the mental engagement that matters.
