Hi, We are getting our second lab in a couple of weeks and wondering how to safely introduce him to our first lab who is 20 months. I suspect she will be a little jealous at first but hoping they bond quickly. I have read some posts about keeping the older one on the lead or maybe meeting in the garden. Would love any tips on this and also any tips on how to manage two dogs together! I feel I will have my hands full for the first few weeks! Thank you!
If you can find an out of the way field where other dogs haven't been, you can introduce them there. Otherwise, definitely the garden where there is lots of space around both dogs. Whichever dog is the more confident, you need to keep on leash to enable the other dog to feel they have space. (Sometimes the puppy is the shy one and feels encroached on by the other dog, sometimes the other dog doesn't want to be disturbed by a puppy...)
I just let my new puppy directly into the house. I know my older boy is a gentle guy. He won't hurt him. The puppy was very tiny and only 5 weeks but he wasn't scared. He also fell down the stairs as he had no concept of stairs. He wasn't hurt. But it likely wasn't the best way to introduce them. The puppy is an extremely confident puppy and only recently have I been able to keep the puppy from constantly harassing the older dog.
Tilly was 9 when we got Cooper. We just let them meet on our patio, but we already new that Tilly was fine with pups and even kittens. As Cooper got older she was more assertive, but they always got along fine together.
