I am minding my daughters labradoodle, she is a lovely placid dog. My dog , a 13 month old black lab is usually great around other dogs and well socialised. My dog (Milly) is terrible to her when me or anyone else is around. Her rough play is off the charts and she won't give the other dog a minutes peace. What sort of adds to this is the other dog is so placid she just submits straight away. I have given the guest time out by putting my dog out so she can get some peace and love from us. I then do the same for Milly dog. At the moment they are both outside together where they play quite well or just sit around. I know that if i go out there Milly will instantly start to bully the other dog. They will walk well together and are two lovely dogs. How can I calm my dog down around her and stop her from wanting to dominate her when we are around.
Hi @Jeff Smith Teach them to do things for you but treat them equally. One sit stays while you do a short bit of heeling. Then swap dogs. Or one retrieves a ball while the other sits next to you. Then swap dogs. Make yourself the centre of attention rather than just letting them interact while you stand(?) there.
Thanks Michael I have just come back from a walk they are a pleasure to walk together they are sitting on the floor playing appropriately . I am sorry to say that all the naughtyness is coming from my dog. My sons dog is a border collie and we have no problem at all because he seems to give it back a bit and she kind of knows her place but the labradoodle is so placid with every dog she is treating her like a door mat. I will give it a bit of a try later in the yard when I can. Thanks for your concern.
Hi @Jeff Smith I understood that your dog is the one who loses the plot. Dogs do suffer from envy. If one treats them equally, then some of the cause for the envy is reduced. And it's possible your dog just wants to play. So a few exercises in which each one is required to be steady while the other is working seems sensible. Your dog learns it pays to be steady when around another dog--your dog gets to play with you (and gets your attention).
I think, given this is a temporary situation, your best bet is just to put a stair gate up and split the house up somehow so that they each have their own area in the house. It's quite stressful for the shut-down submissive dog to have to deal with this so I think you do need to stop it...and not much point getting into complex behavioural solutions if you're just looking after your daughter's dog for a while...
