Hi, My cousin brought home a puppy on Monday and we introduced him to my dog Titan. Titan is about a year and nine months old. He's never met a puppy before. All of the puppies that we know grew up with him since we all got our dogs at the same time. The first day Titan met Aegon (the puppy), he smelled him and then didn't really pay attention to him. Aegon followed him around for a little bit, but would also do his own thing (chasing bugs and attacking shoes). I thought it was odd that Titan completely ignored him because he's usually very into other dogs. The second day Titan saw Aegon, which was yesterday, Titan ignored him at first. After about 5-10 minutes, Titan warmed up to him a bit. He would play bow to Aegon, then pretend to jump and then run so Aegon would chase him. He would grab Aegon's rope toy and have him chase it around, much like we would move the rope on the ground for them to chase it. Aegon did play bow for the first time and would lay down and then pounce, just like Titan. The thing is... towards the end we took them outside to the yard. Titan got excited and would run around Aegon and run towards him and then jump. Once in a while he would poke him and make him roll. Either that or Titan would go and lay down in front of him. The last thing that happened was that Titan ran around and then he actually ran into Aegon and made him yelp. That's when I figured it was too rough and stopped the play. I actually let Aegon come over and smell Titan. After that I just let Aegon play in the yard. Is it normal for an adult dog to get this rough with a puppy? How about the change in play from the first day to the second? Or just the change from inside to outside? What should I do differently for their next play session? I know Titan isn't completely out of his puppy or adolescent stage, but he usually is pretty well behaved. I probably should have stopped him earlier, but I know how rough he gets with other dogs around his size and age. I knew he wasn't that rough, so I didn't intervene. Just to clarify, Aegon wasn't scared or limping or crying afterwards. He got up and tried to play again. Thanks!
Re: Normal Adult and Puppy Play?? I think it's wise just to keep an eye on them, and intervene if things get a bit too rough. Titan is actually being pretty gentle with the puppy, considering he hasn't really had any interaction with puppies at all. I'd certainly continue to let them play together; it'll be good for both of them. But don't leave them alone - better safe than sorry.
Re: Normal Adult and Puppy Play?? Yes - the play can get pretty rough. You do need to stop it when it gets too much. Gypsy had a limp for a day or two after some crazy play, which gave me a scare! She's fine now. I tend to tell the older one, Tatze (17 months), to 'get a toy' as they play much gentler when toys are involved. Gypsy has learned what it means too and will get one when I ask.
Re: Normal Adult and Puppy Play?? Thanks for all the responses! I will have to give more corrections when he gets too rough. I guess I'm just being more cautious since I haven't seen him aroung puppies!
