Hello everyone I'm new here - have a lovely 7 month old working black Labrador girl and she is a super dog. I know it's tricky to advise without seeing the behaviour but I'm looking for thoughts about what normal play looks like vs 'bullying'. I'm asking because we've bumped into a male HPR about the same age as my lab a few times now - he 's walked in the same area we walk with a gang of his relatives. She always seems up for playing with him but he seems waaay rougher than most other dogs she has played with. On a couple of occasions he has got her round the throat pinned down on the ground and despite her yelping he hasn't released, at which point I've quickly stepped in, popped her on the lead and made an excuse to the other owner about having to go home... I appreciate dogs have different playing styles but something about it seems a bit hardcore compared to how other dogs play with her. Having said all that it's not as though she is cowering behind my legs and once I've prized him off her neck she seems to want to go back for more. I am wondering if I am worrying a bit too much on the basis that she did want to return to play with him, or if I should just try to avoid him in future as she is still only young.
Re: Normal play vs bullying Hello and a warm welcome from me and my two dogs If it were me , I would avoid this dog . Labs are often very sensitive , my boy is a classic and he would be terrified if this happened to him . The last thing you want is to have your lovely girl frightened of other dogs and this could happen , I wouldn't take the risk . Yes, youngsters can play rough, but there is a fine line between normal play and bullying , the owner should be stepping in to stop her dog from these tactics . Don't get me wrong , my lad loves a good old romp and loved a play when he was a youngster, but this doesn't sound like just play, its a shame .
Re: Normal play vs bullying I tend to think if we are worried it's usually got some basis for the worry and then remove mine from the situation. Mine are very different in size Chihuahua and Labrador so we have to make sure no one gets hurt, they both play rough but I step in if I am concerned, rather do that too soon than allow them to fall out.
Re: Normal play vs bullying My rule is this - When the other dog looks unhappy, worried or frazzled I stop play. My little one (6 months) sometimes overdoes it with my older one (19 months) but the older one occsionally does the same with her friend the same age - especially indoors. Yes - pinned down and yelping is certainly a step too far.
Re: Normal play vs bullying I'm no expert but I'd say that yelping is a message that it's gone too far and isn't fun any more. It seems to me that growling can be part of the game; and certainly 'play biting' is part of the game, and so is rolling over and over and even pinning down to the ground. But when one of the dogs yelps frequently, the other ought to back off; if they don't then owners should intervene. What do other people think?
Re: Normal play vs bullying I agree Rosie - lots of biting and growling is a normal part of play, so is pinning down, as long as their mouths are wide open and both dogs are waggy and happy. My two are having tremendous fun here, believe it or not! ;D (the one on top is only five months old here!)
Re: Normal play vs bullying [quote author=Boogie link=topic=9047.msg129299#msg129299 date=1418143483] I agree Rosie - lots of biting and growling is a normal part of play, so is pinning down, as long as their mouths are wide open and both dogs are waggy and happy. My two are having tremendous fun here, believe it or not! ;D (the one on top is only five months old here!) [/quote] ;D Go Gypsy!
Re: Normal play vs bullying Given the difference is size and weight of my two ( Sam 38 kilos and terrorist Millie 8 kilos ) she cant half hold her own They maul one another and make a horrendous racket at times, but no malice shown , all good fun
Re: Normal play vs bullying Hello, and a warm welcome to the forum. Tell us a bit more about your dog - we love pictures if you can figure out how to post them. I wouldn't be happy with a scenario where a dog had another dog pinned down unless they knew each other incredibly well and this kind of play was the norm between them and they both adopted the same kind of roles in turn. I think dogs are individuals, what's ok for one dog might not be ok for another. So it's very hard to say what's ok and what's bullying. I also do think that dogs who live together have more trust, and a long history of communication, so rougher games are "safer" and more normal between them, if that makes sense. Certainly, my dog thinks any barking, growling, biting or even paws on his fur is out of line. He likes polite chasey games, and that's it - and the chasey game has to have lots and lots of pauses, play bows, invitations to swap roles and chase. He can get really upset by - and want to leave - a dog who doesn't know what he considers to be the "rules". There are lots of dogs that he doesn't want to play with, I don't think they are bullies though, I just think they are not well suited playmates to him, so we move on. Him knowing exactly which dogs he wanted to play with, and which he wanted to avoid came with a bit of maturity. He didn't have that judgment at 7 months...
Re: Normal play vs bullying Yes she's had lots of play that looks like that photo with her friend that she's known since she was little! It was purely the pinning down and not being allowed to get up despite a yelp that concerned me. I had never really seen 'play' like that before. I'll try to work out how to post pics of her - I've had her since she was 8 weeks so I've got a nice back catalogue
Re: Normal play vs bullying Like I said in my first reply , it is a fine line indeed, but just not worth scaring your girl . There are hints re posting photos in the Technical Section , good luck, looking forward to seeing her
