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Introducing a new Weim to the pack!?
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I need some advice!! Let me give you a little back story first…
Alright, for those of you that have known me for the past couple years on WA will know that I adore my lovely, now 2yrs old, companion named Jaeger. He’s my baby and is wonderful with my daughter (5yrs). During these 2 years (right before I got Jaeger) my boyfriend and I had to change our relationship to long distance relationship as he is in the Air Force and was stationed in California while I was stuck here in good old Minnesota. I’m happy to say that he is finally coming home in May!!! I couldn’t be more excited…but also nervous.
Here’s the catch…he also has a weim named Lady. She is a sweet girl and has kept him company while he has been away. He took her with him since he was able to live close to the base. She is 8yrs old and I have met her a few times. When he lived here in MN, we didn’t live together as our relationship was still new. When he left, I got Jaeger to keep me company and because I have wanted a weim for years! When he moves home, he will be moving into my house with me.
With that said, I will be taking a few days off work to help him unpack and get the dogs acclimated. What’s the best way to go about ensuring a smooth transition for the pups? Both Jaeger and Lady are use to dogs so I’m not worried about them not getting along. I’m just worried in the fact that Jaeger hasn’t ever had to share his living space with another dog. I heard that the older dog should be alpha, but this is Jaeger’s space so shouldn’t he be? Should I let them figure that out? Jaeger doesn’t have an aggressive bone in his body (unless he senses danger) and is usually pretty submissive. I already know that the sleeping arrangements are going to be hectic at first as we both sleep with our pups. Thank God he is bring his King sized bed home! LOL
Thanks for everyone’s input!!
-Steph & Jaeger
Well behaved and socialized dogs are usually very accepting of a new house guest. Most often, the older dogs will assume a roll of leadership, even in a new environment. Youngsters have an instinctive respect of their elders. Females are usually more dominant than males, so that looks like overwhelming force for Jaeger. Sorry bud, women rule the house. Usually they’ll figure things out for themselves. She will more than likely start taking his things away and decide what he can play with, and hog the bed. That’s the way it works. Sometimes it’s more obvious than others. Trying to meddle with it and trying to teach them to “share” will cause you more problems than it’s worth soothing your human emotions. He’ll get over it.
Our situation was a little different. We brought Odin our male into the house where Athena the female already had a dominant position. And boy, did she let him know. Our girl is a bit … “overly assertive”. He tried for top dog for a few times and got his ass kicked. That sucked. But usually it is a lot more subtle, and as long as we humans don’t screw things up by forcing their hand, they will resolve things peacefully.
Jaeger sounds like a big lug of sucky goodness. He’ll probably just stand back and let it happen. The only thing to be especially mindful of, is feeding arrangements. I would separate them for feeding time for a while. One might eat faster than the other, and if there is one sure fire way of creating conflict, it’s having one dog stick its face in the others bowl. We had one slow eater, and Athena just about breathes her food in. Odin had to learn to speed it up. Over several days I started feeding them in the same room and moving them a bit closer, with me standing in the middle. After a week or two I was able to have them eating side by side.
I would like to say I can have them eat unsupervised, but usually it’s gone before I have time to so much as turn my back.
Forever Weimanamanama
Thanks for that!!! It’s kind of what I was thinking, but it’s nice to hear it from others as well. As far as feeding, I didn’t think about feeding them separate for a while. Good call. Jaeger is weird in that we wont eat unless you’re in the same room as him. Yes, he’s that much of a Velcro! I usually tinker around in the kitchen till he is done so watching them wont be an issue. Usually only takes about 2 mins for him to wolf down his meal. Now Jaeger eats a raw diet while Lady gets kibble, so it will be interesting to see how that goes. I will probably slowly introduce a raw diet for her as well to make feeding easier as well.
One other concern that just came to mind is crating. Jaeger has been doing splendidly with not having to be crated. I know most weim owners aren’t so lucky! I make sure to scan the house quick before I leave, close door to “off limits” rooms when were gone and he seems to do just fine. Yea, sure, I come home from time to time to a piece of paper shredded or a random item mutilated, but it’s nothing that can’t be easily/cheaply replaced. Anyways, Lady IS crated when were gone and always has been. She actually enjoys her crate time and looks to it as her den whereas Jaeger HATED his. Does anyone have a pup that is crated while the other isn’t? I’m worried that Jaeger is going to bug the shit out of Lady. Thoughts? Her crate will be located in our room most likely and that’s where Jaeger tends to hang out during the day…sleeping on the bed. Ahhh…LOL
-Steph & Jaeger
I would put the crate in a safe room for a while, to make sure he doesn’t invade her little sanctuary. Many Weims hate the crate, but the ones that do can be a little bit protective of it.
Forever Weimanamanama
And have them meet at neutral ground. Not right away in the house but maybe a close by park.
Weimanamanama Weimaranermama
You have already gotten a lot of good advice! My two cents….
We had Seamus first as only dog and added RR Luna and later weim Amos. Seamus was naturally un-dominant. We had to keep Luna and especially Amos in check so that they didn’t gang up on Seamus (he would drop a bone or walk away from his food if another dog looked at him while eating). A few things we did in the beginning is not letting the dogs on each others bed so that each dog had a “safe” place to go, feed seperately (same room but facing the other way) and supervise feeding. I also never let Amos eat the rest of Seamus’ food if he didn’t eat it all or get his bone if he left if somewhere. I do believe in dogs finding their own place in the pack, but also feel that they need to have manners towards humans and each other.
Oh ya, meet on neutral ground etc etc, but you know that.
Alright, got it! I’m starting to feel a bit more confident about this transition. Thanks you guys
-Steph & Jaeger
And if anything happens that is unforeseen or you want more advice/rant, we are only a website away.
Weimanamanama Weimaranermama
Tina is right. I think we can -try- to teach our dogs some form of manners. Weims are smart enough and can get a bit bullish when left unchecked. In our house, Athena is top dog. And she knows it. Which is fine, but that doesn’t mean she can just drop bone in front of Odin and dare him to pick it up. Then kick his ass when he does.
99.5% of the time, they plaay fine. But sometimes bitchface (nickname) has a …”mood”.
Forever Weimanamanama
I think they are going to be fine with each other and adjust quickly! If both of them are well socialized, I don’t see any major problems occurring. As far as who is Alpha goes, I think they will work that out themselves. And it doesn’t always have to be that one is very dominant and in charge all the time. Out of my two girls, Sophie is Alpha but she never does anything to test Jade. They coexist very peacefully. I think it may be in your favor that Lady is crated right now so you don’t have to worry about any power struggles while you are out. I would also recommend feeding separate at first and slowly bringing them closer and closer together. If there is going to be a problem it is probably going to be about food, so its better to nip that one in the bud. I would exercise them a lot together so they get to bond that way and then be tired and more well behaved in the house. I think they will be great together and turn into fast friends!
I agree with @katiegrizzel All our advice is pretty much “play it safe” scenarios. Good chance it goes like when we brought Odin home. We came home from our long drive, crashed on the couch for a few minutes before bed, and they were like this:
Forever Weimanamanama
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