Cocker Specific Discussion > Puppies

Puppy chasing older dog

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PamB:
We collected our new black and white cocker puppy Bandit yesterday and he is gorgeous.   :D

The cats are suspicious and staying well clear, just as we expected but our main problem at the moment is our other cocker Barley.  :?   Barley will not stand still when Bandit comes near him and so Bandit chases him and we end up with them both tearing round all the time.  Bandit is being a little devil and keeps trying to nip Barley as he runs  :twisted: and so Barley is now staying well clear and is now refusing his food  :( .  Of course, he will still eat treats and is eager to try to get some puppy food if he can :!:

Can anyone give us any advice, please?  We are trying to distract Bandit and are letting Barley stay out of the way when he wants but not excluding him.  We are also trying to make a bigger fuss of Barley than usual.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received as we would like to deal with this now before the situation gets any worse. :(                    

PennyB:
How old is older.

My 2 would chase around the house all the time when I got Wilf (Ruby was 13 months older) but in my case it was Ruby doing a lot of the chasing.

Do you have a crate, which would be used for the pup. These are so so so useful (not a typo with 3 so's!) as the older dog can have time out from the pup. Crate can remain in living area but pup can go in it for periods throughout the day (so you all get some rest). Never never use a crate as a punishment though. See it as a den, but one in which you can shut the pup in for their own safety as well. The crate here is still used as it has a blanket over the top of it (not all the way down the sides as air needs to circulate) and mine use it often as a bed (it was also used after various ops my 2 have been through to help them recuperate).                    

PamB:
Barley the older dog is 8 years old but a typical cocker in that he thinks he is only 8 months old.   :lol: We did have another dog but lost her a year ago.  

Yes, we do have a crate and are using it for time out (not for punishment).  Trouble is whenever Bandit has access to Barley the chasing starts.  All he wants to do is chase Barley and nip him.  If Barley would stand his ground or react in another way I'm sure things would calm down a bit but he wouldn't hurt a fly and just runs away! :oops:  This gives Bandit the green light to chase him even more.  He even stole a chew off him this morning and Barley just sat and watched. :roll:

Is it best to step in and try hard to restrict Bandit chasing Barley or will them sort themselves out or get tired of it if left alone?  We're not sure what to do for the best. :?                    

PennyB:
I'd just let them sort it out for now. Its very early days and sometimes interference can make things worse. If your dog won't eat then he'll be fine he'll eat when he's hungry—what you don't want here is a dog that starts to get picky because we feel guilty. I'd only give treats if your dog earns them as well (even if its just getting them to sit) rather than as a substitute for food or because you're on a guilt trip.

Its amazing how 2 weeks on you'll be wondering what all the fuss was. I worried when I got my last pup that Ruby was just going to be too bossy with him and end up bullying him, but I resisted the temptation to interfere (even if Wilf yelled I only went to him 5 minutes after he'd stopped yelling just to make sure all was well and it always was).                    

PamB:
Thanks for the advice :) .  Will carry on and hope it sorts itself out.   :roll:                    

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