How To Introduce A Puppy To An Older Dog

It is important that the relationship between your older existing dog and your new puppy gets off to a good start, as this sets the foundation for the rest of their lives together. 

The first meeting

The first few meetings should be supervised until you are confident that there is an appropriate level of respect between the dogs. 

Avoid any unnecessary conflict by tidying away dog food or toys before the introduction. 

An ideal place to introduce new dogs is out on a walk, if fully vaccinated, or in your garden. Ideally, this should be the first time your puppy has gone into your garden, so this will provide more of a distraction from your older dog. 

We recommend putting a training line on both dogs so you can control over excitement or anti-social behaviour. 

Your puppy has likely spent the past few weeks rough and tumbling with their littermates and may want to do the same with your older dog. 

It is important to set the tone and boundaries of these meetings. Just like a parent with young children, we need to be clear about what is and isn’t ok. 

Allow them to sniff each other to check the other one out, but use training leads to maintain social boundaries and don’t let them paw each other. 

Once they have said hello, separate them slightly by encouraging the puppy to break off and explore the garden. 

Repeat this scenario frequently, increasing the length of time the dogs spend together when you are all happy to do so. 

Inside the home

In the first few days, make use of puppy pens and gates to maintain strong and consistent boundaries. Most dogs will learn to coexist at least in a tolerant way. 

Don’t leave dogs together unsupervised until you are certain their behaviour warrants it. Speed up the process by creating them next to each other or in the same room. 

Closely supervise feeding times. Make sure both dogs have space, time and peace each. This also applies to treats that don’t get eaten quickly. Separate the dogs if you can’t supervise them. 

What if it doesn’t go smoothly? 

Some dogs will clash, simply due to genetics. We can’t make two dogs be friends, but we can expect tolerance. Give your dogs time to settle around each other. It is important to be patient and gradually increase the time spent around one another.

Some dogs can be challenging in this situation. If you are still struggling, we strongly recommend calling a professional trainer.