Bringing home a new puppy to a senior dog can be a lot. Not all meetings go as we hope. But you can do a lot of things to make sure the process goes as smoothly as possible.
Three things, above all else, are the most important.
- Take It Slow
- Reward Good Behavior
- Correct Unwanted Behavior
And before you know it, you’ll have a household that can accommodate both a puppy and an old dog.
After recently losing my 10-year-old lab/rott mix, Jeter, to hip dysplasia, I brought home Gatsby—a 5-month-old mix from the shelter. For those who don’t know Caesar’s story—he is my 11-year-old German Shepherd/Blue Heeler mix who is dog friendly, but for 9 years, was separated from Jeter in our home because Jeter was not dog-friendly and had violently attacked Caesar on several occasions.
So, Caesar had never been around a dog-friendly dog inside his home. All he’s ever known in the house is dog aggression aimed at him. To top it off, Caesar has Cushing’s Disease, which has caused him to have a lower tolerance of stressful situations. He can become reactive around excited children or energetic dogs.
When we brought Gatsby home shortly after Jeter passed, I felt it wasn’t going to go as smoothly as I would have liked. Despite a positive interaction outside of our house, Caesar growled, barked at, and even nipped Gatsby the first time we had them together inside. But after a few short weeks of rigorous training and desensitization to Gatsby, Caesar mostly ignores him.
If you’re bringing a new puppy home to a grumpy senior dog, it is possible to have peace in your home. Caesar was reactive and territorial over the inside of our house at first, but we maintained our training to get him where we wanted.
Before diving into the details of how we accomplished this, I want to first say that you should pick a puppy based on temperament, not looks. If you know you have a reactive senior dog who doesn’t love puppy energy, you do not want to bring home a puppy that will constantly be jumping on your old dog or trying to play with them. Luckily, Gatsby’s energy is pretty mellow. I don’t think these tips would have worked if Gatsby weren’t so calm and respectful of Caesar. He made it very easy to train my senior our senior dog.
So, how did I get my senior dog to go from barking, growling, and nipping a new puppy to being able to be calm together, go on walks together, and sit together in our home?
Check out these 10 tips:
1. Use Treats For Everything and focus on positive reinforcement
This is my very top tip because it’s how you’ll teach your senior dog that your new puppy is a good thing. Gatsby, at 5 months old, was already in the perfect stage to learn new things. He had no real previous interactions with other dogs, so he had never learned to not like them. To him, Caesar was a friend automatically. The training and the treats weren’t really for him; they were for Caesar, the old man.
While we did give Gatsby treats, the experience was mostly aimed at Caesar. We gave him a treat every time he smelled Gatsby and walked away. We started this from the first meeting and still do this today. It’s best to use puppy training treats or to break adult treats into tiny pieces, as you don’t want to be loading your dog up with extra food.
We absolutely do not hit or scream at dogs in my house. That’s not an acceptable way to train a dog, and dogs do not learn from negative training tactics. We also rarely say “no.” There are much better ways to get your dog to do what you want, and most of them don’t understand what you’re saying “no” to. This is where distraction techniques will come in handy. If your dog does something unwanted, use their name in an assertive voice and use the distraction techniques I’ll discuss next.
2. Have realistic expectations
Use distraction techniques and treats, and stay dedicated
I know this is three tips in one, but they all go together. You must first understand that not all dogs that come into your house will roll around on the ground, play, and love each other. After having two dogs in my home for 9 years that had to be separated, I knew that I didn’t NEED for Gatsby and Caesar to love each other; I just needed them to tolerate and be respectful of each other. So, my goal was not to create best friends but to create roommates.
Caesar’s barking and the growling lasted nearly a week, but every day it got better. How? Treats and distraction techniques.
Every time Caesar looked at Gatsby for too long, I broke his gaze by making him focus on me by saying his name in a calm, assertive voice and a giving him a task (like sit). When Gatsby was on the couch and Caesar sniffed him and walked away—treat. When Gatsby walked through the house and Caesar got excited and ran at him, I blocked him and distracted him by using his name and with a task, then giving him a treat when he exhibited the behavior I expected. Every single time.
The goal was to desensitize him from Gatsby being there. I can’t stress this enough—literally every time Caesar looked like he was getting too excited and fixated on Gatsby—block, use an assertive voice to get his attention, distract with a task, treat, repeat.
I also invested in dog puzzles, and I love to fill puzzles and give them to both Gatsby and Caesar at the same time in the same room, so they are around each other but are too distracted to bother each other.
Whatever you do, avoid yelling at your dog or getting angry with them. Remember, they want to please you. You just have to show them what you expect.
3. Meet on neutral territory
When you get a new dog (puppy or older), always have them meet outside your home and yard. In this case, we adopted Gatsby from the Humane Society, so they met in the shelter parking lot. This is a place neither dog feels like they “own” or have rights to.
You could also have your dog meet a new dog at the park, in a friend’s yard, or on a sidewalk. Really anywhere will do, as long as it’s not a place your dog considers their own.
4. Go slow and keep them leashed
The first meeting could take a while, depending on how your dog reacts. Caesar didn’t really care about Gatsby. Almost all of his interactions with other dogs includes a little bit of sniffing and then walking away. This is how he reacted to Gatsby the first time they met.
It’s also important to keep both dogs on a leash. This prevents accidents from happening. I handled Caesar while the shelter volunteer handled Gatsby. We walked them around the parking lot together until it was very clear that Caesar had no interest in Gatsby.
Take all the time you need on this first meeting, and don’t rush too quickly to the next step.
When everything seemed good, we drove them home separately. The last thing you want to do is pack both dogs in the car if you think your dog might be reactive to another dog. I know that Caesar prefers calm energy, so shoving him in a car with a puppy he just met would not have been a good idea.
5. Do the second meeting in your yard first
When you get home, don’t rush inside. Remember—go slow. Everything to do with introducing a puppy to a senior needs to be slow. Most seniors prefer calm environments and don’t like unexpected things.
This meeting was similar to the first meeting. We spent 30 minutes walking them around the yard together. Then, we’d stop and walk each dog around the other. We did this until Caesar didn’t react to Gatsby at all.
6. Remember – your senior dog goes first in EVERYTHING
Your senior was there first, and now there is some new guy in his space and taking up your time. To prevent bad blood, make sure it’s clear to both dogs who is in charge (aside from yourself). The puppy needs to know that it’s important to respect his older dog sibling, which means following behind him on walks, getting treats after him, going inside after him, and getting attention after him. A good way to create jealousy from your senior is to put all your attention on the new puppy. Avoid that.
This tip is really vital. Dogs are pack animals, and packs have orders. A lot of resentment can happen when a pack animal feels like his spot in the order is being taken from him.
7. Do the third meeting in your home with both dogs on a leash
Let your senior dog enter first and then the puppy. Keep giving treats for every good behavior and use distractions to correct unwanted behavior.
Our first meeting in the house did not go well. Caesar kept barking at Gatsby. Eventually, he growled at him and nipped his head. Gatsby, being a submissive puppy, ran and hid. After that experience, though, it was clear to Gatsby that he needed to respect Caesar’s space.
8. Use baby gates and separate when your senior is overstimulated
Distraction isn’t going to work 100% of the time. So, when it’s clear that your senior is overstimulated by the puppy’s presence, separate them.
Old dogs and puppies have very different energy levels. When Gatsby wants to play too rough, I still separate them because it causes Caesar to bark as if he’s telling him to stop and be calm. Using a baby gate helps the older dog still see your puppy without risk of injury.
Baby gates are also helpful in the first days of bringing a new puppy home because it allows them to get face to face without having to worry about someone biting. Caesar would sniff the gate where Gatsby was. When he did this and walked away, I gave him a treat (don’t forget those treats!)
Every time Caesar exhibited calm behavior behind the baby gate, he got a treat.
9. Create separate time for each dog
This goes with the last point, but it’s important enough to be on its own. Your senior dog and puppy have different needs, wants, and energy levels. An 80-year-old does not want to be around a hyper 2-year-old 24/7.
While I do take Caesar on walks with Gatsby around the yard daily (which helps with desensitizing him), I also still make sure to take Caesar on daily walks alone. Before Gatsby, Caesar never had to share his time with me, so it’s essential that I still create that one-on-one bonding time for us both (these bonding times also help aid you when you need your dog to obey your commands). Also, as I noted earlier, your senior dog wants to know he’s still important. So, creating that alone time with him is very important for your old dog.
When Gatsby gets the zoomies or wants to have some hard puppy play, I put Caesar in his room, where he often goes to get away anyway. This allows them to have their own time away from each other without worrying about a grumpy old man disturbing puppy play.
10. Check your own energy
This probably should also be near the top, but you need to be mindful of your own energy while training your dogs. For example, are you nervous that something will happen? Your dog can probably feel that, and it’s making him nervous.
I know I was nervous for the first week. Every time Caesar flinched, I jumped, which then made him jump. I KNOW my energy was rubbing off on him. When I made a conscious decision to calm myself down and trust the process, I saw a noticeable difference in Caesar as well. I put my trust that he would do the right things, and he did. It’s crucial for you to not only know your dog’s body language but for you to know your own as well.
We’ve only had Gatsby for a month, but the difference in Caesar’s reactivity in our home toward Gatsby today compared to the first day is astounding. It’s night and day. Initially, I felt so disheartened that Caesar reacted that way, but I knew he could be okay around other dogs.
It’s also important for you to know your dog well.
Had it been Caesar who died and Jeter who was still here, I know I could not have gotten another dog. Jeter was not dog-friendly. No amount of training from an amateur like me could have fixed that. Caesar, however, is an obedient dog who is dog-friendly but can be reactive when there is too much excitement.
It was also vital for me to realize that before Gatsby, there had never been a dog in Caesar’s living space that didn’t want to kill him. Understanding that helped me show Caesar that not every dog in his home is a threat.
Once I stopped feeling sorry for myself and put in the work, things changed.
It takes dedication, willingness, persistence, and the correct energy to make it happen, but it CAN happen. Dogs want to please, and trust me, even an 11-year-old German Shepherd can learn new behaviors.
