Why will my dog not leave another dog alone?
Rubie Paucek
2025-06-22 07:57:12
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: 12
My dog can’t leave a visiting dog alone for a single second. I have a 1.5 year old male labradoodle who is extremely high energy, but usually reasonably well behaved. Whenever Lucy has had enough, she will go to lay down. My dog isn’t okay with that, and will go up to her and literally bitch slap her across the face with his paws, and then proceed to bark in her face until she gets up again. This has been going on for hours. I’d really like to understand what drives this sort of behavior, and what we can do to try to curb it aside from just removing him from the situation.
Lazaro Conroy
2025-06-22 07:35:28
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: 10
Whether triggered by fear, anxiety, or excitement, a dog that always barks or lunges at other dogs can make your daily walks together considerably less enjoyable. If your dog is toy motivated and it’s possible and safe to have a game after the dog has passed, that can work really well too, especially if the excitement at seeing another dog is because they want to play. If your dog has been barking at other dogs or being reactive for a long time, it will take time, patience, and consistency to break the habit or change the behaviour. Dogs are social and do enjoy having some ‘dog time’ – and you don't want to create frustration by preventing all dog-to-dog interactions so set up play dates or dog walks with a chance for off-lead play regularly with your dog’s best friends. However, some dogs who are reactive and overly fearful (or who have had bad past experiences) will need more help that you can give them using the above method.
Dorian Auer
2025-06-22 06:15:51
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: 7
If you have any concerns about how the dogs will behave with each other while you are out, separate them. You could always try separating them by putting your dog in a room with the door closed, that way they would not have access to each other while not being monitored. I never leave guest dogs with my own dogs, Never and I have repeat customers. Dogs are unpredictable and can snap at a moment's notice. If I have to step out which is never longer than an hour or 2 at the most, then I put baby gates up to separate them. Always put safety first. How have they behaved toward each other while you were there, that should give you some indication whether they can be alone together. If you are unsure, then err on the side of caution and keep them physically separated.
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