So far so good, kind of

[taryn]

Well less than 12 hours in...

Nuts has chilled out and Dexter is great at ignoring Nuts.

Nuts is curious and has been getting on the couch to check out Dexter. Dexter wags his tail when Nuts gets close.

Problem is Dexter appears to be afraid of Nuts and won't get off the couch or the recliner with Paul. The cat has ate more of Dex's food than Dex has. Nuts ate almost an entire can of Soulistic Chicken and Pumpkin so he has cat food in him and he's more or less sampled the dog food, he doesn't seem to be too into eating dog food, which is good(Nuts is currently eating his own dry food.) Now if I gave Dex cat food he'd eat it without a problem. Nuts got quite upset before I took up his feed when Dex stuck his overly large snount into Nuts' bowl, Nuts' food is now on the counter. I tossed Dex's dragon on the floor(I bought him a stuffed dog toy dragon) and Dex refused to go grab it. He was going to get down until Nuts walked over to sniff it.

I know dogs can go a few days without food so my main thing was making sure Nuts is eating, which he is. Nuts was slightly stressed at first but as I said he calmed down and is now checking out Dexter at his own pace. I have heard Nuts using the litter box so he doesn't appear to be having litter avoidance which is good. Now if only I could convince Dexter that Nuts isn't going to eat him. He weighs over twice what Nuts does and is larger than Nuts. I know things will even out eventually when Dex realizes Nuts is harmless. It seems like every time he got down earlier the cat was chasing him or cornering him or hitting him. He is a very very submissive dog so there is no vying for power, he has automatically given Nuts full authority.

Now all I have to do is figure out where I'm sleeping tonight. Dex has claimed the couch which is my bed. I'm going to put Nuts in the bathroom before I go to sleep. OK, now I get it, Nuts started hissing the second Dex's feet hit the floor(Paul tried to call him over.)

I just had a talking to Nuts telling him Dex was his dog too and to give him a break and that he(Nuts) has the upperhand, not Dex. I also told Nuts that the food bowls he's getting mad over aren't his, they are Dexter's.

Nuts just decided to have a hissy and had a go(paws, not sure if claws were involved) at Dex so Nuts is in the bathroom for the night and we are trying to convince Dex that he can run after his bone now and the cat won't come and get him.

Well, so far so good, kind of, but it hasn't even been 12 hours, it's been about 8. We haven't had any bloodshed, the cat is upset and the dog is afraid of said cat.

Taryn

 

[nerdrock]

Sounds like he's being a typical new dog

It takes an average of two weeks for a dog to fully show it's personality when introduced to a new situation. During these two weeks, I tend not to do too much training - other than what's necessary. Every dog is different, some come out sooner than others, but with the two week shutdown it makes the transition easier and they tend to become more comfortable sooner.

It's important not to correct the dog for growling when appropriate, if you correct when Dex is growling at Nuts for something that Nuts is doing that's bothering him (like swatting him in the face) then he will learn not to give a warning before reacting. Instead of correcting, remove him (or Nuts) from the situation.

Sorry if you already know these things, I've just seen too many dogs deemed aggressive because of things like this when the dog isn't actually aggressive. With one of my dogs, Sadie, I corrected her whenever she would growl if something was bothering her and one day she nipped at one of my friends without warning. After talking to a trainer I realized that I had taught her not to give warning when something was bothering her, so she put up with it as long as she could before it was too much for her and she became unpredictable. It took a long time (about 8 months) to correct it and it was not easy.

Congrats on the new woofers, I hope things work out well

 

[taryn]

Nuts is still somtimes hissing but he isn't as intense about beating Dex up. He decided to be stupid and started whacking Dex in the face, Dex reacted with a snap, growl and bark(totally understandable.)

ex has started having issues weith the outside cats. He did get in trouble for finding Half-tail in the dog house outside and growling and barking(it was midnight so he didn't need to be barking, plus he is not cornering a cat and growling at it, Half-tail had no way to escape.) He then tried to take the blanket out of the dog house and I told him that wasdn't going to happen. He got Biter all worked up and got hissed at and smacked this morning.

He's kind of half arsed eating. Today he's ate better than he has been since we got him. He might not make it through 15 lbs of Purina One(what he was on at the rescue I want to give him time to settle before I switch him to something better), he has some nasty gas. I was a little worried when he woke me up at 5 AM barfing on the couch.

Dex isn't afraid of Nuts anymore. He is on the floor more and today when Nuts decided to hiss(not sure what went down, Dex was laying down on the floor) he just looked at him like he was stupid and didn't even move. Nuts has quit having a problem with Dex being on the floor.

He is an active dog and likes to play.

They seem to be gettng along a lot better and are accepting each other.

Taryn