introducing gsd to teacup chihuahua

[tothewolves]

i'm moving into a new apartment with my cousin. i have an 11 month old german shepherd and she has a 1 year old teacup chihuahua.

we are moving to a new place so it's hopefully not as complicated as bringing a new dog into another dog's territory. my gsd is coming from a house where she's lived with her mother and her brother (from the same litter). my parents have done a terrible job with controlling and training their dogs. they bark excessively at people walking by the house while my puppy just looks out the window and goes back to playing.

my gsd hasn't been trained to do many tricks but she does listen quite well when i instruct her to sit, be quiet, heel and i'm able to walk with her offleash from my house to my car, sit outside or walk around the block without having to worry about her taking off.

she often barks at other dogs but does so with her tail between her legs.

i've been reading articles online for a few days but it hasn't lessened my worry that they may fight and she would quite likely seriously injure my cousin's 2.5 lb dog as she's about 35 lbs and has been playfighting with two large dogs her whole life.

can anyone with experience assist me? or anyone, in general, give me advice on what to do before and after the move to make this easy on both dogs and avoid fighting or stress for the dogs?

thank you!

[clearcreekranch]

I personally, would keep them separate. Crate your pup when you are not around.

[tothewolves]

i must add - my dog is a female, not spayed but i am planning, and my cousin's is a male, neutered.

[Rerun]

35 lb 11 month old GSD? Was that a typo?

[WarrantsWifey]

Originally Posted by Rerun

35 lb 11 month old GSD? Was that a typo?

You took the words right out of my mouth.....

[W.Oliver]

Originally Posted by tothewolves

can anyone with experience assist me? or anyone, in general, give me advice on what to do before and after the move to make this easy on both dogs and avoid fighting or stress for the dogs?

If your dog has a very strong prey drive, I would suggest Olive Oil. Coat the teacup Chihuahua in Olive Oil. This will make it easier on both dogs and may not avoid fighting, but could reduce stress as the oil will make it easier for your GSD to swallow the teacup.


No...no...no....just kidding, come on! I have a land shark of a working line monster that is over the top NUTZ. She LOVES the 12lb toy Poodle next door, and the 7lb Terrier mix behind us. Both happen to be males, so it could be a different story if the smaller dogs were bitches. Just be sure you have treats and toys around to keep your dog engaged on you and not fixating on the morsel. You may need several sessions with your dog on leash, and simply in the same room, just getting accustom to being around each other. On the other hand, it always could be love at first sight....but never, never leave them alone, unsupervised.

Best of luck!

[tothewolves]

yes she's only about 35 lbs. her mother was quite small and a gsd/american eskimo and her dad a gsd. she was the runt and took about a week or so longer than the other 4 pups at each stage of development [ie - eyes opening] but aside from being a bit small she's healthy. she's not bony or malnourished she's just tiny! but a happy dog nonetheless.

[tothewolves]

Originally Posted by W.Oliver

No...no...no....just kidding, come on! I have a land shark of a working line monster that is over the top NUTZ. She LOVES the 12lb toy Poodle next door, and the 7lb Terrier mix behind us. Both happen to be males, so it could be a different story if the smaller dogs were bitches...

thank you for the advice! i read many articles tonight and that seemed to be the major point of all of them, to keep the dogs occupied on you and not the other dog. i'm really hoping it goes well as both dogs are such friendly, kind dogs. i'll update this tomorrow after we have our first introductions!