Visitor dog coming for the weekend... help!!
 

Sky, our 6-month old German Shepherd puppy will have a companion for 3 days this weekend, and we're a little nervous.

Due to a massive parvo outbreak in the Seattle area over the last year, we didn't socialize him outside of his litter until he finished his immunizations at 4 months.

Now we take him to puppy training class every week, and he is not aggressive toward other dogs unless he's restrained and frustrated, he's usually very friendly.

My question is, do you have any suggestions on how to make this weekend go a little easier? Maybe some things to anticipate? We'll be K9-sitting a fairly timid Fox Terrier who has never been introduced to our puppy.

Thank you!

I would do a search on introducing dogs as if you were adding a new dog to your household. Most people tend to advise introducing them on neutral territory and going for a short walk together, then the backyard, then inside. You probably want to watch all of their interactions together and have separate crates (or at least a baby gate or something) so the timid dog has a retreat where he can rest away from the normal puppy exuberance. Oh and you might think about giving them extra exercise. Tired dogs are much less likely to cause problems. Good luck!

I had to do this with my 10 week old gsd puppy with my in-laws dogs when they came to visit. I would make sure that both dogs are leashed and keep them at a safe distance until they both calm down a bit. I would then let them get a little closer so they can sniff each other at the same time watching for any signs of aggression. If they seem to tolerate each other a little better then let them get a little closer while being supervised.

Here is a great link for explaining a good introduction: Dog Training: How to introduce your dog to another dog in ten easy steps - Natural Dog Blog – Training and More

I love the concept. We just did this exact thing yesterday with a dog that Finn did not like purely by accident. By the end, they were fine with each other. I wouldn't put them in a backyard to play, but they can be around each other.

Hope this helps.