[ladylou18]

I have a male yorkie that is 4 years old, a male bichon that is 5 years old and we recently got a female German Shepherd puppy she is 12 weeks old. My bichon isn’t fond of playing with puppy and usually puts her in her place. My yorkie hadn’t been playing with her but then decided to start. He thinks he’s a big mean thing. Apparently during their play the GS got a little rough I assume(I didn’t see or hear anything) and now my yorkie trembles when she comes in the room. I usually monitored their play in case the GS got to rough and stopped the play. All dogs are crate trained though only the GS goes in a crate when we are gone the other dogs don’t need to. She is kept in a crate in a room they don’t have access to when we are gone. My question is how can I make sure the GS and yorkie can live together safely. I’ve been told that as she gets older if she slaps one of the other dogs with her paws and they get mad and growl at her she might attack them. Is this true? The boys are both neutered if that makes any difference. My bichon is teaching her, her place in the pack and doesn’t hurt her but puts her in her place. We are teaching her to sit and down when she jumps on people/things. She already knows sit and she learns quickly I guess I just need to know what and how to teach her.

 

[Nigel]

Their interactions will require constant supervision. Even good hearted play can lead to serious injury due to size and strength differences. Im not against letting my dogs sort out "some" of their own problems, but ultimately it's the humans that need to be setting the ground rules. Your GSD may be very tolerant of your bichons interactions/corrections now, but that can change down the road and one slip up can end badly. Watch their interactions and intervene before your bichon feels the need to correct the pup. Doing so can curb potential problems from escalating, set boundaries for the pup, and (with consistency) let the others know you got things handled.Keep in mind the temperament of your GSD will play large in all of this and your breeder "may" be of some help determining what to expect.