It started off so well! :( Puppy fighting

I need peoples opinions on this, is it normal or is she being overly aggressive?

Harley met my parents two dogs (a german shepherd and chunky lab), both fully grown, lovely dogs. She started off SO well, she was submissive, let them sniff about with her etc, then within half an hour they were all playing! Bracken (lab), was playing like a normal puppy, Heidi (GSD) remained dominant, by putting her paw on Harley whenever she went too far. Bracken, however, had no reaction whatsoever when Harley was biting her, growling, and reeeally attacking her, so Harley just continued until she really hurt Bracken. Later on she refused to eat her own food and wouldn't let Bracken eat hers, my mum said it's obvious dominant behaviour.

Should I worry about this? Bracken was really being attacked and she just stood there and put up with it.

Any tips on when to stand in, like I don't want to stop them from playing, but when is it to far?

How old is Harley now?

Domination is normal in a dogs world, they just need to know where they are in the pack as long as there are no injuries I wouldn't be too worried most dogs behave like this with each other at some point

True dominance is very rarely seen in domestic dogs, some dogs can figure social disputes out between them and set boundaries, but some need guidance/intervention from people. Dominance in it's true sense isn't what most people believe it is, due to the idiot that is Cesar Millan, it's so much more complex than that.

It sounds like Heidi is trying to implement some boundaries, which is good, but she shouldn't be allowed to bully her. How old is your puppy now? And when you say attacking, do you mean a real attack (a hard stare, tense body language, slow movements, followed by a meaningful single, or multiple hard bites? Enough to draw blood/leave holes?) or a&e eyot referring to over the top bull breed puppy interactions? Your mum is incorrect, the puppy is more than likely pushing the boundaries, yes, and should be taught her manners from human as well as canine training at a young age.

*or are you sorry, autocorrect

Rachel33 wrote:True dominance is very rarely seen in domestic dogs, some dogs can figure social disputes out between them and set boundaries, but some need guidance/intervention from people. Dominance in it's true sense isn't what most people believe it is, due to the idiot that is Cesar Millan, it's so much more complex than that.

It sounds like Heidi is trying to implement some boundaries, which is good, but she shouldn't be allowed to bully her. How old is your puppy now? And when you say attacking, do you mean a real attack (a hard stare, tense body language, slow movements, followed by a meaningful single, or multiple hard bites? Enough to draw blood/leave holes?) or a&e eyot referring to over the top bull breed puppy interactions? Your mum is incorrect, the puppy is more than likely pushing the boundaries, yes, and should be taught her manners from human as well as canine training at a young age.

I agree and here is a link that should help

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/is_my_dog_aggressive

Harley is 9 weeks old. She's settled down a tiny bit, I think it was just the first day excitement.

A 9 week old puppy will not be showing signs of agression. As you say far more likely to just be excitement getting the better of her.

Yeh like the others said more a puppy working out how to play and making a few mistakes, the Lab would have let your pup know if things went too far especially when it involved the food.

Cheers

At 9 weeks old it sounds like she was very excited and probably pushing her luck as the other dog let her get away with it. We figured our neighbours giant golden retriever would put Bane in his place if he went over the top...nope! Ended up scared to play with him at one point.
If you notice her getting a bit rough, just separate them for a few minutes to let them calm down.

[quote="Bane"]At 9 weeks old it sounds like she was very excited and probably pushing her luck as the other dog let her get away with it. We figured our neighbours giant golden retriever would put Bane in his place if he went over the top...nope! Ended up scared to play with him at one point.
If you notice her getting a bit rough, just separate them for a few minutes to let them calm down.[/quote]

I'm so glad you've experienced something similar, I kept saying "if it was bothering/hurting Bracken too much she'd do something" but nope! Now I'm just keeping an eye on things, but it's a lot calmer now that she's settled in. Plus she seems to learn quite quickly, like for a whole day she was really tearing at their legs, we stopped her and she just found another way to play.

They do learn quickly Sam. Sounds like things are getting calmer, just remember to be consistent with any rules