Dog to Dog Introductions

So you're trying to expand your dog's social group. That's great! A lot of dogs love having dog-friends! It can be tons of fun and very enriching for both you and them. How you go about introducing your dog to their potential playmates can have a big impact though. Here are some things to consider:

• Size

• Age

• Temperament

• Energy Level

• Play style

Size

This is always the first thing that should be considered. This is because even a very gentle or playful interaction between dogs of dramatically different sizes can end in disaster. Close supervision doesn't guarantee a good outcome either. Even from 1 foot away, you wouldn't be able to react fast enough to prevent a dog from pouncing on their playmate. If the dog being pounced on is less than the size of the dog pouncing on them, a serious injury could occur. If the size difference is even bigger than that, death could occur. So in these situations it's best to not allow off-leash play. However, that doesn't mean that it never works out so use your best judgment based on what you know of the dogs being introduced to decide how safe it is.

Age

Older dogs tend to be more picky about who their playmates are than young dogs. It’s important to understand that an adult dog isn’t likely to want to play with or be around every dog they meet and that’s okay! It’s part of being an adult dog and knowing what they do and don’t like, just like us! That being said, most adult dogs will tolerate a lot of rude behavior from puppies (dogs that are under about 10 or so months old) that they wouldn’t tolerate from older dogs. Your adult dog may play really well with your neighbor's excitable puppy, but might not appreciate the same behavior from a 4 year old dog. It's also true that most puppies will get along better than most adult dogs will. So keep this in mind when deciding how or if to do introductions!

Temperament

The dog's personalities are huge factors in how well an introduction goes. If they're too at odds then they aren't likely to mesh well. For example: a dog that is exuberantly and very self-assured likely won't play well with a more timid dog that is prone to asserting their personal space boundaries. The timid dog is going to keep trying to tell the exuberant dog to go away and the exuberant dog is going to double down on their friend-making advances. Eventually the timid dog might escalate to get their point across. Then it could turn into a dog fight. Try and plan playmates with dogs that match your dog's temperament well. The dog you're doing intros with doesn't need to have the exact same temperament but their temperament should pair well with your dog. Think like: a confident but respectful dog playing with a dog that's more timid and selective. This pairing would likely lead to two dogs who are comfortable with each other and can more easily get on the same page since the confident dog is going to respect when the timid dog asserts their boundaries.

Energy Level

Imagine a mix between stamina and excitability. That's your dog's energy level. If your dog gets really really excited for 2min out of the entire day and is chill the rest of the time then they have low energy. On the other hand, if your dog is easily excited but also wants to be constantly active, then they have high energy. Mixing dogs that have very different energy levels can often lead to trouble. You want playmates for your dog that are going to agree on when it is and isn't break time. That way no one is going to be trying to relax while someone else is harassing them to play.

Play Style

You've probably seen dogs play a variety of games! Catch-me-if-you-can, wrestling, bounce-and-run, bark-and-zoom, and more! Depending on the dogs playing, these games could have more or less contact, vocals, or teeth. A lot of dogs tend to really like one or two games and those are their "go to"s. These games really blend into how they play all other games. A dog that really likes wrestling is probably going to try to use a lot of body contact and teeth in other games too. Meanwhile, a dog that really likes being chased is probably going to dart away from their playmate at the first opportunity. Play styles that are too different can result in misunderstanding between the dogs. This can lead to an unwillingness to try to play or even a fight if the misunderstanding is severe enough.

The Introduction Process

Once you think you’ve found a well-matched playmate for your dog, you can start introductions! This is the most fun and stressful part of the whole process, but absolutely the most rewarding when it goes right. For older puppies and adult dogs, I recommend taking them out on leash and starting on opposite sides of the street. Simply walk along with each other and slowly get closer over the course of about a block until the dogs are close enough to walk beside each other and greet if they choose to. If one of them gets a little nervous or over excited then just move further apart again until they’ve settled down. Once they’re comfortable with each other, you can bring them inside the house or backyard for some supervised play. I advise keeping leashes and collars/harnesses on so you can grab them if needed.

If you’re introducing young puppies to each other, I suggest taking them to a large enclosed room and putting leashes on them. Take the puppies to opposite sides of the room and play with them there for a few minutes until they aren’t so excited about the other puppy. Once they’ve calmed, you can let them drift towards each other to greet and play. Again keep their leashes on so you can separate them easily if needed.

If you’re introducing a young puppy and an adult dog then I recommend carrying the puppy while someone walks the adult dog and going around the block. Stop occasionally to set the puppy down and let them sniff before picking them up again and continuing walking and slowly getting closer and closer together as long as both dogs are comfortable. You can alternatively let the puppy snuffle around the yard or a large room while on leash and then bring the adult dog in on a leash as far away as you can get. Play or feed the adult dog treats for engaging with you and ignoring the puppy until they’ve both settled down. Then you can allow them to slowly drift closer together and greet.

With all of these methods, you can always take more time if it’s needed. You may even have to do multiple introductions over the course of a few days or weeks to get the dogs comfortable with each other. The important thing is to not rush an introduction if the dogs need more time to get used to each other. If you only move forward when the dogs are comfortable then you’re unlikely to have any problems. If you have any concerns, then contact a local trainer for help.