Rough play
Submitted by tonyjerry on September 16, 2011 - 7:13pmOliver is 9 months old now. We don't go to the dog park but we do have a trail that goes by the field behind our apartment that lots of people walk their dogs on. There are a couple dogs that like to play with Oliver. One that is an Old English Bulldog and loves to jump and try to ram Oliver over. One is a black lab puppy his age who likes to wrestle and play bite on the ground. And a couple other dogs that just let Oliver chase them until he tires out. The problem is Oliver only really knows how to play one way and thats jumping up on the back of the other dog, not to hump, more like so his front paws are on the other dogs shoulders. Obviously a lot of other dogs don't appreciate this and we have to leash him up so he wont continue to pester them. He has been corrected by some bigger dogs and might be a tiny bit better at backing off but most of the time we have to step in. Do your bulldogs act the same way? I'm thinking this might just be his personality and not just a puppy thing. And do you think this is something that has to be corrected? I personally dont see too much wrong with it except he does need to be better at leaving dogs that dont want to play with him alone. There is a big bulldog meetup in San Francisco this weekend (something like 70 bullies!) so wonder if he will be ok going or not.
Very Typical
bulldog play. Mine look like rams on their hind legs ramming their chests together. Ester runs/charges and hits Kohl and used to hit MacKenzie with her chest and she can knock them down. When she was a puppy she sent MacKenzie rolling, slamming him with her chest. Now I watch to make sure she doesn't play as rough, he is getting old and can;t handle those hits.
Did you go to the meet-up?
How was Oliver?
Lynn King CPDT-KA
No, didn't end up doing to
No, didn't end up doing to the meetup but did take him to the dog beach. A lot more dogs there than the meetup but its such a big area and everyone keeps moving around it seems easier to control Oliver than somewhere more confined with a big group of dogs. He did play with a lot of other dogs but mostly just chasing them around or trying to steal their balls. I did have to leash him up one time because he wouldnt leave one dog alone that didnt want to play, he didnt jump on him but kept play bowing and barking at him and i could tell the owner was kind of apprehensive. but all in all i think he did pretty well. I think it helped that i had a pocket full of steak and blue cheese, thought i should pull out the big guns!
Yeah!!! for being so smart
ya have to do what works and if great treats work, good for you for using them!!! And, another huge Yeah!! for knowing when to take your dog out of a situation that quite possibly could escalate into something not so pleasant.
Some dogs just don't have the best social skills. Might be related to being taken from the litter too early, little to no socialization with lots of pups of different breeds, could be a lot of reasons. Oliver being so persistent can get him into a lot of trouble someday, so please remain vigilant about supervising him. .
Sounds like a good day at the beach.
Lynn King CPDT-KA