Advice Regarding Space Issues

[Guest HoundWorks]

So we picked up our girl Siri this weekend with possibly the worst timing due to the fact that we were affected by the thunderstorms on the east coast and lost power for several days during a huge heat wave... we finally have it back on tonight! That being said I haven't had time to post pictures of Siri, but I need some quick advice over an incident that happened this evening. This may be a slightly long-winded post.

 

Siri has been wonderful since we picked her up She is very easy-going and taking everything in stride especially with spending some time over my BF's parents place since they were the only ones with power that we knew. She hasn't shown any signs of stress besides being a bit nervous in the town center where there are lots of cars and kids running around. She has adapted to new environments seamlessly. I even took the her and Dexter to work with me today since we still didn't have power. They both behaved beautifully. I may bring them in more often. So I feel a bit bad that after getting Siri this weekend we haven't really been doing our normal routine, but like I said she is adapting to every situation with ease and is happy to have a soft spot to lie down anyplace.

 

Now to the incident... Dexter our whippet is full of energy and has the run of the house to himself for the past year and a half. He has a bad habit of jumping all over the couches and just going wild. This is something we have not been able to break him of. Now Siri has shown that she has some space issues as to be expected. She's given a low growl when he has gotten to close to her sleeping. So she was lying on the couch comfortably when Dexter decided to chase a fly and of course landed on Siri. Siri then snapped at Dexter who yelped and started crying hysterically. He ended up with three puncture wounds and is now acting quite timid. I think he will get over that and the puncture wounds will heal, but my BF and I were talking about how to handle the situation if it arises again.

 

I can't really blame Siri because Dexter was totally invading her space, but I also don't want for them to get into a fight. If the situation arises again Dexter may have the mind to fight back. So the question lies do we reprimand her for this? I know we need to keep a closer watch on Dexter and not allow him to jump around on the couches the same way. I guess that I'm just looking for some general advice on how to handle the situation should it arise again.

 

Thanks in advance.

[Sambuca]

I would not reprimand her. I'm guessing that it also hurt to get jumped on so not only was it space issues, but Pain reaction. I'd react to if a dog jumped on me like that. I'd reprimand the whippet when he gets close to her during the wild spurts. Maybe have him a drag a leash so you can catch and stop him if he doesn't listen to you. Honestly though, this incident may have taught him his lesson and he'll learn to respect her.

[Guest HoundWorks]

Thanks for the reasseance. I am hoping as well that this taught Dexter a lesson he won't forget. He does seem to respect her if she gives him a warning growl. The leash idea is great. Thanks!

[JohnF]

Agree with the leash idea, and I think Siri's instant sleep startle punishment of Dexter might have worked.

But do be aware that Whippets WILL fight back although they look like such sweet little things.

 

If you do need to punish behaviour it must be in the instant the bad deed has been done. Work out contingencies for what you would do if there was a fight, especially so if neither dog can bolt to a safe place.

[Guest HoundWorks]

My apologies for all my spelling errors. I must have been tired last night.

 

That is my fear with Dexter that he will fight back because he has a history of it when other dogs act aggressive towards him. Although from his behavior this morning he is acting very subdued towards her. Plus he is quite sore from his injuries. Siri seems to be taking a more dominant role over him at the time being. Today is the first day that they will be left alone for an extended period of time. I have crated Siri to be safe for the time being, since I currently do not have a muzzle for Dex. She does seem to be forming some SA. She howled for most of last night in her crate before settling down.

[GreyTzu]

How about just gating them in separate rooms? We had issues with our first four and the solution was to gate two into the hall and bath, and the other two into the living room.

[BatterseaBrindl]

I would not 'punish' either of them.

Dexter is doing what he has always done and Siri was doing what she had to to protect herself from an 'attack'.

Thankfully, there were no really serious issues.

 

I'd either gate them in different rooms or muzzle both when you are not there to supervise.

 

And now ... we need to see some pictures!!!

[GeorgeofNE]

In the dog world, she did nothing wrong and certainly doesn't deserve punishment.

 

You need to deal with the wild boy!

 

Not sure why you're crating HER if he's the one running amok?

[TheFullHouse]

I have two right now with space issues. These two pups are not allowed on the furniture, they can have any dog bed in the house they want but are not allowed on the sofa or our bed. Personally I don't know any greyhound new to a home that if another smaller dog landed on them that they wouldn't react the same way she did. She's still adjusting to being in a home versus being at a track in her own kennel. I think when I saw the little one getting wound up I would take him outside and let him play and run and work off some of the excess energy and then bring him back in. Once your girl gets used to him and his energy level things should be fine. We brought in Bandita in November at the age of 2 and my house is full of seniors that don't want to play with her all the time and she would irritate them so I got into the habit of taking her outside a couple of times a day and just letting her run like crazy and play with her toys so that when she came back inside she was calm. This could work for you too, even if you just take your little one for a long walk. Once she's used to being in your home things may change and you may find she wants to play with your smaller one but it takes time. Right now she just needs time to adjust. I would definitely separate them when you're out of the house or muzzle both of them. You can get muzzles small enough to fit your whippet.

[Guest HoundWorks]

In the dog world, she did nothing wrong and certainly doesn't deserve punishment.

 

You need to deal with the wild boy!

 

Not sure why you're crating HER if he's the one running amok?

 

The two reasons we are crating Siri instead of Dexter are because Dexter has severe separation anxiety to the point of making his mouth and paws bleed when crated (he has finally adjusted to being outside of the crate) and because we have a cat that we are still watching Siri around. I think gating them in separate areas is a good idea. We do have a baby gate that separates the upstairs and downstairs so we may just use that to separate them once we feel Siri and our cat are comfortable around one another.

 

Since the incident Dexter has been very respectful of Siri's space which has shocked us. He has taken a completely submissive role which is unlike him. Siri slipped around me after she finished eating this morning and went straight for Dexter's food bowl. This normally would be a problem if another dog did this as Dexter does get protective and will start barking or growling, but Dexter just stepped to the side and let Siri start eating his food. So I went over and backed her off, but I just couldn't believe how submissive he's acting. Maybe Siri really got through to him which is hard to do since he's such a strong headed whippet.

[BootsyCollins]

I would let them work it out, with supervision. I'd also focus on training Dexter to be more manageable in general.

[TheFullHouse]

Sounds like the two of them are working things out, Dogs usually do with little interference from the humans in the house. I usually let mine work things out between them unless they are actually fighting. Sounds like things are improving.

[Guest HoundWorks]

Yes, I am hoping they work it out themselves. Thank you for all the suggestions. We will keep working with Dexter and hopefully everything will just fall into a normal routine. I will post pictures soon!