New Grey How Long To Muzzle

[Guest TeriD]

Hello! Adopted a new hound WV Speed aka Speedy Petey or probably just Petey. Pick him up tomorrow 😍 Anyway....how long do you muzzle your hounds when you introduce a new one? I want to do this right. They recommended 3 days. Just curious as to your experience and suggestions. Thanks !!!

[Guest DarkHorse]

We didn't bother muzzling while supervised after the first few hours, but we'd seen Cole and KB interact with each other and Dexter several times before bringing them home. So I'd say a day or two is reasonable. After that, it's whenever they're not immediately supervised (even if you're just in the next room over) for a few more days, then when you're not around for at least a few weeks.

It all depends on how they interact, though. If there's some snipping or dominance issues, you need to muzzle them for longer. If they get along like a house on fire, then you can probably let them be muzzle-free sooner. And not all situations are the same - if there's another dog around they might need muzzles even after living together happily for a while, just because of the dynamic change.

[Guest TeriD]

Ok. All that makes sense. I'm hoping they really get along once in the house. They were great at the rescue but....never know. Unfortunately my current grey doesn't really care for the muzzle. She always rubs her face on me or the bed to try and get it off. 😜 Oh well...it won't be forever.

[mansbestfriend]

Hi. Keep a very close watch on how the dog/s interacts,

especially when first meeting, also around food, bedding/sleeping, toys, etc.etc. until you're sure the dog/s are safe in each of those situations.

 

You should have a fairly standard process to go through whenever introducing dogs, or dogs with other pets, or even with new people.

 

I personally didn't muzzle either dog when my two dogs were introduced, but did adhere to a step by step routine process/assessment, until both could run off-leash in the yard safely. And close monitoring again when food, or bedding, or toys were introduced.

[Koyotekyle]

Make sure you introduce them in neutral territory and see how they react. We take our current kids outside and let them sniff each other. We do this with fosters too. It is usually less than a few days to see how safe they are.

 

With cats it a little more tricky. Keep the muzzle on until they get used to each other. We usually get a good reading withing a few days. Then to be sure, if you are not available to keep a check on them, keep them muzzled, We have also set up "baby gates" with a cat door for the cat to escape if necessary. We've had fosters suddenly jump up in our lap where the cat is, so best to be safe. Now the dogs and cats sleep on the floor together

 

Seldom does it take more than a few days to find out.

[Guest TeriD]

Wonderful information thank you!! I'm glad I'm on the right track with my plans.

Fairly certain my cat will be hiding in the basement again for awhile. Lol

Excited and nervous all at the same time but it's going to be great. He's a sweety.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

They all rub their face on people and walls and such when wearing the muzzle. Its their "i have never had to wear a muzzle in my whole life" bs. Dont fall for it. The muzzle is a safety device, like a seatbelt in a car. If for safety they need to wear the muzzle, then they do. Remember, they can eat, drink, even play with toys while wearing a muzzle.

[Guest TeriD]

They all rub their face on people and walls and such when wearing the muzzle. Its their "i have never had to wear a muzzle in my whole life" bs. Dont fall for it. The muzzle is a safety device, like a seatbelt in a car. If for safety they need to wear the muzzle, then they do. Remember, they can eat, drink, even play with toys while wearing a muzzle.

Taking your advice!! They've had it on all day and they have given in. Lol

[Guest GreyOrchard]

Using a muzzle for introduction to other dogs versus for cat training are two very different things.

 

When my sanctuary was in full swing, I never felt the need to use muzzles for introductions to the other dogs here. Instead, when a new dog arrived, no matter if it was from the pound, from straying, or from a trainer, the moment a new dog arrived I would put a proper martingale and leash on him or her, bring out my own receptive dog off-leash and maybe one receptive adoption dog on-leash, and take a 10 or 15 minute walk with the three of them. An initial growl from the new dog out of fear was completely understandable, and the more we would walk, the less there would be growling as the new dog figured out nothing was going to happen to him/her.

 

During this time, the newly arrived dog got his/her first introduction to the place, and as they all walked together, the new dog was able to "walk off" any building anxiety from the trip and the strangeness of the new surroundings and experienced a sense of being accepted into the pack. By the end of the walk, I would enter the back yard with all 3 of them, take the leashed adoption dog off leash, then after a few minutes take the new dog off leash, and never once had an incident. The established dogs set the tone and rules of behaviour.

 

Since the new dog was to live in a small group with other greyhounds, I would one by one let dogs from that group loose into the back yard. They would, one by one, see the new dog already accepted by my own fellow, who was the head dog, and the other adoption dog from their group, and they would simply fall in line.

 

You could try something similar - walking together at first on neutral ground, letting one loose and then the other in your yard, and then guiding them into the house. Also, stroking both your new dog and the established dog at the same time, and then switching hands, "spreads" their scents on each other, as well as your own scent, and further integrates them.This is important to do on the face, ears, head neck and shoulders.

 

Walking them together is "the great leveler". It's a great way to break the ice under a controlled environment.

 

Cat training with muzzles is completely different discussion, however.

[Guest Amber]

Many people nowadays recommend not introducing dogs immediately in the house ie they keep them separated with a babygate for first few days or weeks and take it from there. The idea is they get used to each other slowly. Agree walking them together first is a good idea.

 

I would also want to make sure the two dogs had met and walked together prior to the adoption and had got on well.

 

if all signs are good and they seem to be friendly from the word go and seem a good match, i would prefer the gate option to muzzles, especially when left alone together.

 

Bringing in a foster or emergency dog you know nothing about is (or should be ) a different thing than bringing in a new dog that hopefully is carefully matched to fit in with your current dog.

 

ETA if you have a cat too, at no point should the new dog and cat be left unsupervised. Dedicated cat training sessions with a leash and muzzle i think, but if the cat is wandering in and out of the dog's area, then yes keep muzzle on until you are 100% . But obviously it would be unfair to keep the dog muzzled 24/7 so the whole cat exposure thing needs to be well managed (crates, muzzle, doors) . Really depends on the dog, the cat, the set up and what advice the group has

Edited November 26, 2015 by Amber

[Guest TeriD]

Glad I did all of the above! I agree walking them together is great. All has gone well so far... Day 5 and the muzzles came off on day 2. Thanks for your input!

[Neighsayer]

Glad it is going well. I've never used muzzles on introductions. I usually had three dogs, and took in two at a time from a previous home. The two were never a bonded pair, but probably gave each other courage. I would walk them outside with each of mine, one at a time, then take them on leash into the yard. After lots of sniffing, leashes came off. Never had a problem. My cats are barn cats, so never had to deal with indoor cat introductions. Hope it all continues positive for you!