I recently took in an abandoned pit bull/lab mix puppy. He is now 3 months old.?

Question

He is beautiful, sweet and very intelligent. On to the problem.

I also have a chocolate lab, a teacup poodle/yorky mix and a small cat. My beautiful pitbull puppy plays by biting. I'm not so worried about my lab, but the little poodle/yorky mix, Whitey, is barely 5#'s and has the tiniest neck. The puppy is already three times his size and tries to pull him around by his tail and takes his neck in his mouth.

We are working to stop the "biting as play" behavior, but I'm worried. We are having some success, but a single backslide on the puppy's part could snap Whitey's neck. And to make it worse, Whitey is all testosterone, 5 pound alpha male! When the pitbull pisses him off, Whitey is all over him - and the puppy backs off. For now.

We got the puppy when he was 4 weeks old, so they have been together all this time.

Should we worry? and are there any techniques out there someone could recommend to insure that all our babies are safe together?

Answer 1

I recently took in an abandoned pit bull/lab mix puppy. He is now 3 months old.?
He is beautiful, sweet and very intelligent.

Has he been vetted? Shots, neuter, microchip and enrolled in a training socalization class?

I also have a chocolate lab, a teacup poodle/yorky mix and a small cat.

Are all these pets altered? There is no such thning as a teacup all that means is that it is the runt of the litter. You have a small toy sixed mixed breed is what that statement should read. Again are they all altered?

My beautiful pitbull puppy plays by biting.
Dogs play with their mouths it is very important to teach BITE INHIBITION to get the dog to learn how to properly use their mouth.

I'm not so worried about my lab, but the little poodle/yorky mix, Whitey, is barely 5#'s and has the tiniest neck. The puppy is already three times his size and tries to pull him around by his tail and takes his neck in his mouth.

Regardless of breed anytime you have more then one dog you create a pack. That pack will have a hirirarcy of it's own. It's up to the owners to reconise and learn it and be the leader of this pack. If any of your pets are not altered then yes you will have issues.

We are working to stop the "biting as play" behavior, but I'm worried. We are having some success, but a single backslide on the puppy's part could snap Whitey's neck. And to make it worse, Whitey is all testosterone, 5 pound alpha male! When the pitbull pisses him off, Whitey is all over him - and the puppy backs off. For now.

Contact a rescue and have them find the pitty baby a home. It's too much dog for this situation. Maybe you can foster the dog until a home is found.

We got the puppy when he was 4 weeks old, so they have been together all this time.

That is way to young and the socailization of this puppy is going to be off. My guess is there will be issues.

Should we worry? and are there any techniques out there someone could recommend to insure that all our babies are safe together?

Alter them all and find a rescue for the pitty puppy.

Answer 2

There is definite reason for concern in a situation like this. A bigger dog could easily hurt or kill a smaller dog in a play situation by complete accident, I once had a 30 pound mutt that thought it would be fun to play with a mastiff untill the mastiff picked him up by the neck and threw him, requiring stitches and giving Muggsy a stiff neck for a week or so.

Really, there is no reasons the dogs can't coexist. Step one is to never, ever leave the dogs alone with each other, at least until the puppy learns what is expected of him, and if my pit mix is any indication, this could be a few years. Continue the negative reinforcement when the puppy starts to bit during play, it may or may not work, they are a thick skulled breed sometimes. I would suggest using a chain or prong collar to allow you to quickly correct the puppy's behavior. Some may say they are cruel, but dogs cannot understand words and "time-outs" that people use as punishment, in a pack situation, the other dogs would correct another dog by biting him until he learned his place, one of these collars is the same idea, but obviously not as painful or damaging.

All that being said, some dogs need homes where they are the only dog. If the things you try don't work, you need to consider that perhaps your home isn't the best for the puppy. You made a commitment to Whitey to provide him a safe loving home first, and as much as it would hurt, you may need to find another home for your new dog.

Answer 3

I hope your dad didn't pay this horrible breeder any money. The puppy should still be with the breeder for another four weeks, but if the breeder is that bad, then maybe it's best the puppies aren't with them. Anyway, do report them to your local ASPCA, Humane Society, etc and tell them the situation, as it's illegal in most states to give or sell puppies before 8 weeks of age, mama or no. A good breeder would have kept the puppies regardless. Anyway, call your vet and talk to them. The puppy hasn't had any shots, I don't care what the breeder says. Without papers showing it had any shots, her word isn't worth crap, not that I'd believe the papers were authentic, anyway. Edit: To the first poster..yes, it IS possible for a puppy to be a Pit Bull, Chihuahua. If the daddy was the Chihuahua, that means the mama laid down and let him tie with her. It's not rocket science. I knew a dog that was so butt ugly he was cute. He was a Pit Bull/Dachshund mix. I know another dog that's GSD/Chihuahua mix, etc etc etc.

Answer 4

Unfortunately, since he was removed from the litter at 4 weeks of age he has not had a chance to learn proper dog-dog behavior from his mother and littermates. It's good that he backs off from Whitey, but he may not do it when he gets bigger.

Is there any way you could get him together with puppies his own size for some socialization? Or with some older dog who like puppies but know how to discipline them properly?

Even so, considering Whitey's small size I don't really think that this is a safe situation. I think you need to start looking for a suitable home for your puppy. I know this is hard for you, and for the puppy (who is really just being a puppy), but imagine how you would feel if something happened to Whitey.

Answer 5

As far as the biting thing- it is normal for puppies to include biting in their play. In nature, their mother will teach them when enough is enough.

In your case, your puppy needs this particular lesson early (asap), as to protect Whitey. One suggestion I read about when my dogs were puppies was to pop them from under the chin- same effect as smacking them on the top of the nose, but they can't see your hand, so they won't get hand-shy (You want him to like your hand- petting.). You don't want to be too rough and cause harm, just enough that he notices and stops.

Get Puppy fixed ASAP- this will help clarify the hierarchy, allowing Whitey to stay alpha...

Always be sure to supervise any "play" between the two... anything that even resembles play... well, probably any time the puppy and Whitey are together.

Another idea I got from a book... Dominance training. This is also a help for establishing the hierarchy between all the animals... get the puppy laying on his side, and hold his neck down- nothing rough, just reminding him that YOU are boss. DO NOT cut off circulation- just maintain control. Let him up as soon as he stops fighting your control, stops wiggling.

"NO" (or "Away") is a great command- any time Puppy is doing something you don't want him to do... like play-biting, "NO!"... When he stops, praise him- he did obey the "No" command....

Good luck!

Answer 6

You needd to show the pup that the small do is the pack leader..Feed them at the same time, but hold the pit bull back until the others have finished..then give him praise for beoing patient, and let him dig in..When any doorway is crossed..make sure the small dog goes through first...when giving treats, give to small dog first..
Everything you do, give the small dog attention first...and the pit bull will see that You are in first command, the smaller dogs are second, and he is at the bottom of the pack leadership..He will be happy with this pecking order, if you are consistent.
Then, before the pit bull becomes the rebellious teenager..get him neutered..He can be neutered any time now, and it will benefit ALL if he never begins male behaviours..
However, as he matures, it isn't safe to leave large dogs alone with small dogs, unless they are all getting alongwell...so just play it by ear, and be careful to keep the small ones safe..

Answer 7

well it is just a puppy and there is a very fine line between playing and fighting when it comes to dogs. pit bulls are also just plain agressive.seperate the 2 dogs when the biting starts and make sure that the puppy understands that u r angry about his biting. though whitey and the pup may b playing the puppys future size will harm whitey if they keep playing this game

Answer 8

I had a 6lb poodlex mix that thought he was a pit bull. He would try to take on the biggest male dogs around. At the same time I had a pit/chow mix and my little one would be all over him never once did the bigger one bite back. Play biting is something you can stop. Mix 1/2 water and vinegar in a spray bottle every time he bites spray him in the face and say no. That's how I broke my pit from biting.

Answer 9

First off there is no such thing as a teacup dog of any kind, it's a scam that breeders use to get you to buy there dogs for more money. But anyway I'd keep them away from eachother, the pitbull puppy is much bigger than the poodle/yorkie and could hurt him while playing.

Answer 10

That's not good. If the dog pulls Whitey's tail hard enough, he could actually pull it off! No lie! The tail is only a piece of bone, and if is pulled hard enough, it will detach itself. Anyways, anytime you see this happening, you need to say to your pit bull, "NO. Bad dog." You should tap his snout and he should let go. Hopefully this works! Good Luck!