Expert: Lee Charles Kelley - 10/13/2008

Question
My shih tzu is about 2 years old and about a month ago we brought in a new chihuahua puppy into our family. Before the chihuahua, my shih tzu was very quiet, would bark only for food, and when strangers come into the house. Now that we have the chihuahua, my shih tzu kind of stay away for about 2 weeks, then started barking at the puppy and chase her around the backyard. I stopped her a couple of times, and I don't treat the chihuahua first in any way. But as of lately the chihuahua is starting fight back, not chasing but with her mouth instead, she would snag onto the shih tzu's collar as if it was a toy of some sort. I do realize that the chihuahua is attached to the shih tzu.

My question is... is this their way of play fighting? the chihuahua doesn't bark at the shih tzu but the shih tzu does bark at her and chase her around. Or is this the shih tzu's way of being dominant? I really don't understand how their relations works.

Answer
Hi, Mary,

Thanks for the question.

How old is the Chihuahua? If she's between 5-6 mos. and a year then what you're seeing is a natural part of the relationship between adult and adolescent dogs; adults are kind of programmed to put "teenagers in their place."

One thing that will help them find more balance in their relationship is to never scold or punish either dog for anything they do. Always try to redirect the energy of the "bad" behavior into another behavior that will satisfy the original impulse. For example if the puppy is chewing on something she shouldn't, don't scold her or tell her no. That will only increase her internal tension. Instead, try to distract her and give her something else to do with her teeth.

And yes, dogs play fight all the time. And it'll be very helpful for YOU if you understand that this is part of the natural order, that neither dog is dominant (in fact there's no such thing as dominance in dogs; it's always an expression of internal tension or stress), and that scolding and punishing doesn't teach them HOW to behave properly, it just puts a lid on their emotions. And when you put a lid on a dog's emotions you'd better make sure they have a safety valve (through play, either with each other or with YOU). Otherwise, the pressure will build and the lid will blow off!

I hope this helps!

LCK
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