Hello all!

I have really enjoyed reading your forums while raising my first ever dog, but now it is time for me to seek advice.

So I have a 5 month old puppy named Chesney that I have had since she was 7 weeks old. She is most likely a beagle/cattle dog mix and is about 15-20 pounds right now. Her personality would be described as an extreme alpha-female. She is dominant in all phases of her personality, but also extremely bright and independent. While she is independent, she holds an extreme attachment to my wife, and a milder one to me.

Recently, we discovered through our rescue that we got Chesney from, that one of her litter mates was returned and is again available for adoption. Having fallen in love with Chesney, we decided it would be worth taking on the extra responsibility and picking up her brother who we named Bentley.

I have read extensively about introducing a second dog to the family, and am aware of the challenges involved. However, due to Chesney's exteme alpha behaviors, she is making the transition very difficult.

It has been nearly 10 days since we took Bentley home, and they are still constantly fighting and biting each other nonstop. Every time the new puppy goes anywhere in the house, Chesney will follow her and attack her, being protective of "her house". It also doesn't help that the new dog Bentley is very laid back and has almost seamlessly accepted his new home and is comfortable there (too comfortable for Chesney's liking).

Lately, its gotten a bit worse as our first dog Chesney seems to have detached herself from us, especially my wife who she was previously so attached to. She has actually started to come to me more to lay with and play with, whereas she almost always (95% of the time) would go to my wife in the past. Also, she has started peeing over the house again, something she hasn't done in over 2 months. Today, she peed on the couch, something she has never done even in her worse potty training days. After we noticed her accident on the couch she went to the corner of the room and refused to make eye contact with us for some time.

Last night, she refused to come up into bed and sleep with us, something she has done and looked forward to every night almost since we've had her (sleeping with us is a guilty pleasure for all of us). Instead, she crawled into her crate (extremely unusual behavior) and slept in there for part of the night and eventually around 3am jumped into bed.

Does any have any tips or experience with this that they can share? I am assuming most of this is normal behavior for a dog with the personality of Chesney, and over time she will get used to it. I am more or less hoping to have people tell me that this is normal and not to worry about it. I am just worried that we have lost our sweet little Chesney forever, and as much as we love our new dog, it would sadden us greatly to see our new dog change our old dog's behavior permanently.

I think you should first consult your vet about the peeing behavior. It could be a sign of urinary tract infection, which is quite common.

Another thing I'd do is stop letting her sleep in your bed. This is a confusing thing for a dominant dog. It gives them the idea that they are equal in status, and you don't want her to think that. If you want her to come up for a snuggle, that's fine. But she should wait until she's been asked. And then she should go to her own bed to sleep, as should your other dog.

I'd also suggest you institute a "Nothing in Life is Free" policy. Make her sit and wait for her dinner. Do not allow her to demand attention. Make her wait until she's asked before she gets up on the furniture, if she's allowed on the furniture. Dogs, like children, need leadership and discipline, or they become brats.

If the two dogs are squabbling, but no damage is being done, no blood is being drawn, they're just working out the details. Let them have some leeway in doing this. That doesn't mean you need to allow constant bickering, but they do need to work out some things on their own. However, if she's constantly harassing your other dog, you need to put the brakes on once in a while; put a leash on her and do some quick obedience work; sit, down, stay, etc. Be the leader, give her some direction, and she'll feel more secure when she accepts that you're in charge.

I'd also increase the amount of exercise she's getting. A tired, worn out dog is a good dog. And if she's tired, she'll have less energy to expend worrying about what the other dog is doing.

you have a lovely dog im glad that you had a pet like that

Just try to wait it out. Chesney is probably just trying to teach Bentley that SHE is the dominant one. Also, as vetgroomer said, make sure they are well disciplined and trained.
I love the name Chesney! Right now I am listening to a song by Kenny Chesney, my favorite! :mrgreen: