For about 4-5 years, we have had Daisy and Cocoa, Chihuahua mixes. A couple of months ago, we adopted Penny, a 6-lb Chihuahua, from the pound. She had a sketchy, possibly abusive past and we thought we could give her a good home while adding to the pack.
For the first month, everything was fine. Cocoa and Penny slept on my bed, something previously reserved for Cocoa. When I was watching TV, both would jump on my lap and there were no problems. Suddenly a couple of weeks ago, when Penny was on my lap, there were little low growls, followed by both dogs going full Cujo--snarling, biting, etc. Once in this mode, all I can do is restrain them. This has also happened on my bed. Once one starts growling, it escalates quickly. It happens 2-3 times a day, and I'm afraid Cocoa will hurt Penny. He's 15 lbs and she is 6 lbs.
It's clear that Cocoa does not want to "share" me with Penny, and vice versa. Penny will growl if Cocoa gets too close.
I'm not sure what to do. I will not re-home any of them. I just have to figure out a way to deal with it. So far, I've just been grabbing Penny and keeping them separated while yelling "No!" over and over. Doesn't seem to be working. I have considered "time out" for both of them in a crate, but I'm not sure it will help.
Halp? Any ideas?
For the first month, everything was fine. Cocoa and Penny slept on my bed, something previously reserved for Cocoa. When I was watching TV, both would jump on my lap and there were no problems. Suddenly a couple of weeks ago, when Penny was on my lap, there were little low growls, followed by both dogs going full Cujo--snarling, biting, etc. Once in this mode, all I can do is restrain them. This has also happened on my bed. Once one starts growling, it escalates quickly. It happens 2-3 times a day, and I'm afraid Cocoa will hurt Penny. He's 15 lbs and she is 6 lbs.
It's clear that Cocoa does not want to "share" me with Penny, and vice versa. Penny will growl if Cocoa gets too close.
I'm not sure what to do. I will not re-home any of them. I just have to figure out a way to deal with it. So far, I've just been grabbing Penny and keeping them separated while yelling "No!" over and over. Doesn't seem to be working. I have considered "time out" for both of them in a crate, but I'm not sure it will help.
Halp? Any ideas?
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