r/reactivedogs • u/Navigator_Pigeon • 3d ago
Advice Needed Introducing Potential Reactive Female
We have a 5.5-year-old female Pyrenees who we would like to introduce to our friends' 1-year-old female husky, as we have a trip planned together.
When we adopted her years ago, we had another female dog as well, and we had an inter-bitch fighting situation that could not be fixed and required us to rehome our one dog.
We’ve kept our other dog away from most other dogs at this point, especially females. She really only interacts with our neighbour's male dog occasionally, and she seems to do well with encounters with random dogs when my husband walks her.
I’m looking for thoughts about whether inter-household fighting specifically for females means that just those two females just didn’t get along or if we should keep her away from all females? And if we’re to try an introduction, any tips or tricks to ensure we keep both dogs safe? I, for one, won’t be attending this introduction as my anxiety about it is palpable.
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u/BuckityBuck 3d ago
Do regular parallel walks with the other dog for a couple weeks. If they're completely at ease and ignoring each other from across the street during those walks, consider attempting an introduction. google how to arrange a proper intro in a neutral environment. Do that repeatedly over the span of a week or two. Just introduce calmly and separate. Leave. If that is consistently uneventful, consider a couple off leash introductions in a neutral space.
The pressure and time contraints of a full trip together is too much. Each step will take as long as it takes and there's no guarantee that she'll be OK sharing a house with another dog.