Question
Bella
I have a 5 month old female mini doxie. We have taken her to training classes and she is our baby. Last week we agreed to take her sister as she had no home to go to. We thought we were helping the dog have a good home. Our 5 month old Bella did not like this very much. We have two exercise pens and two crates. We let them out to play and Bella just wants to fight with Izzy her 5 month old sister. On our deck the two fought and are able to get on with life but in the house neither of them want to back down. Can you suggest what I can do to ease the intergration? Bella has swollen nipples while Izzy does not. I think Bella is just entering her heat cycle.
AnswerSounds like Bella is jealous. Getting them both spayed will help. Also, if you need them to get along, do not give either any attention when they are misbehaving. I have 8 dachshunds and there is rarely a fight among them - they learned to get along. Bella may be an alpha female which means she will be dominant and Izzy will have to learn her place in the world. Keep them in crate so they can see and smell each other and let them together more and more as they get along. Be there when they come out and speak sharply if either one starts to look aggressive. If Bella is in a pen and crated, her time is limited with you and she might be jealously guarding that time. Be patient - they are still young. Just because they are siblings does not mean a lot. I know if will be hard for awhile, but they will become pals eventually or at least tolerate each other.
