New Rescue Dog Jealous of Current Dog

Question
My boyfriend and I have a 15 month old male Border Collie/Blue Heeler mix that is extremely smart, active, friendly, fun-loving, etc. So far he has loved and gotten along with every human, canine, and feline he's met since we've had him. We "rescued" him when he was an older puppy and have since done a great job with positive obedience training. He now knows and obeys over 25 verbal commands, without the use of hand signals. He has to be mentally and physically stimulated almost 24/7, but also enjoys downtime as well. We've recently moved to another state, and he's lost all his dog-friends who are in our family who are now far away. We thought it would be great to introduce another rescue dog to our family so the two could have us, and also have each other for companionship and fun. The new rescue dog is a female Border Collie/Kelpie mix who is approximately 3 years old. They get along GREAT!!! Love at first sight! She is more mellow than he is, but they still wrestle and do other doggie games. My concern is that she seems to be "jealous" of our younger male dog any time he interacts with us. She's not aggressive at all, but she ALWAYS pushes herself in front of him if we call him to come or even say his name, then proceeds to block him from getting near us first. She doesn't mind when we pet him, she just seems to want to be first. She's even taken to pawing us constantly or jumping up on us only when he gets near us. We've tried working on "OFF". We've tried petting them simultaneously. We've tried having her in a sit-stay while we pet the other dog, and giving her a treat when she's calm. We've tried ignoring her until she has all four paws on the floor, then telling her to sit, then praising her. We've tried waiting until she gives up and walks away, then calling her and praising her when she comes. We've tried pointing and saying "GO ON." NONE of those seems to work, except the "GO ON" command. We don't want to constantly tell her to "GO ON" (since it's currently the only thing that works), we just want to understand the reasons she acts like this, and how we can help her correct it. Thanks for your time!

Answer
Hi Dee,

Male dogs are usually very willing to let a female dog assume the "alpha" role, and act submissive towards them.

When your female dog blocks your male dog from getting near you, or wants to be first to receive your attention, she's assuming the role that your dogs have worked out between themselves. She is the more dominate dog, even though she isn't your first dog. Dominant dogs are pushy, but it's when (or if) she tries to dominate you or other humans that she needs a reminder of who is running the show.

The best thing you can do is to respect the social order which your dogs have worked out. To go against this natural order might create a problem where the female is forever trying to reestablish her pack position. Of course, you are the real pack leader, and both of your dogs need to know your will needs to be obeyed. For that reason, practicing the "Nothing In Life Is Free" style of dog behavior might be a good thing. Read about that here: http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

It might be helpful to remember that your male dog doesn't mind abiding by his pushy female friend's "rules". It might be helpful to just take him out for walks alone or do things with just him, and leave the female home once in a while.


Best of luck,
Patti