Marley Girl

I also have a multi-dog household with a 9-week-old pup. Play is interrupted and the pup is always taken out by himself to do his business.

Thank you, Tommy. Mya's Mom... My boyfriend initially thought the same thing, that Marley was reacting to me and my stress level. He was a police dog handler for years and that was his opinion. I'm not a stressed out kind of person, so I told him to take Marley with him daily for a few days when I was not around to socialize her and have some solid one-on-one time with her. It broke his heart when she peed on his lap during an episode of fear at a warehouse. Three days later he was paying for Marley to go to doggie day camp and now a behaviorist. I think the real issue with Marley is she was not properly socialized between 8 weeks and 16 weeks of age because I had gotten some scary parvo stories from people. I've been taking Jet out to the high school next door to mingle with the people on the bleachers watching baseball. He loves meeting the people and jumping around and they all want to pet him. So I will not make the same mistake I did with the middle child.

The Aussie and Marley are 6 months apart in age. They are polar opposites in personality and were since day one. The Aussie is playful like a child whereas Marley has always been far more serious. The new pup (Jet) and Marley are 4 1/2 months apart in age. I am as close and bonded with Marley as I am to the Aussie, maybe even more so. Jet is more like the Aussie in personality (they're both male), very out-going and social, and has so far been a great addition to our family. Marley and the Aussie, Huck, do not have this littermate syndrome thing people have been talking about. In fact, the behaviorist was impressed with the relationship between the two and how we handled both dogs in their relations with each other and did not step in when the two were playing rough but instead allowed them to work it out. We have a family raising these pups and bonding with them and looking out for them.

It has nothing to do with "what I wanted to hear," so I don't know where that's coming from. I asked for practical advice, not to be bashed over the head as that accomplishes nothing.

I didn't ask if I SHOULD get a pup or return the pup. I was asking advice on what to watch for etc. considering Marley's tendency to bark at people on leash. The only actual advice I got on my inquiry was don't walk the pup when I walk Marley, which I already have not been doing and had no plans on doing. Marley gets walked with the well-behaved Aussie or by herself. Hogwash. I don't need or want support or agreement. I already have the puppy. Just asking for useful and practical advice after the fact of having the puppy. I've heard, "return the puppy." I didn't ask if I should return the puppy.

It seems like a lot of responses are coming from a place of treating Marley like a "special needs" dog because of certain behavior she exhibits outdoors on a leash. And I come from the camp where the more you treat something like it's special needs, the more it believes it is special needs and the more special needs it becomes.

Liz, you make me laugh. You are always forthright in what you have to say and harsh in your judgments. You call a spade a spade and I respect that as I am the same way and think it's the only way to be. That being said, I will get back to this board as my work with the behaviorist and Marley progresses. If it turns out I was wrong and made an awful choice and did the wrong thing, I will be the first to admit it.

I'm sure glad I'm going into this with positive thoughts and energy! And I'm sure thankful I've always thrived on challenges and was blessed with a well that overflows with hope, faith, and the belief in all good things My top of the line behaviorist probably thought it was a bad idea, GentleLake, but I didn't ask. The die has been cast and even with all these nay-saying responses, I feel very positive about the whole thing. But my well always overfloweth and I always pull through the toughest challenges

Of course it's going to be challenging, but I think the companionship Marley will get from the new pup outweighs everything else. I did not get the new pup for me, but for Marley. She LOVES playing with other puppies. In fact, when she's walking down the street and a puppy or small dog is crossing paths, she brightens up and everything else going on around her doesn't exist. She even warms up to the other pup's human. It gives her joy and makes her happy. So I have some extra work and extra training. That's not a big deal to me.

Liz, there are absolutely no walks together as I don't want Marley's outdoor behavior rubbing off on the pup. We actually have three dogs and the great walking behavior of the Aussie hasn't rubbed off on Marley unfortunately. But whenever the Aussie isn't home, Marley is lonely because she likes having another dog around. The three dogs play wonderfully together and with two adults and a teen taking care of them there is more than enough love and attention for all the puppies! They each have one-on-one time and together time with each of us.

Marley is 6 months old.

Nicole, my 6-month-old border collie does the same thing on lead, but with people and not cars. I recently hired a behaviorist to help with this problem. I've only met with her once so far, but she started me with getting my pup a Thunder Shirt and Comfort Zone. A Thunder Shirt mimics the swaddling of a baby to make them feel secure. Comfort Zone is a spray or plug in airwick type deal that produces the smell of pheromone (in their mommy's milk) that helps to assuage fears and comfort them.

This past weekend, I took a drive up to Northern California and bought a companion for my Marley girl. A beautiful black and white short-haired border collie. His name is Jet and he's nine weeks old. Okay, before I mess things up, does anyone have any advice, criticism, etc.? As for Marley and her barking outside while on leash, I hired a very qualified, top-of-the-line behaviorist So far, we've incorporated a Thunder Shirt into her non-existent-until-now wardrobe, Comfort Zone DAP, and I'm not putting her into an situations that might cause her alarm and break that threshold so as not to further cement this behavior. I'm also working with her on the "find it" game, to help stimulate her brain; and the "leave it" game, which I suppose will be incorporated into our walks on leash with the behaviorist (and by myself once I learn how we will use it next week). Thanks in advance for any advice you might share!

I appreciate all the good advice and well wishes. I know one of these days I will be able to take my Marley girl to a dog-friendly outdoor eatery with the family and have a good time (and be able to eat

Thank you, Tess's girl. She loves the people and other dogs at doggie camp. She's always happy when I take her there, so I have no reservations about the treatment she's getting. Thanks for the recommendations on material to look into. I appreciate it