Sibling chihuahua puppies.

[Ron]

Hi. My gf and I recently brought a new puppy pair into the home. We are struggling now due to the puppies bonding with each other more then with us.
    Is it possible to work with them while together or do we need to find a way to separate them for extended periods? Days? Weeks? 

[Adrienne]

Hi there,

Welcome to the forums.

Sibling rivalry (also known as littermate syndrome) is a real thing and the main reason why many breeders and shelters have started no longer sending two puppies together in new homes. The puppies tend to bond a lot together and they may get into frequent squabbles as they mature and separating them may become problematic once they are deeply bonded. It seems like several dog owners encounter more problems when the puppies are of the same sex versus having one female and one male. However, it is also true that there are many sibling pups of the same sex living together happily, therefore there may be too many variables to make blank statements.

I have personally raised two littermates (my Rottweilers) one female and one male and can say that it takes a lot of work because you'll need to separate them e.g. separate sleeping (initially starting with separate crates kept side-by-side, then gradually increasing distance), separate training, separate socializing, separate walking, so to help develop their individual personalities and prevent raising two "half-dogs' who depend too much on each other and risk failing to bloom and who may also learn to not pay attention to us. It is therefore best to start this early as it may become more difficult later on. 

These separation periods do not need to be an all-day ordeal for days or weeks. What counts is that the pups are separated for periods of time during the day, including nap times (one owner spends time with one puppy, while the other spends time with the other, and then possibly swapping) with the purpose of building a strong bond with each pup independently. 

While you are initially training them individually a lot, once they have a solid response to sit, down, come, etc, it is possible to work with them together every now and then to your advantage. For example, I like to have sibling pups sit before they are fed their meals or sit before I open a door to let them out to potty.  I also like to dorecalls with them together when needed.  This type of training teaches the pups to pay attention to us despite the distraction of being together and in my opinion is very valuable. 

 

[Ron]

Thanks. That’s great news. Pretty much exactly the things we are doing so far. They do squabble when together but it seems more like growly play with a few squeaks of “ouch that hurt”

They have also started, at the odd time, a seemingly angry lunge and growl at us each.  It’s happened to me once last night and Lorry a few times recently. It’s also happened to Lorry’s daughter a few times over the last few days. 

[Ron]

  Another probably minor thing I should mention that I noticed recently is since we started training with treats when I go to pet them and say good boy or girl and I’ve either just given them a reward treat or not, they duck under my hand and back away or if I don’t have a treat and have just called one over they sniff my hand and then leave again right away. Basically saying. “What?!?  No treat!? Screw you! I’m outa here! “ lol. 
   

[Adrienne]

Good to hear you are implemented separated times for each pup! The play you describe with a few squeaks when a pup is a bit rough, seems pretty normal as that is the way pups learn to refine their bite inhibition. Make sure though to dedicate some time in training them to use their mouths gently on human skin too.

Here are some games:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/

It would be helpful knowing in what circumstance they seem to angrily lunge and growl at each of you. I know you said it happens at the odd time, but what are you doing exactly when this happens?  Are you reaching out to pet them? Looming over them? Are they eating something? Playing with something? Resting? Any little detail is extra helpful so if can think back at the past episodes (don't recreate it for the purpose of letting me know) and you notice a pattern let me know or just let me know all the details surrounding these events and we can do some troubleshooting on what may be doing on. 

In regards to the training you are doing, we don't want to turn the treats into bribes so depending at what stage they are in the training, it's important to start fading the food lures. What commands are you working on? Are you luring as depicted in the course or are you using other methods? You can read more about the process here;

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/polishing-up-training/fading-food-lures/

And here's a guide on using treats;

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dog-listens-treats/

This can also be an issue of training them together, where the pups are more willing to go back to being with each other rather than working with us, because they are over bonding. 

 

[Ron]

I was just reading your replies and they were eating a treat bone each. My gf picked up the female and she growled at her and snapped. 

[Adrienne]

OK, if the pups tend to growl when they are eating a treat bone (or anything valuable) we are looking at potential resource guarding which we want to nip in the bud as soon as possible. 

For starters, best to offer high-value foods like treat bones with the pups in separated areas (at a distance from each other) so that they don't feel too on edge and competitive over it. On top of this, we should avoid touching or picking dogs up when they have valuables. This can make them more likely to react in negative ways as most dogs (and humans!) prefer to be left alone when they eating or sleeping.

Here's the thing: the more a dog rehearses resource-guarding behaviors (lunging, growling, snapping, tensing up), the more these behaviors become habit-forming and ingrained, making them more difficult to extinguish. So we want to avoid as much as possible putting our dogs into situations that trigger resource guarding.

However, resource guarding is a matter of mistrust (the puppy or dog growls because he's afraid of losing access to something he is eating and doesn't want to be bothered) so we want to also work on changing the dog's emotional response towards us approaching them. We can do this is various ways:

-For pups who are not guarding food bowls yet, but we want to avoid this behavior, we can make it a habit of, every now and then, nonchalantly walking by our pups' food bowl and adding some goodies to it (like a few treats or some food that is safe and healthy for dogs). As a general rule of thumb, the food offered needs to be perceived by the pup as more valuable than what he/she is already eating.  

If the pup is already possessive over the food bowl, rather than directly adding goodies to the food bowl, we can toss them from a distance from which the dog doesn't seem uncomfortable with us. Then, we can gradually decrease distance, always making sure to not send the puppy over threshold. 

The goal is creating a positive conditioned emotional response to our approach (in other words from the dog feeling threatened from our approach, he/she looks forward to it). With time your pup may therefore wag his tail and look happy as he knows that something really good is coming.

-The same exercise can be done when the pup is eating a treat. As the pup is eating, walk by and from a distance toss something that is considered higher value than the treat (for example, if the dog is eating a dog cookie, toss a meat-based treat or anything else your dog your dog loves a whole lot). 

-It is also important teaching pups the art of trading as times may come where we need to remove something the shouldn't have (either food items, objects or toys that are chewed apart). It therefore helps to teach puppies that great things happen when their belongings are taken away (they are swapped with something higher in value). So if you need to remove a toy from your puppy, trade it for a higher-value toy (a new one or one your dog doesn't see often) or a treat. 

-Now, for trading food items that a dog shouldn't have or some long-lasting chew that is getting too small or sharp, it's best to trade for another long-lasting treat. For instance, a bone that has been chewed down a lot can be traded for some long-lasting edible that can be fully consumed (e.g. bully stick). An empty marrow bone can be removed and then immediately returned with something tasty smeared in the middle (like cream cheese or peanut butter). Of course, these are just examples. Use bones at your own risk and discretion and make sure they are appropriate for the age your puppy.

--Also, make it a habit of, every now and then, when you catch your pups showing signs of really "being into" something, get something that is super high-value for your dog and practice an exchange. Surprise your pups! You want him to look forward to these little exchanges because they are so valuable! Do this when you have a chance every now and then.

-Tip: Getting puppies used to having their mouths checked at an early age is good for getting them used to having their teeth brushed and mouth checked by your vet, but also in case you ever need to retrieve some item out of their mouth. Every now and them, open your puppy's mouth open and stick a tasty treat inside. At some point, if you catch your pup with an item in his mouth (that he isn't prone to guarding), let him sniff a super high-value treat as you remove the object from the mouth, promptly replacing it with the tasty treat. This will make your puppy more collaborative and help him learn that when you remove something from his mouth, something tasty will follow. However, aim to train your puppy to drop it so you no longer have to manually extract things. 

-A word of caution for dogs who resource guard and potentially bite: the safest way to trade may be to toss the higher-value item at a distance, and retrieve the object/food left behind only once the dog has moved away and grasps the higher value item. For severe cases, toss the higher value item past a door so that you can close the door as your dog is on the other side so you can safely retrieve it without your dog being around.

Avoid Doing This

• Avoid touching or picking up dogs when they are eating or have something valuable. 
• Avoid chasing your puppy around to retrieve an item he has has in his mouth (even if just for play).
• Avoid prying your dog's mouth open and retrieving something out of their mouth by force (train the drop it command instead)  https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/drop-it/
• Avoid confrontational methods such as scruff shakes, alpha rolls, etc.

Here's some more info on resource guarding food:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/overprotective-food/

Disclaimer: The above exercises are mostly for prevention of resource guarding, and are, therefore, not intended to be used as part of treatment. If your puppy has been showing signs of resource guarding and are worried he/she can potentially cause harm to you or your family members, please consult with a dog behavior professional for in person-guidance and safety.