Introducing a big active new puppy to an older smaller dog

[DOROTHY HAYES]

Any suggestion on how to acclimate a new active dog to a smaller older dog.  Have already put the puppy in a crate and let the older dog walk by.  They still bark at each other 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi Dorothy, 

Welcome to the forums, congrats on your new puppy!

How old is your older dog? and what breed/breeds?

What breed/breeds is your new puppy? and how old is he?

Is your older dog reactive towards other dogs (like barks when he sees other dogs on walks? from a fence or window?) What does his social life look like, if he/she has any (does he have play mates, gets along with other dogs? is happy to see other dogs?)

This guide should help you out with some basics:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/introduce-dog-new-dog/

If you have a helper, you can do some foundation work on creating positive associations. Have a helper feed your puppy treats through the crate bars as he/she watches your older dog being walked at a distance and feed treats to your older dog as he/she walks by as well and looks at the puppy. Look up the open bar/closed bar method. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/open-bar-closed-bar/ it's what this exercise is based.

  Make sure both dogs are at a distance so that they're both under threshold. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

If you keep the puppy on leash (rather than crated, if your puppy is used to wearing it), while a helper keeps your older dog on leash, doing the above exercise at a distance, this may sometimes reduce the barking, as being crated may cause your puppy to feel more vulnerable or the barrier may cause some frustration.  Removing tags from the collars or taping them to the collar can reduce some reactivity (many dogs react to the sound of tags).

Even better, the exercise is done outdoors, where there is more space, with one person per dog, on neutral grounds, feeding treats as they look at each other.  Here is an exercise that may get them in a better mood as it creates positive associations when implemented correctly: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/case-studies/03-homer-homers-reactivity/

It's important to work at the dogs' pace, never putting them in situations they are not ready for (too close for comfort) which can cause them to go over threshold.

With older dogs and a puppy, things get tricky because the puppy wants to play and older dogs often feel overwhelmed, this creates negative associations, so puppies should not be put into the position of pestering the older dog, and older dogs shouldn't be put into situations where they feel the need to protect themselves and ask for space. Older dogs need to have easy access to a place to retreat to where the puppy can't go. 

A baby gate/pet fence for separation can allow them their own space. I like to place a second barrier if I am not too sure how well they do, so that they can see each other, but not meet face-to-face. Another exercise you can do in this setting  if you have a door, is my open/door closed/door method. I have used food bins as a second barrier here to prevent getting too close, and treats are fed when the door is open, and no more treats are fed when the door is closed. This emphasizes that the sight of each other makes treats happen.

For good timing, you may need a helper feeding one dog, while you feed the other.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLPsAIDL7bs

Caution is always needed to prevent the dogs from getting too riled up/frustrated. If you notice barking/frustration, in many cases, distance needs to be increased. 

On the side, start training your puppy sits, leaves its and going to mat which you'll find in the obedience 101 section and video archive.