Max Did NOT Kill The Puppy

Well, Max did not kill the new puppy, although it was touch-and-go for awhile.

To back up: While Bev and I were on vacation in New Hampshire a few weeks ago, we passed a dog rescue group on the side of the road that was giving away 15 puppies. Being suckers, we stopped and held a few, and soon we had adopted Sam, a 12-week-old rat terrier. Black and white spots, floppy ears -- the whole irresistible puppy package.

We weren't worried that we already had three dogs. We have a large home, a big yard, and we LOVE dogs. The only problem was Max. We knew that he attacks and tries to kill other animals, and that includes dogs. We figured if we could introduce Max to the puppy gradually over several days, Sam had a good chance of surviving.


It was like we figured. Our old dog, Ginger, sniffed Sam and then ignored him. Rufus, our English Setter, wanted to play ball with Sam, using Sam for the ball. But when Max saw us holding the puppy, he launched himself -- mouth frothing, teeth chattering -- straight at Sam. We had to kick him away and put Sam in a cage, where Max tried to bite through the bars to get at the cowering puppy. Whew.

We kept Max and Sam separated, and when we got home from vacation, we gradually began bringing the two together. At first, we kept Max muzzled because he kept trying to bite. After a few days, we took the muzzle off and let Max approach Sam as we held him and kept one hand on Max's collar. There were several near misses, and Max bit the puppy once, but soon Max started to show more curiosity than aggression. He would sniff and nose the puppy, and if he started to get excited we gently made him back off.

We knew we were on the right path when we were able to break Max's fixation by offering him a treat or calling him to go outdoors. And after a week, we put the puppy on the floor, Max sniffed him and then went to eat his supper. Victory.

We still have to be careful. Max and the puppy will play, and it's a fine line between play and aggression with Max. If Sam runs away, Max quickly switches to attack mode. But we think as the puppy grows, he will look less like prey and more like a friend, and Max will calm down.

So Max did NOT kill the new puppy, and we're well on our way to becoming a four-dog family.