Chile isn't the most coordinated of dogs and when he was excited he tended to jump wildly and super high in the air, landing on whatever was next to him. Often it was Chima next to him (hoping for a treat) and Chima only puts up with having a dog jump on her one time. If he did it a second time then she would get after him. This made Chile pretty wary of the big girl, and I can't blame her as she can be quite imposing when she's irritated. Add to that the fact that Chima loves to bark and growl while she plays and Chile was not too sure about her.
But on Friday it seemed a truce was finally called. Chile finally understood Chima's style of play and they had quite a fun time tearing around. At one point I was worried that he didn't want to be chased but when I stepped in to break things up and distract Chima, he ran past me trying to engage her again so I let them play.
This happens quite often at our house. Dogs that have not been overly fond of each other slowly grow on each other and after about 4-6 weeks decide they aren't so bad. I tell this story because so often people base whether two dogs are right for each other on a single awkward meetup in an unfamiliar location. When the dogs aren't falling all over each other, they think it's not a good fit. The fact is, if there isn't outright hate and irritation from the beginning, there's a good chance the dogs can live in harmony. How often do you upon meeting someone for the first time decide you want to be best friends and do everything together? Pretty rare. So we need to give dogs the time to develop relationships with other dogs that we give ourselves to get to know other people.
Later the following episode played out that was classic Chima. Chile was having a grand old time rolling around and chewing on Nylabone rings. Chima figured that they must have magically evolved into a fun toy and she wanted a piece of that action. She's not a bully so she doesn't steal toys from the other dogs but she sure makes sure they know she'd like a turn. No barks or growls but just a lot of space invasion and waiting patiently. Chile is onto her though and wasn't concerned in the least by her hovering.
 |
| Chima is wondering how this toy suddenly became so great and how she can get hold of it |
 |
| Chima, attempting to clearly communicate to Chile that she wants a turn. Chile's response? "Whatever" |
 |
| Clearly this was going to take awhile and her crowding move wasn't working so she decided to get comfortable while she waited him out |
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment