Adult Dogs with Pup-Behavior Question

[jenn D]

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping someone can help me with this or offer opinions. Plenty of obedience and agility experience here but can always use input on dog behavior things.  We are t minus one week until Pickles, our new Labradoodle pup comes home. As you all know, originally we really weren't planning on keeping Jake, just rehabilitating him and one thing lead to another and here he is. So we are very soon to be a 3 dood family. Jake and Brisby have established a great routine. They sleep next to each other, eat together and I can even walk them both by myself (a combined 117 lbs of doodleness!).  Jake came in as a 8 month old labradoodle when Brisby was 10 months old. So there was a somewhat comparable size. They love playing and wrestling. While they don't bark when playing, it gets pretty active, they jump on each other paw, etc. with a lot of exuberance. They now know when I say "Take it outside Boys!" and they head to the back door to continue their playing outside.

My concern is with Pickles. He will come here at 10 lbs. Jake is 50-55 lbs, very agile, very active and springy. Brisby is 65-70 lbs of brawn, lots of muscle and very fast. Pickles should grow to be between 40-60 lbs but in the meantime Im worried about the current boys play. I don't want Pickles to get hurt. I know the pack structure will go through an evolution again. Im just trying to figure out how to navigate the new daily structure. Obviously, I don't want to hold Pickles while the boys play. I also don't want him to be isolated from them. Im a pretty structured person and I am home all day so I can work just about any activity schedule. Any advice on how to deal with how to integrate the boys ?

They all will sleep in their own crates and I put them in crates when I am cleaning or if I have to pick the kids up at school.

Thanks, oh and here is a current picture of Mr. Pickles:

[Becka]

I, too, have only one dog. But I have to say this: PUPPY TUMMY!!!!! Such a cutie!

[cheryl & oliver]

Oh my goodness, Mr. Pickles is just sooooo cute!!!!!..I only have one dog too, so no advice there, but I think everyone has told you not to worry.  I love just love his color, and that tummy, omd, I could melt....

[Kim kennedy]

Pickles is Adorable !!! And the big dogs will know to be gentle with the pup!