Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a Female Corgi-Lab mix, about 2 1/2 years old, and have had her about a year and a half.

Also have a male Beagle mix (not sure of the mix, maybe a terrier or spaniel), pushing two years old, have had him about nine months.

Corgi girl was very sedate and calm from day one. Beagle Boy was and is still VERRRRY rowdy and puppyish - chews a lot, races around the house when excited, hogs all the toys, etc.

My only concern is when he wants to play he wants to PLAY. And the female, more often than not, DOESN'T want to. She's perfectly capable of holding her own - her Corgi musculature means she can take him down and pin him when she wants to! - but I'm concerned about how much she seems willing to take before the pin-down moment comes - she endures much leg-biting, fly-by tackles, and the like. On one occasion, our dog walker neglected to remove her harness after walking her, and by the time we got home Beagle Boy had nearly chewed it off of her!

We've let this go on (they've been in the same house now about nine months) thinking that it would eventually settle down, but it doesn't seem to be. Is it appropriate to step in and put a stop to certain behaviors? (we do have a "no-biting-in-the-house" rule, and will stop the Beagle from play-biting when we catch him doing it indoors) but as the dogs are alone together during the day, I worry about how much Corgi Girl may be enduring when there's no one to step in! Thoughts?

>>I have a Female Corgi-Lab mix, about 2 1/2 years old, and have had her about a year and a half.
>>
>>Also have a male Beagle mix (not sure of the mix, maybe a terrier or spaniel), pushing two years old, have had him about nine months.
>>
>>Corgi girl was very sedate and calm from day one. Beagle Boy was and is still VERRRRY rowdy and puppyish - chews a lot, races around the house when excited, hogs all the toys, etc.
>>
>>My only concern is when he wants to play he wants to PLAY. And the female, more often than not, DOESN'T want to. She's perfectly capable of holding her own - her Corgi musculature means she can take him down and pin him when she wants to! - but I'm concerned about how much she seems willing to take before the pin-down moment comes - she endures much leg-biting, fly-by tackles, and the like. On one occasion, our dog walker neglected to remove her harness after walking her, and by the time we got home Beagle Boy had nearly chewed it off of her!
>>
>>We've let this go on (they've been in the same house now about nine months) thinking that it would eventually settle down, but it doesn't seem to be. Is it appropriate to step in and put a stop to certain behaviors? (we do have a "no-biting-in-the-house" rule, and will stop the Beagle from play-biting when we catch him doing it indoors) but as the dogs are alone together during the day, I worry about how much Corgi Girl may be enduring when there's no one to step in! Thoughts?

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

His chewing her harness is, as they say, no skin off her nose. Why should she care? It's evidently kind of fun for a dog to have another dog pull this kind of stuff off them. It's not safe to leave a harness on an unattended dog. She probably wanted it off!

If you don't want them to interact when you're gone, separate them. I doubt that it's a problem, though. As long as you remove resources that would cause competition to be too fierce (food, chewies, real bones, highly desirable toys), I doubt there is actually a problem. Be careful about intervening between them, though, because you can throw their timing off and mess up their relationship that way, and CREATE a problem. If you want to separate them or end a game, call them to you for treats--given to each dog from your hand so there is nothing to fight over.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

It doesn't sound to me like there is a problem, I don't think you need to be concerned. She might tolerate a lot from him, but that's just it - she's tolerating it. If it really bothered her she would likely pin him a lot sooner. Because she's stronger, they both know that she can put him in his place if she feels it's necessary..

I wouldn't worry. It sounds like they've got a pretty firm relationship established and if she wants to be left alone she'll let him know. If she just puts up with it she may even be enjoying the attention. If it were the smaller or weaker dog having to tolerate these things I'd be concerned for his safety, but other than that I say just let them do what they're doing..