Advice on pitty fostering

[bullygirl979]

I have a 1 year old female pit mix and a 6 year old male rat terrier mix.

I was just approved to foster for a local pit rescue. They only had female pits that needed fostering so I said that I would give it a try. The foster came on Saturday. She is 2 years old, spayed, and doesn't know any obedience at all. She is very friendly towards people but seems to be totally dominant towards my female pit. The male terrier and the foster have hashed things out and are fine.

There were 2 small incidents that happened that would have blown into full out fights if they weren't separated. One happened when the girls were playing. The foster pinned my pit to the floor and up against a chair. As I was moving to 'break it up' per se so they could calm, my pit growled at the foster. I am assuming she was scared and wanted to get up. The foster lunged at her and I had to pull the foster off of my pit. When playing, my pit will often trade being dominant and submissive. I have yet to see the foster be submissive at all. I think she is just a dominant dog.

I contacted the rescue to let them know and they suggested doing a crate and rotate for a few days as well as taking them on long walks and then letting them spend time together to see if they can "bond". But the night of the mini fight, they had both just gone for a 45 minute walk.

Personally, I think the foster is just a dominant dog and shouldn't be in a house with other females. The rescue offered to come get her anytime but I just want to make sure that A) I am not way off base and B) there isn't anything else that I can try.

[darkling_glory]

You need to go back to the beginning and start with SLOW introductions. How long have you had the foster?

I always take a minimum of 2 weeks for intros. I start with a walk outside on neutral territory.

Then the foster gets their own space - in this case, we baby gate them in our office and put a blanket over the baby gate. They can smell one another through the gate but can't see one another.

Depending on how the walks go (which I keep up), I might give them some supervised play time. Say 20 minutes or so. But they are both leashed so that I can separate them should a fight break out.

This goes without saying, but NO treats or toys during those play times. And if there is any fighting over affection, they get separated and ignored.

After a week or so, I take the blankets off the baby gates so they can see one another. Play time is still short and supervised. Walks are as frequent as I can make them.

After two weeks I start increasing the length of play times. But if I am busy (cooking, cleaning, etc...) the dogs are ALWAYS separated.

And I always, always feed and treat separately.

It sounds to me like you didn't do slow enough introductions. I had one foster that I could never trust with my boy. Another foster and him were BFF after one week and could be left out together. It depends on the dogs - they are definitely not always going to be living in harmony right away. It takes time, and patience.

[bullygirl979]

I have had the foster less than a week. We did go a meet and greet before taking her and they seemed fine (hence why I took her).

The rescue suggested putting their crates in the same room so they could smell/see each other--which I did.

They also suggested feeding them separately--which I am doing.

And if they are together being on leashes--which I am doing.

I also serparate them if I am busy.

Thanks for the advice, I will try and give it some more time and see if they can get used to each other.

2 more questions: 1) any advice for the walks? My pit walks fine but the foster is HORRIBLE on a leash. She pulls and is all over the place. Gentle leader doesn't work and I am going to try a harness. But at this point, I physically can't handle both of them at once. I can try and utilize family/friends but not every day. and 2) at what point to you throw in the towel and say it is not a good match?

Thanks!

[darkling_glory]

2 more questions: 1) any advice for the walks? My pit walks fine but the foster is HORRIBLE on a leash. She pulls and is all over the place. Gentle leader doesn't work and I am going to try a harness. But at this point, I physically can't handle both of them at once. I can try and utilize family/friends but not every day.

Hmm... would your pit do okay with a hands free leash? Like runners use? Then you'd have two hands free for your foster.

Are you using the gentle leader that goes around the muzzle? Or the one that simple clips in front? You could try the other style to see if that works, best. Otherwise, if you have a neighborhood kid on your street who is looking to make a couple of bucks, you could see if they will walk your dog with you while you focus on the foster.

Side note: I probably wouldn't keep their crates right next to one another, or I'd keep a towel/blanket on them so they can't really see one another but can smell one another for a week or so. It seems to me that once they can get used to the idea of "hey there is another dog there" with their nose, then adding in the eyes is easier.

and 2) at what point to you throw in the towel and say it is not a good match?

Only you can determine that. Personally, I would keep at it for a few more weeks at least. Yes, you might think that this foster is dominant now, but her hold world has just been turned upside down and she'll need some time to adjust.