New Puppy......Sad Sheltie

SheltieSmile

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We will be getting our new puppy next weekend! We currently have a 3 year old Sheltie named Disney. We lost our 15 year old Sheldon in May. Disney is still grieving..... We all are. But I am concerned about him. He hasn't played with toys and he just lays around. We have been taking him out with us whenever we can. The only thing that seems to spark anything in him is treats. Last night I got every toy out of the toy box and that's a lot of toys and he just stared at me.

Here is my question. What is the best way to introduce the new puppy? Normally I wouldn't be too worried but Disney is so off right now. How can we make this transition the best for all of us?
 
I took Kaleigh with me to the breeders (she came from the same place) so they met, got kinda acquainted on neutral turf. I had them both crated in the back of the car, so they could sniff each other. Savannah got really really car sick coming home. That wasn't too fun. I carried the carriers to the backyard and opened them up near each other, but with plenty of area between them. I let them sorta meet and greet. The more neutral you can make it the better, and start slow, let them have their space. For Disney have a place where he can retreat and just observe the puppy. That was important for Kaleigh. Savannah didn't understand why Kaleigh would retreat. Disney sounds like he is still grieving, make sure he knows that he still counts, because new puppies can be threatening. He might get even weirder before he gets better. Kaleigh went through a very rough week. She foamed at the mouth, she pouted, she sulked, it was sad. But I tried to reassure her that she was as treasured as the newbie. Mine are 8 mths apart so it might be different. Both being puppies and immature. Just establish routine. Once Kaleigh got over the whole share her toys, her space, etc. They were fine. Good luck!!
 
I took Sca when I got Spitfire as he had to approve. Of course Sca is pretty friendly so it was not a big concern. They are best buddies though not always together.
 
I am so sorry for the loss of your dog. I had a similar situation with Chandler last year. We lost our dog and he did not go back to his normal playful self until we brought Harrington home. Because Chandler would get car sick, we did not take him to the breeder because it was not real close to our home. What we did was introduced them at a neutral place. I hope your dog has the same reaction that Chandler did when he met his new brother. He was
running through the house that whole weekend and was so excited. If he could talk, he would have been saying Whoopie! I have a new playmate! They are best buddies. Good luck! Keep us posted!
 
When we went to pick up Bitsy (same breeder), we brought Layla. Layla was 3.5 months old, and Bits was a little over 10 weeks. Having come from the same kennel, I guess the smell was familiar, but they were "sisters" from then on. Bear the Big Red Dog, on the other hand, looked like an old bachelor uncle who says, "I was ok with raising one. But two? Lord, give me strength!"
 
Well Indy (puppy) came home yesterday. Disney is very aggressive. He barks at him in his mean bark. He won't take his eyes off him. And if Indy gets close he will lunge and try to snap. Indy is in an exercise pen so Disney can't get to him. Any suggestions on this transition would be appreciated.
 
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