hi - i rescued a 12 mth female (nova) just over a week ago. she is the most friendly & lovable dog ever  but is "very" food aggressive with my other girl (akira) who is 9 mths & the most docile, laid back husky ever.
nova has no food problems but akira has always been a very "picky" eater now made even worst by the other dogs presence - nova has viciously attacked akira a few times over food.

i am hand feeding nova (just sometimes) for the food aggression & separating the two at meal time however after checking where nova is  akira just sniffs at her dish & walks away.

akira no longer plays with her toys, seems to be constantly on guard & seems very unhappy.

the two dogs are like chalk & cheese personality wise - extrovert & introvert.

now here's the dilemma, a family who live opposite have shown a genuine interest in nova & know about huskies.

i love nova & don't want to give her up but i am fearful that akira will withdraw even further into a more depressive/unhappy state as time goes on.

since its only a week perhaps i'm not allowing enough time?

anyone had a similar problem or can advise?

many thanks

roberta

Other than food how are they when they interact with each other? if all else is fine i'd have to wager that they are just getting use to being around each other.

seems you have tried seperateing them during meal time. but since akira doesn't seem to want to eat when you seperate them have you tryed useing different rooms, and maybe shutting the door... that may make her feel safer.

That's about all i can think of, unfortunately im not the most knowledgeable around here, but im sure val or someone will chime in with they're words of wisdom.

I don't have two huskies but I think Akira just needs time. Her whole world has been turned upside down and she has to adjust where she is in the pack. Its only been a week I really think that they need some more time to get to know each other. I don't think they'll ever be able to eat together, but that's not a big deal (I know lots of people who separate their dogs at food time.) There are gonna be squabbles and they have to work it out among themselves. She'll get better as time goes on and she gets used to having Nova around.

Not the situation, but the similarity is kind of comical. We have a Polm-Shuh Tzu Mix and my Husky, we thought Maya (the Husky) was going to be the aggressive one, but she just doesn't care about it, as where Ralph (the Polm), tries to growl and snip at Maya whenever she comes around while eating.

Please don't chastise me for this because I started another topic on the Cesar thing, but what I did with Ralph was a few "shhht"'s and he doesn't even mind her anymore. It is almost funny to watch them, Ralph has his bowl of smaller dog kibble and Maya has adult dog kibble and Ralph will come over to her bowl and start eating and Maya will backup and walk over to his bowl and do the same. This will go on for about 3 - 4 times at each feeding. There is absolutely no aggression between them as they do it.

Just my 2 cents, not saying I am right or wrong, just seems OK for now with me.

--- FYI We do buy them the same brand of food, All natural stuff that is like a million dollars a bag or so... I can't recall the name of it until I look again, but it is supposed to be the top grade stuff from the Vet. Also the Vet said just watch their bowl movements for runny. But for the past 2 weeks it has been fine.

I would separate them In completely different rooms, if the resident dog is comfortable in a crate, feed her there. If not- definitely get a wall between them. Dogs need and deserve space while they eat. During times of "stress" or change it isn't uncommon for dogs to go off their food. I would try to work on building their relationship. Walk. Walk a lot. Whenever I bring a new dog (foster or perm) we always meet at a park, come home and take a big group walk. After that I let them all in the backyard together and then into the house. But the more we walk together, the better they get.

I would give it at least 2 weeks of really integrating before deciding one way or the other. My Aussie is uber emotional and gets upset when a new dog comes home. Within a few days of our walk routine he's over it and back to normal. Some dogs are very sensitive to things like that.

You are lucky nova will eat- Delilah wouldn't eat anything but cheez its the first week I had her.


I do chance anything with two and they are either in crates or separated by a gate.

mbarnard0429 wrote:

You are lucky nova will eat- Delilah wouldn't eat anything but cheez its the first week I had her.


I do chance anything with two and they are either in crates or separated by a gate.

so are you having problems?

akira rarely eats out of her dish & i mostly have to hand feed her packets of roast beef that is costing me a fortune - sometimes she can go days without eating.

thanks all for your replies - didn't want to overload my original post but i had both pups to the vet on tuesday - akira apparently is going through a "false pregnancy" & he recommended neutering within the next 2 mths - she is also about 17 lbs heavier than nova.

nova is a live wire wants to play (starting with ear biting that really annoys akira) they do play but akira would never initiate it & just doesn't seem interested.

i really love both dogs but don't know what to do for the best - i wondering if akira's "false pregnancy" is part of the issue?

arooroomom wrote:

I would separate them In completely different rooms, if the resident dog is comfortable in a crate, feed her there. If not- definitely get a wall between them. Dogs need and deserve space while they eat. During times of "stress" or change it isn't uncommon for dogs to go off their food. I would try to work on building their relationship. Walk. Walk a lot. Whenever I bring a new dog (foster or perm) we always meet at a park, come home and take a big group walk. After that I let them all in the backyard together and then into the house. But the more we walk together, the better they get.

I would give it at least 2 weeks of really integrating before deciding one way or the other. My Aussie is uber emotional and gets upset when a new dog comes home. Within a few days of our walk routine he's over it and back to normal. Some dogs are very sensitive to things like that.

agree walking together is what sealed it for my two pups it was a way for them to get a feel for each other without the other one being in the others face all the time. The false pregnancy may be causing some behavior differences so I would wait to see if they get better after she is better, there's no time limit they're your neighbors if it doesn't get better in a few weeks then maybe think about rehoming her

No we have no issue.

False pregnancy won't hurt her and likely isn't attributed to the new dog. May I ask why she isn't spayed?

had another major skirmish tonight again started by little nova (the new one).

as i mentioned akira can't really be bothered playing but when she does "spar" she always gets the better of nova due to her size & easily tosses her in the air & pins her.

however, nova seems to be giving up on the "sparring" bit & is now getting akira to chase her - during this "play" every hair on nova's body (not just her hackles) is standing up - i don't know what to make of her body language - there is no baring of teeth?

regarding the food issue akira won't eat nova does - i found that akira for the first time cleaned her dish this evening when i went on my knee's & give each their dish by hand at the same time.