Yup, that's right.  Ami was in the family room, Z'ev was on the far side of the kitchen, laying down on the pad next to my chair.  Ami came to the kitchen door, poked his head over the barrier, happy, curious, quiet,

Turd gets up, walks across the room with deliberation and head butts Ami.

Ami is a saint and takes no offense.

I don't know if I've ever seen a head butt so I'm not sure if my perception would be correct but you don't think Z'ev might just be desperate to get Ami to play with him? Saint or not, I think if Ami would have perceived aggression (or just being a punk) from Z'ev, he would have reacted.

Ha! Zhukov does the same thing with Colby. If Colby is sitting next to me, Zhukov will comeover and use his head to push Colby away and then sit next to me. He does it just to get Colby away from me, cause for the most part, he shows no real interest in sitting on the couch with me until Colby sits next to me. If Colby resists, Zhukov can get pretty forceful with his big ole bony noggin.

Nope, pretty sure it would have been a bite without the muzzle. Ami can't figure out why little dude doesn't want to play. But he does respect Z'ev's space. Stands about 5 ft away, play bows, barks, bounces back...happy, invitation sort of bark. Z'ev either lights into Ami with that awful arrr arrr arrr or, he sits on the far side of me, peeking around my leg at Ami. But, you can tell he's really stressed. Panting hard, tight anxious look, clinging to me. Except when he's lunging at Ami.

Worst case of push me pull you I've ever seen.

Mark Grubbs wrote:

Ha!  Zhukov does the same thing with Colby.  If Colby is sitting next to me, Zhukov will comeover and use his head to push Colby away and then sit next to me.  He does it just to get Colby away from me, cause for the most part, he shows no real interest in sitting on the couch with me until Colby sits next to me.  If Colby resists, Zhukov can get pretty forceful with his big ole bony noggin.

That describes archer with Ami to a tee!  Tellin' you, Ami is a saint.  Maybe Mr Archer could teach Z'ev a thing or two... which is why they won't meat for a while.  That might require a vet visit.

You think you can set it up to where you can get a video of some interaction between Ami and Z'ev, Amy?

Jimmy, don't think that is possible at the moment... Z'ev goes nuts and our hands are full. I really think I pushed to fast on this. The prevailing wisdom is if the dog is reacting, then you've exceeded his anxiety threshold and I'm afraid i put my needs ahead of Z'ev's.

Either that or it's not fear driven but predatory. Which I sincerely hope not. That is another whole bball game.

Video would definitely help. If you had a tripod or something you could just mount it in the corner and go about your normal motions with them. Kenzi is a head biter. She runs up to keno, head butts him, then attempts to chew on his skull and pull his ears. It's how she gets him to play. Keno takes it. Kye, however, does not. He deals with her head butting but not the pawing and gnawing.

While I agree, Amy, that a vid would help I also have to say that your description of Z'ev continues to sound like uncertainty and fear to me.  
Standing behind Wayne and watching Ami sounds like reasonable, for a dog, concern.  Watching Ami through the gate / bars as Ami play bows certainly doesn't sound like aggression to me.  

To me it's an oddity.  Everyone assumes that dogs know how to play together and I've found that to not always be the case. Some dogs know how to play with people and have no idea how to play with another dog (pup removed early, raised by a single owner with little or no socialization); some dogs who are raised with their siblings, seemingly, know how to play with other dogs, but may be concerned when a human tries to play, again because of the socialization while they're young.

I have three who are all different!  Avalanche will play with anyone, human or dog - a guys just gotta have fun!  Sky, probably 3/4 Avalanches size will play with him but isn't too sure about how to play with me.  Sasha just has no concept of play at all.  She'll watch Sky and Avalanche play but has absolutely no concept of how to join them - most of the time she's just in the way.

Your description of the head butt, as Jenn describes, sounds like a physical request to play - an answer to Ami's play bow.

You have said in various ways that Z'ev is a handful - that you may have rushed things.  I've wondered about that, but as you type about him, he sounds like a boy who wants to behave but just isn't sure how to behave and isn't always comfortable.  Your comment of "if the dog is reacting ..." - and I'm not trying to be obtuse - of course he's reacting, in the past month he's had an astounding set of changes and he's responded to them - sometimes well, sometimes not so well but - as I read it - generally improving.  If you're uncomfortable with how he's responding, maybe it's time for you to take a break and leave things at the status quo for a few days - give him and you a chance to settle into this new environment.

Al - I know Z'ev is reacting - what I was trying to get at is, in general if a dog is reacting than that dog's anxiety threshold has been exceeded, as in a general learning principle. And, typically, the standard is to only advance to just under the comfort threshold, not exceed it. Unless going for flooding to desensitize A technique, for the most part, I don't like.

It may well be that Z'ev has no clue how to play. I'm holding judgement on that for the moment as he gets more uncrated time about the house - we'll see how he evolves. I know Ami really has a limited repertoire for playing with humans. Whether it is choice or mystery, I don't know...though I often get the sense, after he's attempted a few minutes that its disappointment..."you're not a dog..."

Z'ev really is an ideal dog for an adults only, single or couple, especially one who is highly structured, orderly, systematic. Z'ev settles into routine beautifully - out of crate (now on our sleep schedule, fortunately) sits for collar, leash and muzzle, waits by the door for release, walk, pee within 5 minutes, poop within 10 minutes, back home, sits outside crate and gets muzzle and leash removed, in the crate, breakfast than nap time for a couple hours. Sits for crate door to be open, gets his muzzle and leash, comes in the kitchen, checks things out, very content to sleep in one of 3 spots (on the bathmat I use to absorb Ami's water slobbers, on the little mat of towels beside my kitchen chair or beside me at the computer. Some dedicated training time. Out for long early evening walk, back to crate for dinner...sleeps in the crate all evening than a very late night short meander and pee...back to crate for midnight snack and sleep. I imagine, if he were an only dog, he would spend the evening laying beside someone's feet in front of the telly, computer, sitting in a chair reading. A rather sedate, ordered existence. He really wants to be with his human.

And, he walks beautifully. Real loose leash...not relative like Ami, as in Z'ev's leash actually hangs in a loop most of the time if I'm not practicing commands. Ami keeps a constant light tension interspersed with some freight train stuff that I correct.

I have seen no further aggression towards either Wayne or I, but...I have also tightly managed the possibilities. He also knows I will respond in no uncertain terms.

He is, however, a wiley one...our kitchen door to the laundry room does not shut fully. Ami? He will not breach even a partially open door from either side (he's done that, had door swing back and bump his feet so he ALWAYS waits at doors.) Archer? He will nose open a door going into a room. I can leave him in the kitchen and he won't try to open the door from the inside. Z'ev? Little rascal uses a very efficient, practiced paw to open the door into him to go out or nose to open door into a room. This morning, he was sleeping on the water slobber mat, I left the room to close the damper on the living room stove...on my way back there was Z'ev coming from the laundry room...by my chair, the newspaper is on the floor...next to the compost bucket waiting for dumping is a few pieces on the floor. But, I do have to say - I deliberately left the bucket there, when he sticks his nose in, I say no and he quietly backs up and goes on his way. He also found 2 pieces of kibble on the floor from Ami and I reached down under his nose, picked them up with no problem then gave them to him. Don't know if its just the muzzle or he's really having a change of emotional state.

And...the games begin. Ami is ringing the door bell. Z'ev is sleeping in the kitchen...

Whelp.  That answers that.

Took Z'ev out on long line.  Ami came around to play but before he even got there Z'ev lit into him in no uncertain terms.  And Ami returned like with like.  By the time I could haul Z'ev in on the long line, Ami had him pinned.

Even before we got out the door, Z'ev looked like he was out for bear - I wanted to go out a door without Ami waiting, Z'ev was just dragging his leash and was going from front door to back door with purpose - as in, there is an intruder and I will thwart him.  Also, outside, after I had them separated and Z'ev in a sit, I went to Ami and Z'ev came back with a vengeance suggestive of possessive guarding of human