Who are your dog's friends? (And, I don't mean humans...)

Dakota doesn't seem to have many friends, she's very alpha. She's pretty much too old to play but she will pick a dog or two at the dog park to get riled up with and try to engage in play. It's very short lived though due to her arthritis. She does love a friend's dog named Ranger, but she has corrected Ranger one too many times and now he just gives way to her no matter what. He turns his head when she tries to play with him.

Neiko on the other hand, hasn't met a dog he doesn't like. His very best friends though are Molly (sisters corgi) and Spirit (brother's corgi). They are all about the same age so they have grown up together. When they leave, after a visit, Neiko whines like he did the first time I took him home from his litter. He LOVES those 2 corgis like they are litter mates.

He also likes Koda, a mix he knows from the dog park. And Cooper - a buddy from training class and another Molly (Woodle) from training class. When he sees these dogs he lights up with excitement.

It's weird isn't it how they pick their special friends (and special enemies)?

We don't have dogs that we see over and over on a regular basis here, but in Maryland there were a multitude of neighbor dogs that could hang out together. Of all those dogs, Conrad had one very very special friend, a giant brindle dane/gsd/greyhound mutt thing named Sam. Conrad is a very social dog and he enjoys the company of other dogs (as long as he's not on a leash!) but Sam was just...special to him. Sam's golden retriever sister Marilyn was a friend and all but not a BFF like Sam was. When those folks moved away they actually offered to adopt Marilyn out to us as for some reason she'd never seemed part of their family, but we declined. But if they'd made the same offer with Sam? We'd be the proud owners of a giant brindle great dane/gsd/greyhound thing right now. Those two were just inseparable and Conrad got really depressed for a while when they moved away. Even Marlowe isn't as special to Conrad as Sam was.

Conrad also had his Nemesis where we used to live too. This enormous overgrown outside-dog chocolate lab named Harley who lived next door. They didn't get in constant fights, but they had a couple humdingers over the years and you could tell that they just didn't like each other very much. They'd hang out if there was nothing better to do and no other dogs around, but it was always kind of grudgingly. The first time I'd ever been seriously bitten by a dog was trying to break up a fight between those two. Meanwhile, our first dog Ananda just looooooved Harley. They used to take turns standing around in front of the front door humping each other with big stupid grins on their faces. They never had so much as a harsh word to say to one another and spent blissful days running around on the beach together. There's no accounting for taste I guess.

Jaia and B'asia like each other. They're best of buds. They like Cara and Mia, but they don't share the bond that exists between them. They never really showed any interest in other dogs, even at the dog park. Cara and Mia like people. They aren't really into other dogs, either...

Hmmm... Not surprisingly, our dogs are as anti-social as we are. 

My dogs LOVE each other. Teddi is having serious issues do to lack of contact with her sisters while she is recovering. All of my girls are friendly dogs and want to see and play with EVERYONE we see at the park or on walks. Belle had a special friend as a pup, a golden named Tyrna, who was born on the same day as Belle. They still play at the park but it isn't as intense as it once was. Teddi has a boyfriend!!! My friend has an un nuetered male golden named Majic. Majic has "issues" with other dogs, mainly he is TERRIFIED of them. So one day we went over to Majics house with my dogs. We knew my dogs would be un impressed with Majic's nerves. By the end of the day, Maj was playing with all the dogs BUT he went head over heels for Teddi. Whenever we go someplace together, obedience class, dock jumping, Majic and Teddi DRAG over to one another. We have created monsters. Teddi is spayed, and Majic has never gotten rude, he just can't stop sniffing her or touching her. She loves it, my dog is a harlot! So Majic is cured about other dog fear when it comes to my dogs.

Coke - everydog!

Kenya - Coke

 

LOL

 

Really though, I've only had Kenya 4 months and Coke 1 month (not even).  In general, Coke loves other dogs.  He is a great playmate because he likes to play rough, but also takes the submissive role (he will roll for the other dog).  He is not too pushy or hyper.  He doesn't bark or lunge at other dogs, just walks up to them, sniffs them, and gives them a head toss or play bow when he's ready to go. 

Kenya I'm not that sure about.  She's not dog aggressive at all, but can be quite nervous around dogs that are really overbearing, as in, they charge up to her and bark at her to play.  She doesn't "read" over-exuberant dogs very well and can get a little snippy and defensive.  She's also very herdy, so if more than one dog is playing, I only turn her loose if I know the other dogs don't care or will just be herdy back to her.  She has always lived with other dogs though (shepherds mostly).  When we are training or walking along, she's not one to pull towards another dog as long as I ask for attention.

There is a young pit bull next door that always gets loose and both of my dogs play well with him.  He charges right over and jumps on them.  Kenya will puff up and get nervous at first, but she's 2-3 times his size and after 30 seconds of sniffing, she will get in on the action. 

Sasha only has a few doggie friends - she has issues so we don't mingle with unknown dogs.

She's been great friends with 3 female labs (2 in one home, 1 in another). They were all friendly and playful but not overbearing, which is important for Sasha.  One of them was ultra submissive, and was a dream friend! She's known the 2 that live together since she was a puppy, and the third is so easy going there is nothing to dislike.

She's also friends with a German Shepherd and JRT mix owned by a friend.  Once again, she's known these two dogs since she was 3 months old. She is submissive to both.

 

 

Ooh, the talk of friendships among dogs. I love it!

Having a large number of dogs in the home, I have the privelege of watching different types of relationships develop between them, and how complex those relationships are.

Gaci and Shimmer are quite good friends. They snuggle together, they play together, they wrestle together. They groom each other. They sleep together. They do argue from time to time, but what friends don't?

Tequilah, the Shih Tzu mix, had no real friends until Tikkle (the Pap) came along. Tequilah has always viewed herself as being too good for any other dogs (she was fond of cats though). She does not like our Mini Schnauzers. Every single Mini that comes through the home will get one proverbial nip from her, enough for a good squeal, to let them know that she's not friendly, so don't try to be friends. And then they live in harmony. *G* It's not so much that she dislikes them, as she'll sleep next to them and she coexists well, but rather that she's indifferent and has no desire to play with them.

Contrast that to when Tikkle came into our home - it was love at first site for her. Why, we were not sure as we didn't know how she'd take a new dog. But the second she saw her, Tequilah was in utmost heaven. She learned to PLAY once again, it almost brought tears to our eyes, watching her play with another dog. Tikkle actually had to teach her "how" to play, actually, as she hadn't played with other dogs for a good eight years or so. It was amazing, and it was good for Tikkle too because she was so tiny at the time and had to be careful around the Mini's. I actually took a video of when Tikkle was smaller of the two of them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nx_7werZZSE

I warn you now, this video is just about impossible to watch without the possibility of giggles, or even outright bursts of laughter. So consider yourself warned if you are attempting to drink any form of liquids. Their mannerisms are to die for (and the part where Tikkle runs FACE first into a wall is America's Funniest Videos-worthy).

Let's see, other relationships.....Zipper is the guy that everybody loves, and who loves everybody. I'm constantly surprised at the relationship between our three males, because of the simple fact that they are all intact and get along marvelously. Oskar and Poker had a tiny rough patch once Poker developed hormones,but it was only noise and stancing and it seems they have gotten over that. Zipper LOVES his guy friends though. They play like no tomorrow, and when we sent Oskar to his breeder for three weeks to be shown, Zipper very visibly missed him. And even more visibly celebrated when he came back home to us. It was too cute. So the relationship between the three boys is quite strong itself.

Umm....Remi and Phoenix aren't really "friends" with any of the other dogs in particular. They are two of the oldest (Kamara is older than Phoenix though), and they basically spend their days lazing around. Remi is more the "mom" of the group.....she is the official butt-licker (it's the lasting mothering in her from when she had litters....she really thinks it's HER job to clean all the butts, especially when girls are in heat), and she keeps the peace in the home. She will break up any quibbles, protect new pups in the house by discussing "issues" with any rough-playing dogs, and disciplining as necessary, and generally doesn't take any cr*p from anybody. She is a great mediator and often times we leave situations up to her to fix. Her communication skills with the dogs in the home are amazing.

Kamara loves playing with Shimmer in the house. They have great wrestle sessions, lots of noise and bitey face. They don't sleep together much, and don't groom each other much, but they are good for games of play. Outside, Kamara will play with anybody who will play with her, especially Oskar for a great game of tug-o-war, or any of the pups she can entice to chase her.

Umm....Kaper, Xaria, and Poker all grew up together (Xaria is a month older than Poker, who is a month older than Kaper....Xaria was bought from a Canadian breeder, Poker is our Czech import, and Kaper is a homebred girl), so they naturally formed a good friendship with each other. They play together likely most out of all of them. Kaper loves to play with anybody who will play with her, though (even Tequilah will tolerate her, and hasn't given her a nip yet, which surprises us), but overall these three are what I would definitely call "friends" in doggy terms.

Kizmet is a bit of a loner. She likes the other dogs but doesn't really have any close ties to them. She much prefers taking all of "her" toys up on to "her" chair and taking pride in playing with them all in sequence. She's also likely the most laid-back of them all and basically goes along with what everybody else is doing (except during suppertime, during which she reigns dictator of dogs over proximity to the food closet....or so she believes).

I'm not sure here if I've covered everybody, but that's a glimpse into friendships for our dogs. Our dogs meet a lot of other dogs, some of them more than others, but they don't routinely play with any strange dogs since they have so many dogs to play with on their own turf, they think of those guys as their friends. They don't really have any dog-friends that reside outside of the home.

I love this question, because I am forever trying to figure out why Wes loves some dogs, doesn't care about others and dislikes others...

Wes's best friends are a Wirehaired Pointing Griffon (male) and a Husky (female) - he loves to play, play, play with both (they are 2 of the regular morning crowd of about 5 or 6 that play together).  He is a big fan of chasing, bitey face, bitey neck and very rough wrestling.  These particular dogs love it as well... 

With the Griffon, they are roughly the same age and both male, Wes is slightly smaller and they are best buds in that they always need to be involved in the same games although not necessarily wrestling eachother, they greet eachother very enthusiastically whenever they see eachother (at the park and on separate playdates) and our walker, who often has both dogs together has reported that when they are away from their owners and on playgroups or whatever, they act very much like packmates (will protect eachother from a perceived threat etc.)... With the Husky, she is a little younger and more submissive (although she gives as good as she gets when it comes to chasing and wrestling).  Wesley's default position when he is unsure what he wants to be doing is to hump her.  We don't allow it, although she doesn't mind at all - he will mount her back end or her head, one of the humans will call him off, and then the two will take off on a game of chase, wrestling or bitey face - very rough...  It does seem like all the male dogs at the park think that this particular husky is their dog and their primary playmate...  Luckily the broader group (which also includes a male Golden and a male Husky and maybe another one or two dogs who are around less often) all gets along and they share her very nicely... 

It just so happens that all of Rory's BFF's are boys who like to play rough and get beat up by girl dogs, lol!

Her best BF is Primo, he is my cousin's dog and I can tell she likes him most becuse she shares her bed with him and lets him cuddle with me........

 

Her 2nd BFF is Barron, a stoic regal young man whom lives next door and she plays with most often. He is allowed in the yard, allowed to drink her water but not allowed in the house otherwise she follows him a round all antsy like "dont my bed or smell my stuff"

 

This is Shasta....the only female she loves

Lastly this is Deisel her doggie-in law. He's  a old grump of a guy but he loves her

 

schleide

I love this question, because I am forever trying to figure out why Wes loves some dogs, doesn't care about others and dislikes others...

What would you answer if I asked that very same question to you? Why do you love some people, don't care about others, and dislike others? I think you would find that your answer likely matches the same reasons some dogs are that way. ;-)

Sally--When she went to the dog park her best friend was Rocky, a *very* dominant Akita/GSD mix that doesn't get along with hardly anyone.  Sally would let that dog do anything to her and would run gleeful circles of joy whenever she would get to see him.  According to Rocky's owner Sally was one of the only dogs that Rocky would share his water with--it was quite the romance.....She also liked a GSP named Baron, and an English pointer named Abby.  She seems to be attracted to dogs that like to run.  Now Jack is her bestest doggy friend and they run and play like idiots....

Jack--He likes most dogs, but *really* likes playing with the girls.  We have not had the chance to play with many dogs at the park repeatedly yet.  His last playmate was a teeny weeny schnoodle who just loved him--she would get up on her hind legs and lick his face after they played.  When we lived in our apartment our neighbor had a male black lab named Rollins that Jack adored.  The only dog that he's come across that he really does not seem to like is my friends St Bernard.  For some reason Jack just does not like him and tried very hard to ignore him.  Louie would bounce around and Jack would just be like "Yeah---I think I hear my mom calling--gotta go."
 

When Penny was younger, she was great friends with an intact male Bichon that lived down the road. He was about her size and she was at that age where she wanted to play with everyone. The corgi that convinced me to get a corgi was her bestest pal for many years. They played a bit, but the other corgi was pretty lazy and they just hung out together. I'll never forget the day Penny's corgi friend invited herself home with us. I suspect Penny invited her. She copped it from her human owner for disobeying orders, but she was adamant she was allowed to come home with us.

These days her favourite dog is a female retired greyhound. She seems to think it's especially cool that she can stand directly underneath this dog, and that she can't quite reach her butt to sniff it when she really stretches. I think she likes the greyhound because she's a quiet, calm dog that never seems worried about anything. She doesn't actually interact with dogs much, but she clearly loves canine company deeply. Penny is always the one that makes us all stop and wait for the greyhound to catch us up so we can all walk together.

She gets on well with Jill and Pyry, but Pyry is a bit of a loner and doesn't often care about canine company, and Jill annoys her sometimes. Penny will play with Jill, and loves to go swimming and running with her, but at close quarters, she gets grumpy with her fast. I think it's because Jill is a bit socially inept and is always stepping on Penny or whacking her in the face with her tail, or getting in her way. And Penny growls at Jill the moment Jill brings a rope toy anywhere near me. She's like "We don't want to play, Jill! We're trying to love on each other, here!". I've seen her start growling as soon as Jill makes a move towards that rope toy.

Well I feel lucky in that Bugsy LOVES all other dogs and plays differently with all of them

His absolute best friend is his girlfriend Bella a GR.  They are the same age (2) and due to my friendship with their family they have grown up together.  She is SUPER submissive and can have difficulty playing with other dogs unless Bugsy is there.  They are the best dog buddies either family has witnessed.  We try and get them together once a week for a playdate.  She's the pool hog in my sig

He is also very good buds with Cody a 6 yr old super mellow, giant GR.  He lives across the cul de sac and they have played since the day we brought Bugs home.  This family's college age son has gotten a puppy, Ace, who he brings home every few weeks and Bugsy acts like its HIS pup and the pup loses interest in Cody and runs across to play with Bugs.

One other dog really stands out and that was a wire haired pointing griffon, Harry,  who was just slightly older than Bugs.  They were staying at the same B&B we were and these two were thick as thieves instantly.  The couple had his older sister but she wasn't as interested.  The 3 would play but the 2 boys though were something else.  They had a very similar personality and energy.  In the two days we were there they disappeared several times and had to be constantly tracked as they would just jog off down the river or after a critter etc.  They would have been great fodder for a Disney film

And there is Jake the welsh terrier (5 yrs old) who we hike with at times, Jake's not into playing much but they are great on the trails together.

And Poppy the grumpy old Westie who won't play with other dogs but loves to bark and nip at Bugs who proceeds to do zoomies around him and clearly likes riling him up.  They have this strange wrestling that they do which is sooo funny.  

We just had Grady the 3 yr old lab here and once again their play was different than others but they were happy dogs.  Bugsy looked for him for two days after they left  - silly boy!

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Cows!