Latte is a harsh player. Any suggestions?

[sipsi]

When she meets a dog, at first she is like a submissive angel. After a couple of minutes when the play time starts, she goes crazy. She constantly growls and snaps at the dog. At some point I need to pull her off the dog (and she is deaf to recalls) This morning, the dog she played with was a small one. She was so harsh to that little pooch. How can I control her?

[ZoeysMommy]

First thing, never allow her to play with a dog that arent a good match. No small breeds, no old dogs, etc. It isnt fair to the other dog. She needs playmates who can hold there own with her. im talking about size and temperament. Zoey was not a rough puppy, she was and still is submissive and gentle and she was bullied relentlessly as a pup, she couldnt hold her own with rough playing pups, it was to much for her. She played best with pups and dogs who were similar. She used to go to doggie day care when she was younger and my little wimpy girl was always in the small dog area when i picked her up. She loves little dogs best

If she is overwhelming the other dog, pull her off and let her calm down. Its your call if you feel that playtime is no longer fun. No one likes a bully and its up to you to control her

[Tanya]

agree with the above. not all dogs are good play partners. a large breed puppy and a small breed generally don't make great partners (and a teenage high energy bigger breed is even worse). There are obviously exeptions but generally speaking...

seperate and redirect right away (if she won't redirect leave).

Having some adult dogs that are balanced and can teach her appropriate VS innapropriate play that works best. Dogs are better teachers. Otherwise you have to quickly interrupt. if she goes back at the same level, interrupt and make her relax (you will need a relax cue, or some relaxing techniques) and either try again or just redirect. If it's a private play date leash her up for a break or remove her from the situation. At the park part redirect to another play partner (even if that is you) and if she won't then you may have to leave for a walk around the block and some obedience adn then try again.

ETA: another thing is to work on training a gentle cue to bring down her play style. it's something I need to work on with Penny but am a tad lost on HOW to train it haha.

Oh and also, having her run out some of the energy before she does the paly dates with smaller dogs can help too. takes the edge off.

[sipsi]

Thanks to both of you. I Always supervise her when playing with older or smaller dogs. If she starts to play hard I pull her away and wait until she calms down. Unfortunately we don't have puppy classes here and we have to do this with the neighborhood dogs. We haven't met any young puppies yet. We've been searching in other neighborhoods as well