Introducing a new Puppy to the family...

[benny3008]

In a week i will be picking up my new jack russell puppy (6 weeks old), He will be living at my sisters house, she already has a 10 month old jack russell but we a re a bit concerned about introducing the new pup to the current one, Sam (Current Pup) is very anxious around other dogs and when he sees another dog, he barks constantly and no matter how much we discipline him he still seems to be very scared of the other dogs, if another dog comes near him, he will have a distant sniff of it and then back off and in most cases growl or bark, we think this problem may link back to the a puppy party he went to when he was younger, he was singled out a this puppy party and was chased by another puppy and ever since he has not been one to mix with other dogs as he feels threatened by them (as far as we know). one of my sisters boyfriends relatives also has a jack russell, when they first come together (for a walk or whatever) sam is very protective but after 5 minutes or so, he is fine and will happily play with him. I am hoping it will be the same with the new pup but im worried that it might not be. Sam gets alot of attention from everyone around him and i know that when the new pup comes he will get very jealous but he will still get just as much attention which is what i want, i dont want sam to get pushed out by the new pup but i know he will feel as though he is being left out. Does anyone have any suggestions of how to go about introducing the new pup as i am very worried that it's all going to go wrong!
TIA

[jules77]

Personally, I feel 6 weeks is too young for a puppy to leave its siblings, it should be at least 8 weeks. I would introduce them with the older current puppy on a lead and dont leave them alone together until you are sure Sam isnt going to intimidate the baby, which could be several months.

[Pollypeptide]

Agree with Jules. Puppies should not leave their mother until they are AT LEAST eight weeks old. We got our pup when he was 10 weeks old. Introduced him to other dogs after he'd had all his inoculations. Needs to be done carefully at first but as you say Sam is OK with the boyfriend's dog after five minutes I'm sure he will be fine with the new puppy. Meeting other dogs and learning to socialise is essential, so this would be a good start for Sam. Hope it goes well.

[benny3008]

Thanx or your answers, i did wonder whether 6 weeks was too early but the women who is selling the pup to me has sold pups before at this age and had no problems so im sure all will be fine, we will be at home 24/7 with the pup so he will get alot of attention and TLC. :-)

[jules77]

Any 'responsible' breeder would wait to sell a puppy when it is 8 weeks old. I am sure he will be fine physically, but mentally by remaining with the rest of the litter until eight weeks old, he will get a bit longer time to learn about being a dog and how to act with other dogs before becoming a part of a human family.

[Nosha123]

doesnt sound like a responsible dog breeder if you ask me!
Puppies can develop behavioural problems if they leave their litter too early... maybe even be more aggressive than they normally would have.
Is it worth it?