Dog Park

"What you need to do is drain the puppy’s energy through exercise before it joins the older dog...If you exercise the puppy and allow the puppy to interact with dogs that match his state of mind before bringing him around the older dog, you’re not going to have a problem. He’s (older dog) not being aggressive; he’s just asking for his space. You are right. If you don’t provide right solution, he can teach the puppy to be aggressive with others dogs as a way to solve problems." --Cesar'sWay

This is what I read about a puppy interacting with an older dog, which is exactly what's happening in my home.  Sometimes I think Ralphie is too rough with Ollie but other times I think Ollie just doesn't like his high energy and simply wants to be left alone.  So this morning I took Ralphie to the dog park with the approval from my veterinarian.  I had a few concerns...Will he have a bad experience?   Is he too young?  As a puppy, can he catch something from the park?  Should I wait until he's older?  Well, I asked these questions at our vet appointment this week and the doc gave me thumbs up. 

Ralphie was a hit at the dog park!!  He went on the small-dog side (under 40 pounds). There were about 8 dogs there.  He was thee attention-getter!!  He played so nice!  He ran so much!  He met so many new friends!  He did bring excitement to the park not only to the other dogs, but the owners of the other dogs. They laughed at his silly Vizsla puppy antics.   After an hour of play, we went home, cleaned up and he's been a relaxed puppy all day.  Ollie is probably wondering what happened to him..."why isn't Ralphie  chasing me or pawing me?" LOL
To sum it up...Ralphie is happy today and Ollie is happy today!  Peaceful.