You can continue to try & let them get their pack order straight, but personally, I would opt for the emotional health of the older dog. Went through something similar here - had two dogs, one died, eventually tried to introduce another dog to my female, Star. but she is the Queen of the Universe, and the other dog started to annoy her. (took her food away, peed on her house, knocked her out of the way all the time) She got extremely withdrawn & moody - not like her usual outgoing self. She started having hot spots again & was very nervous. She refused to get into a car with him. She finally bite him in the face one day after he'd been here a month... I returned him to the shelter once he healed up. He was very successfully rehomed as an only dog. We did finally find a dog whose personality (submissive) worked well with her, and now they are inseparable. Peace is bliss. Just like with people, not everyone gets along, even though we'd like them to.
Bookmarks