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I have 4 now had as many as 7 when doing alot of rescue..My young stud thinks he is alpha and takes on our rescue when ever he can no matter how much I discipline him..food we free choice and have 4 dishes but they all got to guard and bark and growl if someone approaches I stomp floor it is over but yes occassional fights but the stud starts in..one day he find barbed wire wrapped from his goodies to collar and he will settle.
They're working out their pecking order. That's natural. Once they have the issue resolved, everything will calm down. But if you interfer by handling it incorrectly, you could cause thise to be an ongoing problem.
Your alpha dog should always be fed, petted, groomed, etc.-----first! If you're opening the door to let them out, your alpha goes out----first! If you're taking them for a ride in the car, your alpha gets in the car------first! You do not undermine the alpha dog's authority or the alpha dog will take it out on the other two dogs to put them in their place. (As the alpha ages, the pecking order will change but that's for them to decide, not you.)
You also need to feed them in separate areas. Our dogs' dishes are placed on opposite sides of the kitchen island where they can't see each other. They both have to sit and the alpha (the Lab) dog's dish is placed down first, then I walk around the island with the submissive (beagle/basset who is really passive agressive LOL) dog's dish.
It's very likely your one dog was growling at the other dog because you fed them in the wrong order. Or he's just trying to let the other one know he's boss.
Whoever told you to let them know it's not acceptabe behavior is wrong. You need to let dogs work out their pecking order. If you interfer, the alpha dog will view it as your taking the lower order dog's side. That will perpetuate the problem.
I'm sorry but this is something you just need to let them figure out for themselves! The more you try to "fix" things, the worse things can become.
You need to understand the pecking order in your pack and make sure you acknowledge that pecking order appropriately.
Everyone is giving great advice. But why not feed them in their crates! They would be more relaxed than when they feel they need to protect their food. Esp with the history of your latest.
I have two rescues a JRT and a Corgi, I ALWAYS feed in their crates, it's their safe haven and it's something positive about the crate.
Nowadays, when the food comes out they are heading for their crates and waiting for their food. I don't even close the crate doors anymore, each has their own space so there are no issues.
They have the run of the house for the rest of the time.
How crazy, Portia and Hef starting going at each other today because of food!!!Like Brooklyn and Jayda!!!This is the 2nd time it happened. First time was when we first got him, but I was really surprised today!!!I started yelling at them and they stopped. So, I put their bowls on the opposite sides...I think that happened because Portia has always been an Alpha dog, but now, Hef wants to become one too!!!He is always competing with her!!!
They're working out their pecking order. That's natural. Once they have the issue resolved, everything will calm down. But if you interfer by handling it incorrectly, you could cause thise to be an ongoing problem.
Your alpha dog should always be fed, petted, groomed, etc.-----first! If you're opening the door to let them out, your alpha goes out----first! If you're taking them for a ride in the car, your alpha gets in the car------first! You do not undermine the alpha dog's authority or the alpha dog will take it out on the other two dogs to put them in their place. (As the alpha ages, the pecking order will change but that's for them to decide, not you.)
You also need to feed them in separate areas. Our dogs' dishes are placed on opposite sides of the kitchen island where they can't see each other. They both have to sit and the alpha (the Lab) dog's dish is placed down first, then I walk around the island with the submissive (beagle/basset who is really passive agressive LOL) dog's dish.
It's very likely your one dog was growling at the other dog because you fed them in the wrong order. Or he's just trying to let the other one know he's boss.
Whoever told you to let them know it's not acceptabe behavior is wrong. You need to let dogs work out their pecking order. If you interfer, the alpha dog will view it as your taking the lower order dog's side. That will perpetuate the problem.
I'm sorry but this is something you just need to let them figure out for themselves! The more you try to "fix" things, the worse things can become.
You need to understand the pecking order in your pack and make sure you acknowledge that pecking order appropriately.
Thanks so much for the post! I don't have time to read the link you posted right now because I have to let the dogs out and get to bed, but I will definitely check that out first thing in the morning! I do have some questions though, if you don't mind... First of all, as far as just letting them work it out, exactly how do I do that? I completely understand the whole pack order thing, but there is no way I'm just going to sit back and watch two of my dogs seriously hurt each other. I'm sure you don't mean to do that, but saying just let them work it out sounds like I need to just let them fight.. That's why I'm asking. Also, as far as feeding them in separate areas, we already do that. We feed Brooklyn on one side of the dining room and we feed Destiny and Jayda on the opposite side. Destiny and Jayda are fed at separate ends of the same wall and they have a large cabinet in between them. There is also a table and chairs in between Brooklyn and Destiny and Jayda. Brooklyn is about 10 feet or so away from the girls and they have their backs to each other, and the girls are probably about 5 or 6 feet away from each other. Should they be more separated than that? I fed them their dinner in their crates and that seemed to work very well, but then again, what we have been doing has always worked very well until last night. Anyway, I'm sure these are questions that can be answered by checking out the link you posted, but I just figured I'd ask. Again, thanks so much for the post and I will definitely check out the link tomorrow!
I will give you rep. points as soon as it will let me! It says I have to spread the love first.
It explains much better what I've been trying to say.
You need to make it clear to the new dog that the oldest dog is the alpha.
The article explains how you go about that.
I did go a head and look over this link real quick.. I was confused about this a bit, I was assuming that Brooklyn would not respect my husband and I like he does now if we started to treat him differently. I guess when I was reading your post and you kept talking about Brooklyn being the alpha dog, I was taking that the wrong way. I was thinking, well I though my husband and I were supposed to be alpha. It's a little confusing because you hear so many different things from so many different people, even the professionals, and each one will swear the other is wrong, you know? As I said in my original post, I have owned many dogs of many different breeds. I have no problem at all with the training, socializing and establishing my dominance, but I have never had to do deal with dogs establishing dominance, so I have a lot to learn! It's good that I'm learning this now, instead of when they are all three full grown I guess! lol! Thanks again for all of your help!
First of all, as far as just letting them work it out, exactly how do I do that? I completely understand the whole pack order thing, but there is no way I'm just going to sit back and watch two of my dogs seriously hurt each other. I'm sure you don't mean to do that, but saying just let them work it out sounds like I need to just let them fight.. That's why I'm asking.
First of all, often the fighting sounds worse than it really is. Secondly, if you absolutely MUST get involved, the article states that you should reprimand the dog that is in the lower pecking order even if the more alpha dog starts the fight. That keeps the balance of the pack pecking order in place.
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Originally Posted by PitBullMommie1206
Also, as far as feeding them in separate areas, we already do that. We feed Brooklyn on one side of the dining room and we feed Destiny and Jayda on the opposite side. Destiny and Jayda are fed at separate ends of the same wall and they have a large cabinet in between them. There is also a table and chairs in between Brooklyn and Destiny and Jayda. Brooklyn is about 10 feet or so away from the girls and they have their backs to each other, and the girls are probably about 5 or 6 feet away from each other. Should they be more separated than that?
They can still see each other. Plus, having the dishes facing so they can't see if someone is coming up from behind them might be making them more nervous. I'd make sure they couldn't see one another because of a wall or a full piece of furniture is inbetween them, but have their dishes placed so they could see if another dog comes around the corner.
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Originally Posted by PitBullMommie1206
I fed them their dinner in their crates and that seemed to work very well......
Return to doing that if it worked. Make sure you place the dishes down in pecking order---alpha first, etc.
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Originally Posted by PitBullMommie1206
....but then again, what we have been doing has always worked very well until last night.
If they straighten out their pecking order, it will stop. You might have been giving this new dog too much attention. You almost have to ignore the new dogs at first. The alpha dog needs to know that you recognize him/her as the alpha dog or he/she will take it out on the new dog.
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Originally Posted by PitBullMommie1206
.... Anyway, I'm sure these are questions that can be answered by checking out the link you posted, but I just figured I'd ask. Again, thanks so much for the post and I will definitely check out the link tomorrow!
The link will provide some important information. It's not as inclusive as I would have liked. I'll let you know if I find something that's more detailed. At least the link validates what I'm saying. I studied up on this quite a few years ago. Plus, I have a girlfriend who had wolf as her alpha dog and a bunch of mixed-breeds. She truly had to do it right because she had a wolf in the house. She just had the wolf put to sleep after 15 years, but throughout that time she managed her pack very well and without signfiicant incident.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PitBullMommie1206
I will give you rep. points as soon as it will let me! It says I have to spread the love first.
That reminds me, I need to start spreading some love too! I'll do that tomorrow morning!
Well, the Six Rottweiler Woman weighs in.....I have a female that came to us extremely underweight, every bone showing, and she doesn't do food guarding or get aggressive, she just swallows everything whole! She's through long before anyone else and sort of paces around....one word and she drops her head and goes and gets her bowl and carries it into the other room like she expects it to refill on it's own.
All of mine are fed in the same room - the kitchen - except for the blind boy. I feed him in the laundry room because he wouldn't know if anyone was headed for his bowl. Because he can't see, he's probably the worst guarder I've got. The mutt gets fed right off the kitchen in an extra mudroom because he's a little guy and very submissive - if someone even looked like they wanted his food he'd just slink off (good move, Clancey...!)
The other four are fed within 5 feet of each other - I have a senior that is 15 1/2 years old that could be easily overpowered but no one messes with The Queen. They are all fed in the same order, in the same spot. When I start filling the bowls, they start gravitating toward their appointed place on the planet to get food.
Sounds like there's a definite pecking order and someone isn't playing right - have you thought about just feeding them in their respective crates? Might make things easier - and PBM, what I am going to say is not popular but it helped us regain sanity in our household when our dog that was pulled from the fighting pit came along and wanted to kick everyone's butt for no reason whatsoever....get a 42" cattle prod. There is NO WAY one human can break up a large dog fight. Theoretically it should never happen - yes, you should be the pack leader, blah, blah, blah - but there are pack "rules" we can't possibly know, and we don't know who is muttering under their breath at the other one. When the fighter came to us, we had some serious wars...he was quite the pistol britches...and my husband was VERY worried about me and 550 lbs. of Rottweilers if a fight should break out. A breeder with multiples told me to get the prod. And we have had it three years and had to use it ONE time - ONE, about a month after we got it. I popped one of them and they got a decent shock, yelped, turned around to start in again, and got zapped again......and that was the end of that. Apparently the one acting a fool told the others it just wasn't worth it. I don't mean put it on there and hold it - just a quick touch, and only if it's a fight that has gone out of your control.
There's too much power there to put yourself in the middle. As sissified as my dogs are, I am aware that there is a LOT of muscle and teeth and that when something happens to completely get one sideways, they may or may not hear what I have to say.
Like I said, we don't have to use it - but we make sure it is charged and it hangs in the pantry. I would not hesitate to use it again if the situation warranted.
Brooklyn is squaring off to show his butt. You can always put him on the NILIF plan and have him latched to you all the time on a short lead and correct him immediately if he gets tooty with the girls, but right now I would be very cautious. You can't in any way let him think he could get the upper hand or he will surely try....one thing you might do that I found handy when the dogs were younger was to keep a various assortment of pie tins everywhere.....the second someone looked froggy at the other one, or if there was a quick bark or growl, I'd slam that metal pie pan down on the closest surface - it got some attention QUICK! I find a loud noise will usually stop everything long enough for me to regain control of a bunch of grumblers, but I keep The Stick handy. I'm not going to let myself or any of my dogs get to th point of injury because I thought that was "mean".
People who have beagles really can't understand this one, although I wouldn't want to be in the middle of a beagle fight. Any dog can inflict serious injury, but by virtue of the fact of the sheer size of our dogs and the fact that we have multiples, I think we have to be ever vigilant about staying in control. When I walk mine, the stick goes with us just in case another dog is out wandering and decides to act a fool. It doesn't permanently injure a dog, but it certainly gets their attention very quickly. After that first time, now all I have to do is walk toward the pantry muttering about The Stick and everyone certainly gets a new attitude in a heartbeat.
Again, not popular, but maybe necessary. It also gives you that extra measure of confidence - I don't know why, but having something bigger than me to use in case everything went south makes me more confident in my own ability to talk them down off the ledge before we have a problem.
Okay, bring it on.......that's probably too much information!
I was waiting for your post! I definitely wanted to hear what you had to say about this, I know you have some serious experience with dogs! It's also nice to get advice from someone that knows how scary it can be when breeds like ours get into it!
I want to start out by saying that we are getting a break stick tomorrow! Our dogs are wonderful, sweet, loving, friendly dogs, but they are a breed that was bred to fight dogs and they are way, way, way too good at it! If Brooklyn really wants to hurt one of the girls, I'm honestly not sure if we could get him of without having to seriously hurt him and that's the last thing I would want to do! He's my baby, my first child! lol! I just want to be safe, you know? If worse comes to worse, at least we will be able to get the apart safely without anyone getting hurt. I also completely see where your coming from with the cattle prod! It does sound horrible, but when you own large, strong breeds, and especially breeds that are very dog aggressive and were bred to fight other dogs to the death, it's probably a good thing to have around! I'm honestly not sure if I could ever bring myself to actually use it though! I love all three of my pups as if they were my children, but if it would save my dogs, I guess I could. I seriously doubt that it would ever get bad enough to actually have to use a cattle prod, or worse, a break stick.. At least, I really, really, really hope it would never get that bad, but I would much rather be safe and have those things, than just not be able to save my dog or dogs! "I'm not going to let myself or any of my dogs get to th point of injury because I thought that was "mean"." I agree 100%
I did feed them in their crates at dinner time and that is what we are going to do from now on. So, hopefully that will solve that! We are going to make sure to do everything with or for Brooklyn first, every single time, and I'm going to write down a schedule for everything, feedings, potty breaks, walks, individual play time, group play time, etc and stick to it! We have never really done everything for Brooklyn first like that. We will pet whoever is closest to us, things like that. Now, if all three of the dogs are standing by us wanting some attention, we do make sure to pet Brooklyn first, but if Jayda or Destiny are right next to us and Brooklyn isn't, we have never made it a point to get up, go pet Brooklyn and then come back and pet the girls. Also, when we go outside, Brookyln is always first out the door, after my husband and I though, and it has just always been like that. When Serg is home we walk all three of them together, but when it's just me, I put them all in their crates and walk Brooklyn then Destiny and then Jayda, and when I'm done with all three walks, they get let out of their crates. We have also always let Brooklyn out of his crate first, in the mornings and whenever we get home from going somewhere. I mean, it's not like we have no order in our house and it's not like our dogs aren't trained and don't know we are in charge. There is always room for improvement though and I love to learn new things, especially when it comes to my dogs.
One thing that I am kind of worried about, is that Brooklyn won't respect my husband and I as much if we do make it a point to basically put him on a pedestal. I'm also worried that our girls won't think that we care about them as much as we do Brooklyn. Well, I know dogs don't think like humans do and I know that they don't feel emotions the same way we do, but I'm just worried about all of that. How does it work with your dogs? Do you make it a point to do everything with and for the "top dog" first? Obviously all of your dogs respect you and know that your in charge. I also wanted to know if you just kind of let your dogs fight it out to establish their place in the pack? I do see where we need to let little things go so that they can establish their place, but I can't let my dogs kill each other! I don't want to make the "pit bull" breeds sound bad because they are not at all! They are some of the most stable, people-friendly breeds in existence, they are family breeds, but they were bred to be the absolute best at what they were bred to do.. fight animals, well, and be quality family companions! If I really just let them fight, I definitely wouldn't have three dogs anymore! I really do value your opinion, you obviously know what you are doing and you can truly understand my concerns. Thanks for all of your advice and if you have any more, please let me know!
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I don't have time to read the link you posted right now because I have to let the dogs out and get to bed, but I will definitely check that out first thing in the morning! I do have some questions though, if you don't mind... First of all, as far as just letting them work it out, exactly how do I do that? 
I completely understand the whole pack order thing, but there is no way I'm just going to sit back and watch two of my dogs seriously hurt each other. I'm sure you don't mean to do that, but saying just let them work it out sounds like I need to just let them fight.. That's why I'm asking. Also, as far as feeding them in separate areas, we already do that. We feed Brooklyn on one side of the dining room and we feed Destiny and Jayda on the opposite side. Destiny and Jayda are fed at separate ends of the same wall and they have a large cabinet in between them. There is also a table and chairs in between Brooklyn and Destiny and Jayda. Brooklyn is about 10 feet or so away from the girls and they have their backs to each other, and the girls are probably about 5 or 6 feet away from each other. Should they be more separated than that? I fed them their dinner in their crates and that seemed to work very well, but then again, what we have been doing has always worked very well until last night. Anyway, I'm sure these are questions that can be answered by checking out the link you posted, but I just figured I'd ask. 
Again, thanks so much for the post and I will definitely check out the link tomorrow! 
I really do value your opinion, you obviously know what you are doing and you can truly understand my concerns. 
