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I have a 6 year old french/english bulldog and a 2 year old boxer. Both unfixed males. I should have gotten them both fixed a long time ago but just never did. They are getting fixed in 2 days. We obviously have had the bulldog first but things have been fine with them both being together up until this last month. They used to sleep together and play together. We used to be able to leave them alone int he house unsupervised. There was occasionally a squabble over food but nothing resulting in injury. They have gotten in quite a few altercations over the last couple of weeks. This last weekend our bulldog got some pretty good bites so we have kept them separated since then. It always starts with the stares and then they lunge at eachother. Our bulldog has always been the more dominant dog between the two but the younger dog always used to submit or let him have his way up until now. I'm just not sure what to do. My husband is most definitly 'top dog' in the house and its obvious that both dogs know it.
Help!! I am so worried that they will never get along again and it is so heart breaking that we can't all be together in the house or backyard anymore.
I have a 6 year old french/english bulldog and a 2 year old boxer. Both unfixed males. I should have gotten them both fixed a long time ago but just never did. They are getting fixed in 2 days. We obviously have had the bulldog first but things have been fine with them both being together up until this last month. They used to sleep together and play together. We used to be able to leave them alone int he house unsupervised. There was occasionally a squabble over food but nothing resulting in injury. They have gotten in quite a few altercations over the last couple of weeks. This last weekend our bulldog got some pretty good bites so we have kept them separated since then. It always starts with the stares and then they lunge at eachother. Our bulldog has always been the more dominant dog between the two but the younger dog always used to submit or let him have his way up until now. I'm just not sure what to do. My husband is most definitly 'top dog' in the house and its obvious that both dogs know it.
Help!! I am so worried that they will never get along again and it is so heart breaking that we can't all be together in the house or backyard anymore.
Keep them separated and get them fixed. There is probably a female in heat in the neighborhood and that is getting them riled up.
I never cut my Basset hounds, a father and a son, and the son killed his daddy during a fight in my backyard.
It sounds like the boxer is making a move up the dominance chain. Eye contact (staring) is one way dogs establish dominance. I'm guessing the boxer is mature enough where he wants to be top dog and your other dog is getting older so the boxer sees him "weakening" and feels like it's time to make his move.
Neutering may fix this or it may not. I know that's not helpful but it may be the case. Once they've recovered from the neuter and the testosterone has dissipated from their systems (not sure how long that takes) you might consider introducing them again. Personally, I'd ask the vet to recommend a dog behaviorist to help with the reintroduction. These are both breeds that are pretty assertive and are not always great with other dogs so I think professional help would give you the best chance at success.
I hope it works out for you.
ETA: I've seen this (pack hierarchy fighting) happen when there were no intact females around. I would not assume that's the cause or that neutering will fix it because it doesn't always solve the problem.
Dogs Fight. Once a male or female hit 18 months to 2 yrs they got for Top Dog. Don't matter if they fixed or not! Stop blaming females in heat! Don't have a thing to do with it IF it did Breeders would Never get any peace! These dogs may or may not be buddies again. IF they been fixed at 6 months then chances are they would have stayed friends. At this later in the game 50/50 if they tolerate each other much less be buddies. Good Luck!
It's not uncommon for 2 dogs to scuffle over a preferred food, treat, toy, sleeping spot, attention, etc. You would see staring, one growl a little louder, and then someone submits and moves away.
If they are fighting over resources, then make sure they each have their own bowl, toy, sleeping spot, etc. Fights over resources usually resolves with a growl, a stare, a snap at each other, then one backs down. Neuter, slow reintroduction, supervise them, each dog gets his own things and space, and see if that calms things down. They must be supervised at all times until they trust each other.
If it's not about resources, and they are going for each other, then you might need expert help. Neuter them but there may be more problems that you can't see. Maybe the younger dog grew confident and decides to want everything, as much as the older dog. If neither back down, you get a nasty fight as a result.
Never get between them when they fight. Do not pull one back unless you have help to pull the other one away as well. Spray them with a hose to break up a fight.
Exercise them more. A tired dog is going to be much less aggressive. Stop the dominance behavior before it gets to a fight. Correct the dominant dog immediately.
If the dogs are fighting when your husband is not home and not when he is, you need to step into the hierarchy. You need to adopt the attitude of don't you dare fight on my watch.
Lots of good advice already given. Just wanted to add that having five dogs myself (3 females, 2 males) I'm happy to say there's never been a fight. A little posturing, maybe a low growl or two but as DCforever above posted, I do have an attitude larger than any of my dogs and they don't dare fight over anything.
I have a Lab, one French Bulldog and three Boston Terriers.
I have a 6 year old french/english bulldog and a 2 year old boxer. Both unfixed males. I should have gotten them both fixed a long time ago but just never did. They are getting fixed in 2 days. We obviously have had the bulldog first but things have been fine with them both being together up until this last month. They used to sleep together and play together. We used to be able to leave them alone int he house unsupervised. There was occasionally a squabble over food but nothing resulting in injury. They have gotten in quite a few altercations over the last couple of weeks. This last weekend our bulldog got some pretty good bites so we have kept them separated since then. It always starts with the stares and then they lunge at eachother. Our bulldog has always been the more dominant dog between the two but the younger dog always used to submit or let him have his way up until now. I'm just not sure what to do. My husband is most definitly 'top dog' in the house and its obvious that both dogs know it.
Help!! I am so worried that they will never get along again and it is so heart breaking that we can't all be together in the house or backyard anymore.
You need the help of a reputable certified behaviorist to help sort this out. They will do a behavioral analysis and give you an assessment with recommendations and protocols.
You must keep your dogs separated- feed in separate rooms and keep them sequestered each in their separate rooms where they can't see each other. Keep them separated until they are completely healed from the surgery.
Once healed, you can try introducing them to each other again. Let them "meet" again on neutral territory- you and your husband each take a dog and meet at a park for instance, or walk them down separate sides of the street, but keep them separated by about 20-25 feet- let them see each other but keep them distracted so they aren't allowed the opportunity to give each other hard stares, and each human keeping their dog focused on them. Keep it short and as part of a separate walking activity with each respective human. Each day build on this- call it quits if you even sense any snarky body language and interrupt very matter of factly- ok, let's walk the other way. Keep these exercises low key, no big deal- oh look, there is your buddy over there, ok, lets walk a little.
Do 2-3 times a day, each time allowing them to walk closer and to see each other, treating for good behavior and walking them away when they begin to posture or stare. The above exercise may or may not work to "re-introduce" the dogs.
If you are going to do the above exercise, you and your husband need to pay attention to your dogs and their body language- any staring or tensing of body and you walk them away from each other and end the exercise until the next time. Don't push it- if they are tensing or staring you have pushed them too far- body language should always be loose and wiggly.
Once neutered both dogs will go through physical/hormonal changes due to the surgery. You may never be able to have them in the same room again. You will always need to monitor them and manage their interactions closely.
Human attempts to discern which dog is the aggressor or which dog is acting inappropriately are often horribly wrong. Unless you are a trained behavioral observer, by the time you notice the snarky behavior it has already been going on for far too long.
You need a trained veterinary behaviorist who will be able to write effective protocols to help you with this or alternately, a reputable trainer with experience in working with aggression cases. This may or may not be actual aggression; squabbling or working things out often looks like aggression but isn't. From what you said, that there were multiple bites indicates that this wasn't just squabbling over status. If you and your husband don't handle this properly it is a recipe for disaster. You must get professional help. If you go with a trainer, you need to find one with CPDT credentials. You might see CPDT-KA or CPDT-SA. Either indicates the trainer has a higher level of skill than the average garden variety trainer, due to having been either Skills Assessed/SA or Knowledge Assessed/KA.
Once neutered both dogs will go through physical/hormonal changes due to the surgery. You may never be able to have them in the same room again. You will always need to monitor them and manage their interactions closely.
Human attempts to discern which dog is the aggressor or which dog is acting inappropriately are often horribly wrong. Unless you are a trained behavioral observer, by the time you notice the snarky behavior it has already been going on for far too long.
You've gotten some (mostly) good advice here, but I did want to point out that neutering is likely not to have the desired results. But it's worth a try. I would also ask the vet to give the older dog a good once over to make sure he is completely healthy. As a previous poster noted, the younger dog may sense a weakness in the older dog (could be health related) that is making him want to challenge for top dog.
You definitely need a good training plan and a strong and consistent trainer to get these two to be able to co-exist in the house. I would never trust them alone together again.
I'll be quite blunt...
Reading all the negatives, and all the commitment this will require, and still no guarantee that you will be able to leave them alone again...
Add to that you're own evidence that you are not on top of things. "I should have gotten them both fixed a long time ago but just never did".
I'd re-home which ever dog you got last. sorry...but in my opinion, it is the absolute best for both dogs and safest for all of you.
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